Director of Academics

The Director of Academics is a strategic instructional leader responsible for overseeing STEM and Humanities curriculum development, implementation, and continuous improvement. This role ensures the highest quality instructional practices by supervising curriculum execution, strengthening coaching structures across all teachers and leaders, and driving academic excellence.

Key responsibilities include providing expert guidance in literacy and/or math curriculum, leading curriculum modeling and internalization, and ensuring all lesson plans are TEKS-aligned while effectively utilizing High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM). The Director will work closely with instructional coaches, teachers, and school leaders to enhance pedagogy, support professional development, and maintain rigorous academic standards across all content areas.

This position requires a deep understanding of curriculum supervision, instructional best practices, and leadership coaching to drive student achievement and instructional effectiveness at scale.

Responsibilities

Literacy and Numeracy for All

• In collaboration with other members of the Home Office Learning Team, create and implement a strategic plan to achieve our ambitious literacy and numeracy goals;
• Ensure the successful implementation of HQIM (Amplify Knowledge & Skills K-4, EL Education in grades 5-8; Bluebonnet Math K-5, Bluebonnet Math 6-8)
• Provide literacy and math curriculum support and training for all teachers and leaders;
• Observe classrooms, conduct walkthroughs, live coach teachers and leaders, and facilitate leadership professional development around literacy;
• Model teaching and coaching methods in a variety of settings with teachers and leaders (whole group, small group, individually, during grade level meetings, department meetings, etc);
• Model live coaching by rapidly diagnosing student misconceptions and addressing with in-the-moment adjusting feedback for teachers and leaders;
• Coach teachers and leaders to implement Teach Like a Champion techniques in support of effective reading and writing instruction;

Literacy and Numeracy Leadership

• Manage campus-level cohort leaders to ensure lower school teachers successfully complete TEA Reading Academies;
• Coordinate with third-party partners to ensure effective instruction and coherence between outside support and Etoile instructional vision;
• Maintain tight systems for curriculum management, ordering, receiving, organizing, distributing, collecting, and disposing of curriculum materials in accordance with best practices and TEA regulations;
• Through modeling, coaching, and accountability systems, ensure that teachers and leaders are deeply internalizing curriculum and making data-informed decisions to personalize instruction for each student;
• Run at least one working group of teachers and literacy leaders to gather stakeholder input and build capacity around lower school literacy and/or numeracy;
• Build capacity of assistant principals, instructional coaches, and leaders-in-residence to lead collaborative instructional planning, horizontally across campuses and vertically between grade levels;
• Collaborate with Superintendent, Chief Academic Officer, and Chief Schools Officer to maintain instructional coherence across grade levels and content areas;

Data Analysis and Action Planning

• Facilitate assessment action planning using a variety of measures to determine appropriate placement and specific instructional needs;
• Disaggregate and analyze student data to inform instruction, “just in time” interventions, and teacher practice;
• Collaborate with Director of Cooperative Special Programs (Special Education), EB Coordinator, and campus-based leaders to implement a tiered model of instruction for students that includes strong Tier 1 instruction, responsive Tier 2 intervention, and intensive Tier 3 intervention;
• With Director of STEM and campus-based leaders, create and implement a tiered system of support for teachers, based on T-TESS evaluations, student achievement, and culture data;
• Regularly solicit feedback from students, teachers, and leaders to improve literacy instruction
• Work with teachers and leaders to analyze data and make strategic adjustments to curriculum and instruction;
• Present data findings and action steps to the network leadership team and board members, as needed

Social Studies Leadership

• Collaborate with social studies teachers to integrate literacy-based practices into social studies instruction, ensuring students develop critical reading, writing, and research skills within historical and civic contexts;
• Support the selection and implementation of high-quality, diverse, and culturally responsive social studies resources that align with TEKS and promote historical thinking;
• Provide professional development to teachers on strategies for improving students’ comprehension of complex social studies materials, including primary and secondary sources;
• Support social studies teachers with creating rigorous end-of-unit and end-of-year assessments using STAAR item types;
• Support the creation of comprehensive Social Studies planning guidance, including Scope & Sequence and model lesson plans
• Analyze student achievement data in social studies-related literacy tasks and recommend targeted interventions to improve outcomes on the 8th grade Social Studies STAAR test

Goals

• Reduce the number of students reading below benchmark on mCLASS by 20% (Fall to Spring)
• 50% or more of our Emergent Bilingual students will grow at least one proficiency level on TELPAS Composite
• 65% or better of all students meet or exceed NWEA MAP growth goals annually at each campus
• 71% of all students in the network earn a growth point on growth for Domain 2A
• 90% of teachers report that they have the skills to successfully implement the Amplify and EL curricula
• 100% of leaders report that they have the skills to support teachers in their implementation of Amplify and EL curricula

We look for team members who embody our REACH values listed below:

• Open to sharing and implementing feedback with reverence and professionalism for the work (Respect).
• Authentic care for student results and effective teaching (Excellence).
• Setting a higher bar for yourself and others each day (Ambition).
• Honest contribution and collaboration to the community (Community).
• Do what is needed to achieve results (Hard Work).
• Believes in education as a profession and holds oneself to a high level of conduct and professionalism.
• Minimum of 40+ hours spent at school per week. 
• Additional responsibilities may include: intervention small groups during the school day, after-school tutoring or Saturday school and are based on the needs of our students.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited four-year educational institution is required (Educational Master’s Degree, Business Management, or related leadership field preferred).

• Certification: Texas teaching certification and leadership certification preferred – or ability to obtain certification within two years. Literacy, STEM, and Principal certifications preferred.
• Experience: Prior teaching & leadership experience is required, especially in a K-12 setting.
  • A minimum of three years as a teacher or school-based role is preferred.
  • A minimum of three years of professional leadership experience in high-performing urban schools, with specific experience in assistant principalship, principalship, central office, coaching, and developing teachers is preferred.
  • Bilingual (Spanish/English) preferred, but not required.
• Skills & Competencies:
  • A demonstrable commitment to pursuing equity and ensuring all students have access to high-quality education.
  • Proven ability to manage change and work in an ambiguous, fast-paced, start-up environment while driving toward clarity and solutions.
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills with the ability to work collaboratively with staff, students, and families.
  • Demonstrated success in fostering student achievement and language acquisition.
  • Strong understanding of emotional intelligence, with the ability to manage emotions effectively, ensuring impactful school leadership.
  • Demonstrated success in fostering student achievement and language acquisition with the EB population.
  • Strong knowledge of TEKS and proficiency standards.

• Commitment to student success and a growth mindset.
• Ability to build meaningful relationships with students, families, and staff.
• Upper level district or school-level experience (principal, district level coordinator, or higher)
• Experience teaching lower school literacy in high-performing urban schools with exemplary student results
• Experience driving positive change through adults in a school setting
• A demonstrable commitment to pursuing equity
• Ability to multi-task and work within an ambiguous, fast-moving, start-up environment, while driving toward clarity and solutions
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Bilingual (Spanish and English) preferred
• Flexibility to travel between two campuses as needed.

Benefits & Perks

• Competitive salary based on experience and merit.
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance. District life insurance.
• Participation in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS).
• Ongoing professional development and leadership opportunities.
• Flexible work schedule with designated weekly remote days

Étoile Academy does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, sex or disability, in admission or access to, or treatment of employment in its programs and activities. Any person having inquiries concerning the organization's compliance with the regulations implementing Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), or Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), may contact HR at 713.265.8657.