Dean of Academics

Founded in 2019 by two longtime educators, Brooklyn Independent Middle School was created to reimagine what middle school can be for students, families, and educators alike. We believe young people thrive in environments that balance academic rigor with deep relationships, high expectations with genuine care, and structure with joy.

At BKI, we serve families and students who are seeking something different: a school that feels both academically ambitious and deeply human. We bridge the space between traditional public and private education by offering a personalized, inclusive, and accessible learning experience rooted in equity, belonging, and growth.

Above all, we are a community that leads with care - because we know that when students feel known, supported, and challenged, they do extraordinary things.

The Opportunity

The Dean of Academics is an integral role at BKI. As part of the BKI Leadership Team, the Dean of Academics will work closely with BKI’s Co-Founders and Principal to cultivate a thriving student and staff culture focused on joy, belonging and a love of learning.

The Dean of Academics will support BKI’s mission by being one of the primary resources for curriculum and instruction development at Brooklyn Independent. An ideal candidate for this role is an educator with a proven track record of student achievement and an enthusiasm for developing fellow teachers.

At BKI teacher development looks like:

• Consistently learning and unlearning best practices for student engagement and achievement (school driven and individually)
• Mentor and coach a caseload of teachers (6 - 8 - given the size of the team) by:
  • Building strong, collaborative relationships with teachers
  • Observing teachers weekly to provide insightful feedback and planning/leading meetings around teaching practices, student work, data and other key BKI development goals
  • Model effective teaching practices for teachers in classrooms and through whole school moments
  • Having crucial conversations, as needed, around alignment to BKI values and expectations
  • Actively developing a diverse range of educators on their mindsets, skills and ability to drive student performance
• Participating in, planning and leading professional development around school-wide goals and cultural/instructional areas of development
• Participating in frequent Leadership Team Meetings and Student Support Meetings to drive academic achievement, student culture and staff culture
• Providing supplemental instruction to students to support BKI’s goals and mission:
  • Community Meeting/Circle
  • Coverage
  • Small Group Intervention or Support (ex. intervention around writing based on an essay, homework support, etc. )
• Facilitate the collection and organization of data to drive BKI’s goals around student achievement and communicate to staff and families (ex. Map Testing)
• Collaborate in the development, as needed, around additional resources and tools to drive BKI’s strategic goals
• Modeling and embodying our restorative practices and keeping our community accountable to our values and vision around restorative practices (ex. planning or facilitating a restorative conversation with a teacher)

Other Responsibilities Include:

• Ensuring our family communication reflects our promise to BKI’s community
  • Monitoring and helping facilitate strong family communication from staff
  • Monitoring and helping facilitate family communication to staff (as needed)
  • Staying current on all family communication from various stakeholders (Co-Founders, Principal, Student Support and Operations)
  • Modeling and leading mindsets and practices around family communication
• Cultivating and maintaining a strong student culture founded on joy, care and rigor
  • Monitoring the success of BKI’s Circle/Community Meeting Programing
  • Overseeing the success of advisory programming and developing BKI grade level teams through Grade Level Leader Coaching
  • Responding to student behavior needs as they arise with teachers and school leaders
• Support and ownership around school-wide systems:
  • Participating and leading duties such as arrival, dismissal, AM/PM Advisory, Lunch/Recess, etc.
  • Managing systems through consistent observation and feedback
  • Proactively problem solving with key stakeholders to improve systems

At BKI, we drive our own development and are looking for teammates that are excited to do that work alongside us! We want innovators and educators with an entrepreneur spirit to add to our growing community. This means we need teammates that are excited about building and executing at the same time. Teammates that have been the most successful in our community are self-starters who are always looking for ways to improve and are excited about taking the initiative to solve problems, lead projects and tackle challenges.

A Typical Day as Dean of Academics

7:30 - 8:30 - Pre-Student Arrival - This quiet time before student arrival is a chance to make sure that everything is set up for the day. During this time the Dean of Academics will review email, respond to family inquiries, plan and prepare for individual meetings, follow up with teachers about time-sensitive information and send meeting agendas.

8:30 - 9:05 - Student Arrival The Dean of Academics will support student arrival by greeting students and ensuring students have a strong start to the day. This might mean chatting with students that need an individual check-in, relaying information to grade level teams about student needs and observing advisories to ensure we are consistently setting a positive and successful tone for students’ day.

9:05 - 12:45 - Core Academic Periods During the core academic time the Dean of Academics will observe teachers and provide feedback on instruction and culture, meet with various teams and leaders including the Student Support Team and the Leadership Team to review school wide goals and monitor systems and communicate with families around academic needs.

12:45 - 1:30 - Lunch/Recess The Dean of Academics will be responsible for ensuring the cultural success of our lunch and recess periods. This means attending lunch and recess to both build and foster relationships with kids but also ensure the systems are strong during this time to foster student success. Occasionally lunch and recess might be used to host meetings, working groups, etc.

