Art Department Head 2027-2028

Job Description

Art Department Head 2027-2028

Germantown Friends School seeks a dynamic head for its art department, starting in the 2027-2028 school year. We seek someone who has the creativity, drive, and experience to lead a department with a long history of excellence. The department head will be specifically charged with continuing the work to imagine and bring to life the opportunities that our new award-winning arts building, the All School Commons, and its Abigail R. Cohen Center for the Arts affords.

Art education is integrated into the student experience at Germantown Friends School, with subject specialists teaching a required curriculum that extends from early childhood into the upper school years. At every level, our art faculty engages students in hands-on art exploration that fosters not only understanding and skill but also cultivates joy and confidence as art makers. Space is made for the process of the individual student. Our curriculum extends expansively across various media, including drawing and painting, color and design, photography, ceramics, sculpture, woodworking, and digital art and design. Upper school students, and to a lesser extent, middle school students, have the option to choose from a variety of elective courses.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the implementation of the art curriculum for Early Childhood through grade 12, cultivating curricular cohesion across divisions.
• Purchase departmental art supplies and ensure the safe storage and use of these materials.
• Ensure that student work is displayed and rotated throughout the year.
• Curate the annual all-school school art exhibit, which takes place each May.
• Supervise art faculty, including coaching and support of professional growth.
• Oversee class placement as needed.
• Review and edit all student art reports.
• Lead the student portfolio process for college applications.
• Support the integration of technology into art instruction and study (as needed).
• Manage department purchases and budgets.  
• Teach half-time and participate in the activities associated with teaching assignments.
• Attend all relevant core, advisor, departmental, divisional, and all-school meetings.
• Write narrative assessments based on well-maintained records of student work and submit them in a timely fashion.
• Participate in parent conferences and meetings as appropriate.
• Perform other duties associated with the teaching position, such as supervising a study hall.
• Act as a homeroom advisor, meeting with students daily and serving as a support and mentor to them.
• Attend Meeting for Worship once a week.
• Regularly participate in school-supported professional development in the areas of teaching content, pedagogy, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Participate in the life of the GFS community through collegial behavior and participation in committee work.
• Support the school’s mission and strategic initiatives.

Qualities of an ideal candidate

• Strong background in studio art and art history
• Proven capacity for organization
• An educator who can review and assess the school’s program and work collaboratively with art colleagues to continue and expand upon its curricular traditions
• Comfortable communicating with parents, students, administrators, and colleagues, and be able to do so with sensitivity and cultural awareness, utilizing inclusive practices
• Leadership or organizational experience (preferred)
• Master’s degree (preferred)
• Five to ten years of teaching experience (required)

Interested candidates should send a cover letter and resume with the names and contact information for three references, all as attachments, to Show email. Please include “Art Department Head” in the subject line.

Germantown Friends School is an equal-opportunity employer committed to diversity in its student body, faculty and staff. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected class status. People demonstrating a commitment to diversity and multiculturalism in education are encouraged to apply. For more information about the school, please visit our website at www.germantownfriends.org.

Germantown Friends School is a Quaker, independent, co-educational day school, serving early childhood-12th grade. Located in northwest Philadelphia, the school is home to a vibrant intellectual community, located in a historic neighborhood, serving a diverse school community, with a robust educational program that is grounded in Quaker principles. For more information about the school, visit www.germantownfriends.org.