DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT
HARTFORD PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Who We Are
Hartford Public Schools (HPS) is a dynamic, thriving community committed to providing educational equity to all students. The district serves more than 17,500 PreK-12 students from Hartford and nearly 70 surrounding towns. HPS is one of the largest public school districts in Connecticut, with 39 schools, including 18 magnet schools.
What You’ll Do
While we are proud of our accomplishments, there is much left to do on behalf of our students, and the Deputy Superintendent will play a central role in strengthening the coherence and progress monitoring across our teams to build on our successes while tackling the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Reporting to the Superintendent, the Deputy Superintendent is a critical member of the district leadership team, speaking for the Superintendent when she is not present, prioritizing and facilitating the resolution of critical issues on behalf of the Superintendent and ensuring that the Superintendent is informed and engaged appropriately in key organizational decisions. This role supports the overall management of the senior leadership team to drive the implementation of the District Model for Excellence and Strategic Operating Plan.
The Deputy Superintendent will be held accountable for the following areas of responsibility: Innovation and Instructional Leadership
Drive innovation and identify new and different ways to serve the needs of our students, families, and staff.
Cultivate a commitment among all district staff to enable all students to achieve high standards.
Assess the distribution of academic supports with a clear racial equity lens, ensuring allocations provide the best resources to equitably and effectively meet the needs of all HPS’s students, families, and schools.
Support the development and implementation of the academic team’s vision for instruction and curriculum services aligned around the strategic operating plan, with a laser-like focus on the delivery of rigorous and standards-aligned instruction and instructional supports in every classroom, for every HPS student.
Executive Leadership
Support the superintendent in the overall management of the cabinet, monitoring the flow of information from the Superintendent’s office to leaders and fostering coherence and collaboration across departments.
Advise the senior leadership team on the execution of district initiatives and priorities, leading the continuous improvement cycles related to implementation of the strategic operating plan.
Ensure that the executive team follows through on key decisions in accordance with team agreement and the Superintendent’s direction.
Help superintendent and senior leadership navigate through uncertainty and risk
Facilitate and lead teams through crisis management
Strategic Planning Oversight
Provide strategic project management oversight for priority short and long-term district programs and initiatives from strategy formulation and development through execution.
Partner with and support the Senior Advisor for Strategy and Institutional Advancement to accelerate equity and organizational excellence in the context of pandemic recovery by achievement of HPS’s strategic priorities.
Partner with the Chief Performance Officer to track the district’s progress toward academic, financial, and operational goals.
Proactively address off-track programs, teams, and metrics to achieve team objectives.
Identify and lead the implementation of data-driven, evidence-based practices districtwide that maximize outcomes and provide equitable opportunities for all Hartford Public Schools students.
Conduct research and synthesize information on complex topics resulting in clear and concise recommendations to the Superintendent, the Board of Education, and senior leaders.
Support the Board Liaison to ensure all processes and cadences are implemented on time and following Board guidelines.
Collaborative Partnerships and Relationship Building
Identify the key roles needed to anticipate, troubleshoot and solve critical issues.
Ensure cross-functional collaboration and align teams to realize efficiencies.
Stand-in for the superintendent in internal meetings, serving as a key liaison between internal teams and the superintendent
Partner with internal and external stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve and streamline processes and policies.
Senior Leadership Team Management & Development
Mentor and develop the senior leadership team ensuring functional areas continue to be led by strong, mission aligned colleagues.
Where and when needed, recruit diverse new leaders externally.
Model HPS’s commitment to high quality teaching and learning, welcoming culture and nurturing climate, engaging family and community partnerships, and skillful staff and effective operations
Actively coach and develop senior leaders to be effective in their roles and in their management of their teams and functional areas.
Key Competencies Required
Equity-Centered Leadership to Ensure All Students Succeed
Demonstrate cultural fluency, sensitivity, and a strong equity lens to establish a culture of growth mindset around issues of equity and to meet the needs of our diverse students and staff.
Solicit, elevate, understand, and value--either through personal experience or empathy--the perspective of a wide variety of stakeholders.
Build authentic relationships across lines of difference (race, gender, age, socioeconomic background, LGBTQ status, etc.) through self-reflection, empathy, and a clear personal identity.
Address matters of equity, race, and bias in decision-making with clarity, confidence, openness, empathy and historical context.
Recognize race and power dynamics playing out within the district at all levels and interrupt those inequities through honest and difficult conversations and actions.
Emotional Intelligence and Professional Maturity
Maintain composure when conversations are challenging and decisions are unpopular.
Fearless in the face of conflict; maintains a keen awareness of the interests and motivations of others, and acts with integrity in a politically-charged environment.
Comfortable naming issues and addressing them openly as they occur. Not afraid to share difficult news.
Lead complex and difficult tasks transparently and effectively.
Appropriately judge the right timing to engage executive leadership around key issues.
Reflective and self-aware; accepts responsibility for decisions, mistakes and lessons learned.
Problem Solving, Decision Making, Planning, and Organization
Model integrity through actions and communications; uphold principles and values despite risks.
Exceptional critical-thinking skills and experience in leading data-driven practices at a systems-level, including the ability to analyze data, identify trends, pinpoint problems and root causes, ask probing questions, set goals, track resources, and develop innovative solutions.
Deep understanding of systems-level operations, management, and organizational design and uses this knowledge to deliver upon desired outcomes districtwide.
Pursue and implement innovative ideas and methods.
Committed to seeking out and sharing current research and evidence-based best practices.
Leadership, Influence and Relationships
Communicate effectively, tailoring messages for the audience, context, and mode of communication.
Listen compassionately with an open mind - seeking to fully understand before establishing the direction forward.
Navigate politically complex structures, relationships and dynamics to challenge ideas and enable thoughtful decisions and positive outcomes for students.
Build positive relationships and coalitions primarily with staff members and principals and inclusive of staff, students, parents and families, communities, trustees, authorizers, and partners.
Minimum Qualifications Required
Master’s degree in educational administration, or a related field from an accredited college or institution. Doctorate preferred.
Six years of supervisory/administrative/management experience, preferably in a large urban school district.
Experience as a teacher and/or school leader with a clear track record of improving academic outcomes for students with a keen focus on data-driven decision making and equity, access and inclusion for all students.
A minimum of ten (10) years of strategic senior leadership experience in a large, fast-paced, and high-functioning organization; urban school district or public institution experience preferred
A minimum of five (5) years of experience successfully leading and managing complex cross-functional projects with effective team management
HPS recruits and selects diverse professionals, who are committed to developing students’ individual, academic, social, and emotional capacities and growth within the classroom and beyond. Highly talented and qualified candidates with a passion for urban education, a commitment to our Hartford students, families, and community are strongly encouraged to apply!
An Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer, M/F/V/D
How to Apply
Alma Advisory Group is honored to be supporting Hartford Public Schools on their search for this vital role. Interested candidates should apply online at: https://apply.workable.com/almaadvisorygroup/j/AA4104B1FA/