1:30 - 3:15 - Elective Periods - During elective periods the Dean of Academics will be hosting coaching meetings for teachers. This can include data, student work, observation feedback, lesson planning and practice.

3:15 - 4:00 - Student Dismissal/Post Dismissal The Dean of Academics will be responsible for supporting student dismissal and wrapping up all loose ends of the day. This could look like supporting our Operations Manager with any afterschool concerns or meeting with teachers. Occasionally after school meetings or events will happen that the Dean of Students and Academics will need to attend or facilitate.

Who You Are

Our ideal candidates have an unwavering commitment to equity work in the education space and the pursuit of student achievement and growth.

Beyond that, you are:

Committed to Kids: You find joy and fulfillment working with middle schoolers. You pride yourself in knowing individual details about every child in the building and believe that trusting relationships are a crucial component of student achievement. You make time to hear about kids’ weekends and never trivialize their feelings. When kids make mistakes, you always assume the best and look for ways to rebuild and repair - not punish.

A Family Advocate: You deeply believe that family partnership is the bedrock of strong school communities and pride yourself on being a bridge between school and home. You intentionally build relationships with families through frequent positive communication and are proactive to ensure families are the most informed and prepared to support their children during this unique developmental time. You feel confident including families in all aspects of restorative work and run towards signs of conflict with curiosity and compassion.

A Forever Teacher: You love the classroom and are excited by opportunities to teach kids. You approach teaching with a great deal of curiosity and always look for ways to improve your craft or the craft of people you coach. You believe that teaching is the highest calling and relish the opportunity to see classrooms in action. For you, instructional leadership is about collaboration with fellow educators and ensuring every teacher feels celebrated, challenged and supported.

Relentlessly Positive and Optimistic: You have a strong sense of humor and perspective that allows you to approach inevitable conflicts and difficulties with optimism. When faced with a problem, you can make space for the feelings that arise without succumbing to placing blame and always look to find solutions. You have an ability to manage the discomfort that often comes with conflict but believe it builds clarity. This trust in the process allows you to lead with hope.

Dedicated to Relationships: Relationships are an integral part of your professional life. You build community in your classroom, on your team and with families. People might say that this comes naturally to you, but you understand that this is very intentional work that is more than just being a “people person.” You acknowledge, value, and celebrate the identities and contributions of your community in all their forms.

Skilled at Communication: You know the importance of listening, asking questions and leading with vulnerability. You prioritize direct, compassionate communication over the absence of tension and seek to channel conflict in positive ways that leads to greater healing and wholeness for the community. You understand the importance of frequent and consistent communication and know that actions speak louder than words.

Strong Teammate: You recognize the interdependence of a team and realize that trust is demonstrating commitment, openness to feedback and accountability to each of your teammates. You are nimble enough to handle a founding school environment and can take initiative when needed. When the need to be flexible or adapt arises, it does not interfere with your ability to be successful and stay positive.

Required Qualifications

• An accomplished leader with 6+ years of experience in the classroom; 3+ years in an educational leadership role (dean, instructional coach, etc.)
• Experience as part of a founding school community or major school reform effort a plus
• A demonstrated track record of student achievement both as a classroom teacher and as a teacher leader
• Experience with Restorative Teaching practices (Morningside Center Teaching for Teaching Social Responsibility a plus) and passion for building liberatory systems in education
• Strong organizational and time management skills
• Strong knowledge of the current state standards and ability to translate standards into learning objectives
• Data driven educator with experience assessing student learning and developing plans to address student needs on a daily, weekly and quarterly basis
• Understanding of differentiation and leveled supports both academically and behaviorally; comfort with designing and implementing individual student plans
• Commitment to professional growth and active participation in professional development/1:1 coaching focused on academic achievement, social emotional development, and social justice

Interview Process

We want our candidates to KNOW us when they join the team. That is why our interview process is more extensive but it means we can both say “YES!” with confidence:

• Phone screening (30 minutes)
• Performance task (1 - 2 hours)
• In-Person Interview (3 - 4 hours)
  • Demo Lesson
  • Observation of Classes
  • Interview and Role-Plays
  • Student and/or Teacher Conversations
• Interview Follow-Up and References (30 minutes)
• Board Member and/or Family Committee Chat (30 minutes)

Compensation

The starting compensation for this role is between $90,000 to $120,000. The starting pay will depend on various factors that may include but are not limited to professional experience, education, training and certifications.

Equity Statement

Brooklyn Independent is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to building a culturally diverse faculty and staff. BKI does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, veteran, or military status. We are committed to the inclusion of all qualified individuals in the hiring process. If you require reasonable accommodation(s) to participate in the application or interview process, please contact us deans@bkindependent.org

How to apply

Please complete a short questionnaire and submit a resume at our website. All invitations to interview go through our website portal. Please do not apply posting websites like Idealist or Indeed. https://www.bkindependent.org/careers