Director, Spring-Mar Preschool
Hours:
School Hours, Monday – Friday 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. with some at home work
This position averages 31 hours a week.
The Directorship entails the following duties:
Staff Duties:
The Director shall:
- Serve as a Master Teacher, visit the classrooms on an ongoing basis, and provide ongoing classroom training and support for teaching staff.
- Manage the teaching staff and aides.
- Plan and conduct an orientation for teachers, ideally held during a weekend evening before setup week, and for any new teachers who join the staff throughout the school year. Director shall assist teachers with presentations for the Parent Orientation.
- Evaluate, design, and develop Spring-Mar’s programs, schedules, themes, activities, and curriculum on an on-going basis, with input from the teaching staff. They shall implement all new programs in conjunction with the teaching staff and develop a current curriculum summary for handout. They shall ensure all programs conform to Spring-Mar’s educational philosophy and the children’s needs. Director shall be responsible for posting all themes on the School Calendar. They shall set up and maintain the school calendar, including field trips, school related meetings, and outside contracted teacher services to include, but not be limited to, a Music Teacher and a Movement Teacher.
- Be responsible for the training of all new teachers and teachers’ aides. Training may include partnering a current teacher or aide with a new teacher or aide and should commence upon employment and last for a period of ninety (90) days.
- Conduct monthly staff meetings and additional curriculum meetings as needed. They shall ensure that each teacher has a current list of substitute teachers for his/her class. List may include a maximum of two (2) paid substitute teachers to be paid on as-needed basis. Director may be asked to serve as a substitute teacher when no other substitute can be found for a class.
- Create and maintain a list of aide and Director substitutes to be approved by the President. Director shall work with the President to provide Directorship coverage for planned and unplanned absences.
- Assist teachers with planning the start of the new school year.
- Be responsible for evaluating all teaching staff each school year. The first observation is to occur no later than twelve (12) weeks after start of school, with an oral report made to the appropriate teacher within two (2) weeks of the evaluation. The second evaluation should occur in January/February, at which time a written report will be made to the appropriate teacher within two (2) weeks of the evaluation. If performance needs improvement, the Director will develop a written action plan with a second evaluation to occur six (6) weeks after the action plan has been communicated to the teacher. If needed, Director may confer with the Human Resources chair and the President regarding evaluations.
- Research and implement appropriate in-services and educational training for staff.
Personnel Duties
The Director shall:
- Be responsible for hiring teachers and staff with assistance from the Human Resources Chairperson as needed and final approval from President.
- Authorize overtime payments for aides as necessary in accordance with their hourly rate with Board approval.
- Plan staff social events such as birthday lunches, holiday parties, or other staff get togethers when deemed appropriate.
School Duties
The Director shall:
- Greet parents and children on a regular basis. Handle all parental concerns and complaints in a professional, confidential, and courteous manner.
- Open up the school in the mornings by walking through the classrooms, bathrooms, and the upstairs areas; checking that rooms are in good condition without excess trash from previous users; turning on air purifiers and lights; removing thermostat covers; opening windows enough to provide ventilation; charging tablets and setting up the kitchenette area on the first day of the week; retrieving the mail from the church office or the mailbox; and any other necessary morning duties that may arise.
- Do a walkthrough before leaving at the end of the day to make sure all spaces are in good condition; all lights and air purifiers are off; thermostats are set for no occupancy and thermostat covers are on; doors are shut and locked; and alarm is set upon leaving.
- Serve as a liaison between the Board of Directors, staff, and the membership. They shall encourage a “community” environment by way of positive and open communication between the Board, staff, and the membership. They shall report monthly at the Board of Directors meetings with respect to current events and issues pertaining to the staff and classes. They shall inform President of the Board of any pertinent situations occurring at the school. They shall serve as advisor with respect to any Board issues that affect the curriculum, the staff, or the children. They shall implement all appropriate action plans as developed by the Board. They shall will be consulted on any commitments made by the Board involving the teachers and staff.
- Support payroll activities including approving time sheets.
- Consult with President and Treasurer on school budget. Director is responsible for the majority of purchases for the school.
- Contribute to the Parent Handbook as necessary.
- Update the Staff Handbook yearly and distribute to staff before the initial orientation meeting. Reviewing the Staff Handbook at the initial orientation meeting serves as the staff orientation as required by licensing.
- Prepare articles as the Director for the Spring-Mar Newsletter, as appropriate.
- Produce and distribute memos necessary to inform the membership. This includes, but is not limited to, information about field trips, special activities, and parent-teacher conferences.
- Coordinate all licensing issues. They shall ensure school is prepared for visits by licensing officials. They shall keep abreast of all changes to Virginia Commonwealth licensing standards and resolve any licensing issues that are identified during licensing reviews. They shall report all such activities and changes to the Board of Directors and document them appropriately.
