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LRSD Secondary School Principal Pool (middle school & high school)

The students of Little Rock School District need your talent, expertise, passion, and leadership!

About the Little Rock School District

We are seeking highly motivated and innovative practitioners to join our team at Little Rock School District (LRSD). We seek individuals who are radically relentless about re-envisioning the landscape of public education in Little Rock, Arkansas and making a significant difference in the lives of public school students, parents, school leaders, teachers, and central office employees.

LRSD serves approximately 20,000 students in the capital city of Arkansas. As part of a comprehensive transformation effort to become a world-class school district, LRSD intends to attract and develop a high-performing, competitively compensated, and a mission-driven educator workforce which will lead efforts to drive instructional excellence and achieve significant outcomes for ALL LRSD students in every LRSD school.

Among school-related factors, we know teachers have the biggest impact on student achievement (Opper, 2019). School principals, responsible for establishing and maintaining the conditions for which teachers work, have the second largest impact on student outcomes but principals’ effects are larger in scope because they are averaged over all students in a school rather than a classroom (Grisson, Egalite, & Lindsay, 2021). For these reasons, LRSD is implementing a new process to identify a pool of high-quality school leaders ready to #reimagine the schooling experience for our students in Little Rock.

Interested individuals should carefully and closely review this vacancy announcement in its entirety - including the principal pool application and selection process detailed below.

POSITION OVERVIEW

We believe that all students can achieve at the highest levels and are committed to providing opportunities that will permit all students to do so. The LRSD Secondary Principal will provide leadership and administration, which will motivate instructional and support personnel to strive for superior performance to provide the best possible opportunities for student growth and development, both educationally and personally. To accomplish this, we need inspiring leaders who:

• Are passionate about student achievement and closing the opportunity gap
• Believe that the urgency of closing this gap is too great to accept excuses of any kind.
• Motivate, inspire, and support their teachers and staff while holding all adults in the building accountable for ensuring student success.

The Secondary Principal will report to the Assistant Superintendent for School Performance.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

The below statements are intended to describe the general nature and scope of work being performed by this position. This is not a complete listing of all responsibilities, duties, and/or skills required. Other duties may be assigned.

Instructional Leadership 

• Lead the school’s vision, mission, and strategic goals to support college/career readiness and academic and socioemotional success for all students;
• Will innovate, challenge the status quo and look for new ways of driving improvement within the local school via the engagement and partnership of multiple stakeholders;
• Drive rapid and dramatic instructional improvements by implementing strategies in line with the priority areas identified in the school improvement plan;
• Support and supervise the design of rigorous, standards-based instruction with measurable outcomes;
• Implement an observation and feedback cycle that ensures continuous improvement in teaching and learning;
• Analyze student achievement results to identify areas of need and inform school improvement efforts;
• Develop and implement a professional development plan to address identified areas of need; and
• Develop a collegial environment that supports teacher leadership, collaboration, and growth.

Management and Operations 

• Ensure a safe and nurturing environment for students, staff, and families;
• Oversee the recruitment and hiring of diverse, highly-qualified staff;
• Strategically align people, time and money to drive student achievement;
• Apply teacher and staff performance management systems in a way that ensures a culture of continuous improvement, support, and accountability;
• Oversee the operations of the school in partnership with other allocated leadership staff; and
• Comply with all state and federal laws, and policies.

Family and Community Engagement 

• Actively advocate for and engage family and community;
• Strengthen teacher and staff capacity to cultivate and sustain meaningful partnerships with families of diverse backgrounds and with community members that support student achievement and student well-being; and
• Manage partnerships.

JOB EXPECTATIONS:

• Are focused on results and have proven success in increasing student achievement and adult performance in a designated turnaround and/or high poverty/Title I school;
• Influence and motivate others to reach their potential;
• Are solution-oriented and creative problem solvers with experience in data analysis and creating and managing systems;
• Set high expectations and communicate them to a variety of stakeholders;
• Understand, communicate and effectively interact with people across cultures;
• Continually reflect and seek feedback to improve their practice;
• Have demonstrated perseverance in their career and education;
• Thrive in a fast-paced, high-pressure, and change-oriented environment; and
• Possesses strong pedagogical skills and is highly effective at coaching adults.
• Perform other related duties and tasks as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• A Master's Degree or higher with a major in Educational Administration/Leadership from an accredited institution.
• A valid Arkansas educator license (Teacher and Building Level Administrator)
• Successful school or district leadership experience required;
• At least three (3) years of successful teaching experience.
• Must satisfy all state-required background checks

Such alternatives and additions to the above qualifications may be deemed appropriate by the Superintendent. Such alternatives to the above qualifications as the Board may require.

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT:

Elementary School Principal

• Twelve (12) month (245 days) contract Range 124 - $70,804 – $123,023

Middle School or K-8 Principal

• Twelve (12) month (245 days) contract Range 125 - $74,345 – $129,175

High School Principal

• Twelve (12) month (245 days) contract Range 126 - $78,063 – $135,633

Precise placement within the salary range will be determined based on education and experience. In addition to a competitive benefits package, additional compensation may be available to principals selected to lead one of LRSD’s designated Priority Schools.

PRINCIPAL POOL APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCESS:

Step 1 - Completed online application (www.lrsdjobs.org) to include:

• Resume and proof of required certification or eligibility for Arkansas certification (uploaded to application)
• Three (3) Reference Letters (uploaded to the application)
• Impact Statement (uploaded to application)
  • An impact statement details how the applicant directly impacted student and/or adult outcomes while serving as an educator in any capacity (i.e., teacher assistant, teacher, instructional coach, assistant principal, etc.). Any impact data provided by the applicant will be verified. The impact statement should not exceed two pages.

*Resume, certification, reference letters, and impact statement are required in order for the application to be reviewed*

Step 2 - Applications will be reviewed and screened on an ongoing basis. Applicants who pass the application screening process will be invited to participate in one of three principal pool interview days on the dates below. Invited applicants will participate in a series of individual and group interview activities during interview day to assess critical instructional leadership competencies.

1. 1/25/25 - Saturday - 8 am - 1 pm - Principal Pool Interview Day #1
• To be considered for Principal Pool Interview Day #1, your complete application must be submitted by Monday, January 13th.
2.  2/22/25 - Saturday - 8 am - 1 pm - Principal Pool Interview Day #2
• To be considered for Principal Pool Interview Day #2, your complete application must be submitted by Monday, February 10th.

*Experienced principals from other districts with a documented and verified track record of success will be automatically placed in the LRSD Principal Pool without participating in principal pool interview day.

Step 3 - Applicants who demonstrate satisfactory instructional leadership competencies during interview day will be placed in the LRSD principal pool. Once an actual principal vacancy has been identified, only sitting LRSD principals and individuals admitted into the LRSD principal pool will be eligible to interview or be appointed to a LRSD vacant principal position.  

References:

Opper, Isaac M., Teachers Matter: Understanding Teachers' Impact on Student Achievement. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2019. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR4312.html.

Grissom, Jason A., Anna J. Egalite, and Constance A. Lindsay. 2021. “How Principals Affect Students and Schools: A Systematic Synthesis of Two Decades of Research.” New York: The Wallace Foundation. Available at http://www.wallacefoundation.org/principalsynthesis.