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Lead a school
Success Charter Network is an ambitious charter management network of four high-performing charter schools in New York City. Over the next decade, our network will grow to 40 schools that provide access to high-quality education to children throughout New York City. We are looking for dynamic, results-oriented and relentless urban educators to join our growing movement as Leadership Residents. This unique opportunity will prepare the Leadership Resident to open a school in 2011 by equipping him/her with the skills necessary to launch and lead a school.

Join our movement
In 2006, Success Charter Network launched our flagship school, Harlem Success Academy Charter School. With the opening of three additional schools in 2008, we are currently serving more than 1,500 students. We plan to launch three new schools in the fall of 2010 that all provide academically rigorous and well-rounded instruction in historically underserved communities.

Educate the whole child
The mission of Harlem Success Academy Charter Schools is to provide scholars with the tools to succeed in life. We believe in educating the whole child. To this end, Harlem Success uses Success for All and balanced literacy to teach our scholars how to read and write, TERC Investigations and Envisions to push our scholars' mathematical understanding and critical thinking. Harlem Success is well known for its discovery-based science curriculum that scholars receive every day.

Harlem Success is dedicated to academic excellence, character development, and extracurricular achievement with college graduation as an end goal. Our extended day allows us to instruct scholars in athletics, dance, music, arts and chess in addition to a rigorous literacy, math, social studies, geography and science curriculum. Scholars enjoy showcasing their talent in annual concerts, shows and tournaments.

Envision excellence
Our faculty, scholars and families are committed to excellence. In 2009, 100% of Harlem Success third graders passed the NYS math exam, with 71% achieving the top score of "4," ranking the school #1 out of all public charters in the state. 95% of Harlem Success third graders passed the NYS English Language Arts exam, with nearly a quarter achieving the top score of "4," ranking the school #2 out of all public charters in the state.

Harlem Success outperformed its school district by nearly 25 percentage points in English Language Arts. The percentage of students who are "advanced proficient" in math surpasses even the affluent Upper East Side of Manhattan by nearly 35%.

Develop strong character
In addition to success on NYS exams, Harlem Success is committed to creating a culture where students exercise respect, responsibility, and integrity. All Harlem Success Academy Charter Schools implement the A.C.T.I.O.N values in their schools to hold scholars to the highest behavioral expectations and give teachers a common language around developing strong character.

A.C.T.I.O.N. stands for Agency, Curiosity, Try and Try, Integrity, Others and No Shortcuts. We teach our scholars to take responsibility for their own actions, to always ask questions, to work harder today than yesterday, to be honest and trustworthy, to be a nice and thoughtful member of their community and to never look for the easy way out.

Invest others in our success
Harlem Success Academy families sign contracts yearly to show their commitment to our shared mission. In order to get every child in to college, we are dedicated to making every minute of instruction count in our schools. Our faculty is reflective and open to feedback in order to continuously improve and achieve our ambitious goals.

The Position

The Principal will be a strong, innovative leader with solid academic credentials who will lead a K-3 school (eventually K-8) to the next level of achievement. The Principal's leadership will motivate and inspire faculty, scholars, and parents to fulfill the school's goals. He or she will be responsible for supervision, evaluation, improvement and accountability within the school.

The Principal is the overall leader of the school, with a dominant focus on instructional leadership. The Principal will be held accountable for the continuous improvement of the school and its staff and for ensuring high levels of student achievement.

Responsibilities

Leadership/Management

* Managing competing priorities and deadlines in a fast paced environment
* Responding in real time to all staff concerns
* Leading and maintaining high standards of excellence for the school-based team
* Cultivating positive relationships with all members of school community
* Developing and managing staff performance
* Building a cohesive, strong culture within the school that is a reflection of the broader mission of Success Charter Network


Instructional Excellence

* Implementing new strategies for instruction to enhance student achievement
* Leveraging formative assessment data to guide learning support and drive instruction, curriculum, and professional development
* Developing and managing accountability programs to ensure instructional excellence and academic achievement
* Creating and maintaining a school schedule that supports high level of student achievement


Achievement

* Systematically assessing strengths and weaknesses of the school
* Providing innovative leadership and solutions to improve the school


Teacher Development

* Ensuring ongoing improvement through lesson observations, consistent use of data, collaborative planning and inquiry, informal support strategies, and coaching
* Evaluating teacher performance on a weekly basis and providing consistent feedback to improve instruction
* Providing inspiration, mentoring and instructional leadership to staff

* Demonstrated success developing and cultivating productive relationships with teachers, students, parents, staff and external stakeholders
* Experience managing a high-performing team
* Record of achievement as an elementary or middle school teacher for 5+ years, preferably as an urban educator
* Dedication and passion for our school's unique vision, professional standards, and values
* High level of organization and resourcefulness, with a keen ability to be on top of the day-to-day management of a school
* Strong ability to multi-task
* Humble, reflective and willing to continually improve
* Ability to prioritize effectively to accomplish the most important tasks without losing sight of other details
* Relentlessness in the pursuit of excellence and a "whatever it takes" attitude
* Firm grasp of curriculum and an unwavering commitment to data-driven instruction
* Exemplary oral and written communication skills with the ability to inspire others to meet their goals
* Sophisticated analytical abilities
* Record of top educational performance in undergraduate and graduate degree
* Stamina to handle long days and the intensity required to open a new high-performing charter school

To apply, please visit us at www.harlemsuccess.org/careers. Resumes without cover letters will not be considered. No phone calls, please.