- Serve as a point of contact with AUUC, Licensing Officer, Fire Department, Staff, and Board of Directors.
- Work on scheduling with the President and shall send the list of all school dates and evening meeting to AUUC admin in the Spring for the next school year. These should include Board meetings, Membership Meetings, Back to School Night which serves as Parent Orientation, Work Parties, Open House for registration, setup dates, school start dates, end dates, and days off.
- Conduct required evacuation, shelter-in-place, and lock down drills and maintain required documentation.
- Maintain all student, parent, and personnel files for the school. They shall ensure all staff files are complete prior to the beginning of school. They shall understand and know the location of all medical and emergency file records.
- Coordinate with Membership Chair to notify parents if files are incomplete and ensure all student and parent records are on file prior to the beginning of school.
- Maintain information regarding health and safety at the school and maintain the medical kits in the school, ensuring that the kit is checked monthly for completeness; maintain field trip kits; and notify membership appropriately when a child has contracted a contagious disease.
- With the assistance of the aides, work to ensure that the Emergency supplies are updated annually, with expired items being replaced at the beginning of the school year.
- Maintain the school office.
- Conduct school tours and speak to potential members on an as-needed basis.
- Participate in the set-up of Spring-Mar one (2) weeks prior to the opening of school and the shutdown of Spring-Mar one (1) week after the close of school.
- Participate in the yearly evaluation process of the school by completing the staff evaluation form distributed by the Human Resource Chairperson.
- Represent Spring-Mar at public functions. They shall maintain a professional image as a leader of the Spring-Mar Community.
- Be responsible for handling all school, personnel, and Board of Directors matters in a discreet and personal manner.
- Be responsible for performing all other school-related duties as may be required to make the school function.
Requirements
This candidate shall have excellent communication and organizational skills. This is a leadership position that requires managerial skills in a wide range of areas. Must be able to handle a variety of aspects including personnel, educational, financial, administrative, and written documentation with follow-through skills. Professional administrative experience is extremely desirable. Must be able to handle issues of a sensitive nature with a professional and confidential manner.
Educational requirements are those required by the state of Virginia (8 Va. Admin. Code §20-780-190):
A. Program directors shall be at least 21 years of age and shall meet one of the
following:
- A graduate degree in a child-related field such as elementary education, nursing, or recreation from a college or university and six months of programmatic experience;
- An endorsement or bachelor’s degree in a child-related field such as elementary education, nursing, or recreation from a college or university and one year of programmatic experience;
- Forty-eight semester hours or 72 quarter hours of college credit from a
college or university of which 12 semester hours or 18 quarter hours are in
child-related subjects and one year of programmatic experience; - Two years of programmatic experience with one year in a staff supervisory
capacity and at least one of the following education backgrounds:- A one-year early childhood certificate from a college or university that consists of at least 30 semester hours;
- A child development credential that requires:
- High school program completion or the equivalent;
- 480 hours working with children in a group which could include a supervised practicum;
- Determination of competency in promoting children’s development, providing a safe and healthy environment, managing the classroom environment or childhood program, and promoting positive and productive relationships with parents or guardians; and
- At least 120 hours of child-related training taught by an individual or by an organization with expertise in early childhood teacher preparation provided that the training facilitator:
- Documents the student’s mastery and competence;
- Observes the student’s application of competence in a classroom setting;
- Has a combination of at least six years of education (leading to a degree or credential in a child-related field) or programmatic experience; and
- Has at least 12 semester hours or 180 hours in a child-related field, a child development credential or equivalent, and two years of programmatic experience with one year in a staff supervisory capacity; or
- A certification of qualification from an internationally or nationally
B. Program directors without management experience shall have one college course in a business-related field, 10 hours of management training, or one child care management
course that satisfactorily covers the management functions of:1. Planning;2. Budgeting; 3. Staffing; and 4. Monitoring. Management experience is defined as at least six months of
on-the-job training in an administrative position that requires supervising, orienting, training, and scheduling staff.
C. For program directors of therapeutic child day programs and special needs child day programs, education and programmatic experience shall be in the group care of children with special needs.
D. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section, a person between 19 and 21 years of age may serve as a program director at a short-term program serving only school age children if
the program director has daily supervisory contact by a person at least 21 years of age who meets one of the program director qualification options.
E. A program director employed prior to October 13, 2021, who met the education and experience qualifications in effect immediately prior to October 13, 2021, and who has been continuously employed as a child day center director, is considered to have met the requirements of this section.
How to Apply
If you think you’d be a good fit, we’d love to hear from you! Please send your resume along with the completed application below to [email protected].