Payroll and Senior Accounting Specialist

Compensation: $42.25 - $45.68 / hour (DOE)

Status: Full-time, Non-exempt, Year-round

Location: Richmond, CA

When you join our team...

You’ll be the financial heartbeat of our school operations. This is a non-management, highly execution-focused position where your passion for precision and your ability to connect with people come together. You’ll manage the day-to-day business office mechanics, ensuring our 150+ team members are paid accurately and on time, while maintaining a rock-solid general ledger.

As a vital bridge between the Business Office, People Operations (HR), and our Instructional Team, you will keep our school in excellent standing. You will ensure every dollar is spent legally, effectively, and in perfect balance so our educators can focus on what they do best: teaching.

💡 Note to Applicants: While experience in California K-12 school finance (SACS, CalSTRS) is a major plus, it is not required. We are seeking a rock-solid California payroll and general accounting professional who loves working with people. If you bring the foundational payroll and accounting expertise, we will fully train you on our school-specific compliance frameworks.

What you’ll be doing...

• Execute full-cycle bi-weekly payroll for over 150+ employees, meticulously verifying timesheets and tracking data.
• Manage specialized deductions including garnishments, stipends, and teacher summer hold-back payments.
• Streamline operations by maintaining internal checklists, workflows, and zero-defect systems.
• Protect compliance by calculating precise final paychecks and PTO payouts under strict California labor timelines.
• Partner deeply with People Operations/HR to maintain flawless data flow, managing retirement plan enrollments and distributing tracking reports (overtime, leave balances, headcount).

General Accounting Support

• Drive month-end and year-end closing tasks, posting journal entries and processing accruals for restricted/unrestricted funds.
• Prepare and post bi-weekly payroll journals directly into Sage Intacct.
• Reconcile and clear specific payroll-related balance sheet accounts (FSA, life insurance).
• Audit expense data by supporting the accurate coding of vendor invoices and employee reimbursements against approved budgets.
• Monitor daily cash positions and feed clean data to the finance team for cash flow projections.

What we’re looking for...

You are tech-forward, highly analytical, and a systems-thinker. You love a structured checklist, but you also have a customer-service heart and genuinely enjoy helping employees solve problems.

You’ll need to have:

• 3+ years of hands-on, full-cycle payroll processing for an organization with 150+ employees.
• 2+ years of general ledger accounting experience, including journal entries, month-end accruals, and balance sheet reconciliations.
• Strong command of California Wage & Hour rules (overtime, final check timelines, meal/rest break rules).
• Advanced tech literacy, including mid-to-enterprise accounting/payroll software (e.g., Sage Intacct, Rippling, Concur) and advanced Excel skills (VLOOKUPs, Pivot Tables).

Even better if you have:

• Experience in a fast-paced public school, charter school, or non-profit environment.
• Prior familiarity with California school systems like CalSTRS, SACS guidelines, or the CDE GMART/ConApp portals.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Employment eligibility will include fingerprints/Live Scan, TB screen, and other employment clearance. We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our school.

An Unparalleled Benefits Package: Invested in You

We offer retirement benefits (CalSTRS for eligible staff and an elective 403(b) matching program for those not eligible for CalSTRS).

Here are the highlights that make a difference.

Health & Financial Security

• We proudly cover 100% of most premiums for medical, dental, vision, chiropractic, and acupuncture—a commitment that extends to your family*. Our current benefits package represents an unrivaled value proposition in the field, offering far more generous coverage than you would typically find elsewhere. Experience true financial peace of mind with us.
• Robust Retirement Plans: Secure your future with participation in CalSTRS (California State Teachers’ Retirement System) and an elective 403(b) matching program.
• Loyalty & Retention Bonus: Your dedication is rewarded! Receive a 5% base salary increase at key loyalty milestones (5, 10, and 15 years of service).

100% coverage extends to either dependents or spouse.