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Virginia Department of Education · 5 days ago

Executive Director - Excellence and Best Practices

Richmond, VA

Full-time

Onsite

Director/Executive

The Virginia Department of Education is seeking a strategic leader for the role of Executive Director - Excellence and Best Practices. This position is responsible for promoting proven practices that improve student performance and academic excellence, collaborating with stakeholders to identify and replicate successful educational strategies across the Commonwealth.

E-LearningEducationHigher EducationSecondary Education

Growth Opportunities

Responsibilities

Advance Proven, Results-Based Practices That Improve Academic Achievement: The leader will work in collaboration across the agency and with stakeholders to identify schools and divisions delivering strong student results and support the replication and scaling of these high-performing practices and models

Identify and Promote Local Innovation and Replication of Success: In partnership with the Office of Innovation and partnerships like ODU’s Center for Education Opportunity and Innovation, catalogue practical, scalable, and fiscally responsible approaches while making room to support promising new practices in teaching and learning, student engagement, and postsecondary readiness. Identify and support school leaders adapting successful strategies locally, rather than relying on one-size-fits-all approaches. This includes capturing innovative approaches to the new educator workforce, transportation modernization, ways schools are rethinking space and building designs, and more

Elevate School Performance Spotlights to Scale: This leader will use state and national performance data to identify schools demonstrating high growth, high performance, lowering chronic absenteeism, and/or delivering on student readiness. A critical component is to capture these best practices grounded in objective, comparative data in partnership with the Office for School Performance to help schools use this information to drive improvement

Advise Policy and Budgetary Decisions Based on Results: This leader will inform policy decisions and resource allocation by highlighting programs, practices, and schools that achieve the greatest return on investment. This role will help advise agency leadership and policymakers on how to streamline efforts and invest meaningfully in what demonstrably works. The leader will help ensure education dollars through the agency are prioritized for programs with a track record of success in advancing academic performance and closing achievement gaps as well as those willing principals and system leaders who want to replicate successful best practices

Additionally, this position will collaborate with and create connections among multiple offices from operations and educator workforce to student pathways, opportunities and innovation. The executive will serve as the gatherer of best practices for the agency and the go-to location from the field for sharing what works

Qualification

Research-based instructional strategiesAcademic assessment systemsData-driven decision makingStrategic leadershipProject managementAnalytical abilitiesMicrosoft Office proficiencyCommunication skillsTeam collaborationTime management

Required

Knowledge of research-based instructional strategies that demonstrably improve student achievement, especially in core content areas

Capable of identifying high-performing models and supporting replication or success scaling. Able to evaluate new ideas critically while favoring scalable, proven, and fiscally responsible practices

Expertise in academic assessment systems, growth metrics, and commitment to using data, including disaggregated data, to drive decision-making, continuous improvement and student outcomes

Proficient in using data platforms, dashboards, and student performance reports to identify trends and inform decisions

Relentless focus on student outcomes, accountability, and impact with a focus on action

General understanding of state and federal accountability frameworks (e.g. ESSA, School Performance and Support Frameworks)

Ability to lead long-term strategic initiatives across agency divisions and offices as well as agency priorities. This includes managing high-level projects and driving results through others

Strong written and verbal communication skills for conveying data, findings, and policy recommendations to a variety of stakeholders (e.g. teachers, parents, General Assembly members, etc.)

Ability to synthesize evidence into clear, actionable policy recommendations for elected officials and education leaders. This includes commitment to transparency to ensuring public funds are used effectively to serve students

Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in a complex organization with competing priorities, budget constraints, and oversight

Strong project-management and time management skills, with the ability to manage multiple tasks simultaneously and meet tight deadlines

Models a strong sense of mission rooted in student success

Demonstrates ability for visionary and strategic thinking, novel solutions, and exemplary analytical abilities

Must have excellent communication skills with the ability to foster positive working relationships

Ability to supervise, inspire, and evaluate staff, with strong receptivity to team partnership and collaboration

Leverages financial and student data to inform future staffing needs and student-based distributions

Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Office, Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Access, as well as rapid communication tools

Preferred

Experience in administration at the management or executive level to drive student outcomes and solutions grounded in systems change

Graduation from an accredited college/university with studies related to the job description or an equivalent combination of education and direct working experience

An advanced college degree in Education, Entrepreneurism, Education Administration/Supervision, Education Leadership, or a related field preferred

Experience in strategic and innovative collaboration, including leading large-scale initiatives

Education and experience in performance-based leadership and systems administration