Chief Academic Officer

Job Description

Job Description

Community College Preparatory Academy

Chief Academic Officer

Department: Academic Affairs

Reports to: Chief Executive Officer

Status: Full-time; exempt

Location: Washington, DC / campus based

Salary band: $125,000–$150,000 annually

Supervisory responsibilities: Directly supervises the Director of Academics and Training/Head of School, Director of Student Support Services, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Assessment Manager, and assigned academic-administration staff; provides executive oversight for all academic pathways and student-support functions.

Our mission

Community College Preparatory Academy (CCPrep) creates an innovative and rigorous learning environment for adults who are under-credited or have aged out of traditional K–12 pathways. We respond to each learner’s strengths and barriers while preparing students for employment, postsecondary education, industry credentials, and lifelong learning.

The opportunity

Lead the full academic enterprise—from program design and instructional quality to credentials, completion, and continuous improvement—so every learner encounters a coherent path from enrollment to opportunity.

Why this role matters for students

You will shape the conditions in which adult learners persist, master relevant skills, earn credentials, and move into employment or further education. Your leadership should make student outcomes visible, actionable, and shared across the organization.

Cognia connections Culture of Learning, Leadership for Learning, Engagement of Learning, and Growth in Learning | Standards 1–31. These responsibilities apply within this position’s assigned authority.

Essential responsibilities

- Set and execute the academic strategy in alignment with CCPrep’s charter, mission, annual goals, and Board-approved plans.

- Lead, coach, and evaluate academic leaders; establish clear ownership for curriculum, instruction, assessment, faculty development, and student support.

- Use enrollment, attendance, persistence, completion, credential, and post-program data to identify gaps and direct improvement.

- Ensure programs meet applicable academic, workforce, charter, accessibility, and documentation requirements.

- Build employer, postsecondary, and community partnerships that strengthen pathways and keep programs relevant.

- Present concise, candid academic performance reports and recommendations to the CEO and Board committee.

- Plan the academic budget and staffing model; manage resources within approved authority.

- Create a culture of high expectations, adult-learning excellence, belonging, and shared accountability.

- Establish schoolwide expectations for instruction that values learners’ cultures, backgrounds, and abilities; includes learner choice and voice; and builds confidence through challenging, achievable work.

- Ensure academic programs combine authentic problem solving, collaboration, creativity, and purposeful digital learning with high expectations and individualized support.

- Lead a balanced assessment system using diagnostics, ongoing checks, and end-of-course measures; review valid evidence of individual academic growth alongside persistence, credentials, and transitions.

- Use learner feedback, assessment results, staff input, and service data to evaluate programs and organizational conditions each term; assign improvement owners and review whether changes advance learning.

- Sponsor staff action research through focused improvement questions, planned instructional changes, evidence collection, and review of results; align professional learning with identified learner needs.

- Cultivate a schoolwide culture of respect, fairness, equity, inclusion, and learner well-being; maintain structures that strengthen positive relationships among learners, staff, and partners.

- Engage the governing authority, learners, staff, and community stakeholders in academic priorities; develop leadership capacity, supervise and evaluate academic leaders, and allocate people and resources according to learner needs.

- Provide executive governance for the academic technology portfolio—including Canvas, Cognia, EAB Navigate, assessment and credentialing platforms, Special Programs, and regulatory reporting tools—by assigning accountable owners and establishing expectations for access, data quality, integration, training, continuity, and responsible use.

What strong performance looks like

- Academic goals and leading indicators are defined, owned, and reviewed on a reliable cadence.

- Student persistence, course completion, credential attainment, and transition outcomes improve against approved targets.

- Academic staffing, schedules, curriculum, assessment, and professional learning are aligned before each term.

- Board and executive reporting is timely, accurate, decision-useful, and transparent about risk.

- Specific annual targets and milestones will be established in the employee’s performance plan and aligned with the approved school operating plan.

- Program reviews document learner voice, differences in access and outcomes, decisions, accountable owners, and follow-up on the effect of changes.

- Assessment reports distinguish academic growth from participation and completion; faculty development and improvement inquiries show application to instruction.

- Culture, stakeholder, workforce, and resource evidence shows that improvement decisions advance learner well-being, staff practice, equitable opportunity, and academic priorities.

- Academic systems have accountable owners, appropriate access, current procedures, trained users, reliable data, and documented resolution of material risks or gaps.

Minimum qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in a relevant field.

- Seven or more years of progressively responsible leadership experience, including supervision and budget accountability.

- Demonstrated ability to lead through data, communicate with diverse stakeholders, and translate strategy into measurable execution.

Preferred qualifications

- Experience overseeing an integrated portfolio of learning-management, student-support, assessment, accreditation, student-information, or education-reporting systems; direct administration of every current CCPrep platform is not required.

- Doctorate or other terminal degree in a relevant discipline

- Experience as a senior academic leader accountable for adult-education or workforce outcomes.

- Leadership experience in adult education, public charter education, workforce development, or a mission-driven nonprofit.

- Experience presenting to or working with a governing board.

Core ways of working

- Centers adult learners, values their backgrounds and abilities, and respects their voice and choices.

- Communicates clearly, follows through, and raises risks early.

- Uses evidence, protects confidentiality, and documents work so others can rely on it.

- Collaborates across units and uses resources responsibly.

- Uses feedback and role-appropriate evidence to test improvements, apply professional learning, and review results.

Work environment and essential capabilities

Primarily professional office and campus-based work with regular meetings, community engagement, and occasional evening or weekend responsibilities. Must be able to move throughout the campus, use standard office technology, and communicate effectively in person and virtually, with or without reasonable accommodation.

Application and employment conditions

To learn more and apply, visit ccprep- academy.org/careers/. Questions or accommodation requests may be directed View phone number on ziprecruiter.com.

CCPrep provides equal employment opportunity without regard to any characteristic protected by federal or District of Columbia law. Qualified applicants and employees may request reasonable accommodation for the application process or to perform essential job functions. Any required background, credential, driving-record, or employment-history review will occur in accordance with applicable law and at the appropriate stage of the hiring process. Employment may be contingent on satisfactory completion of job-related screening.

This description identifies the role’s principal responsibilities and essential functions. It does not create an employment contract and may be revised to reflect lawful, mission-related organizational needs. Related duties may be assigned when consistent with the role’s purpose and qualifications.