Academic Dean

About Alma

Alma del Mar is a K-8 charter school whose mission is to put every one of our scholars on the path to college and to challenge them to be service-minded leaders . We do this by immersing our scholars in a highly demanding, highly supportive environment where they receive a content–rich education. As an Expeditionary Learning school, Alma brings to life a three dimensional vision of student achievement that includes mastery of knowledge and skills, character, and high-quality student work.

We're located in New Bedford, Massachusetts a beautiful coastal city known for its history as the heart of the whaling industry and as a central hub of the abolitionist movement.

Alma gets results for kids. Alma scholars not only outperform their district peers on MCAS, they often outperform their peers in the surrounding suburbs. In some areas, our scholar achievement now matches some of the highest performing schools in the Commonwealth. We have been nationally recognized for our work with English Language Learners.

The Academic Dean Role

Academic Deans at Alma collaborate with teachers to ensure that all scholars achieve at high levels and develop as service-minded leaders. Their primary responsibility is to ensure that every classroom at Alma cultivates the high performance of scholars and that every scholar achieves mastery toward school-wide standards. Academic Deans serve as members of Alma's Instructional Leadership Team, ensuring the effective coordination of instructional practice school-wide. They also manage teachers and take leadership of a particular grade band or subject area.

At Alma we believe that talent is the most important lever driving student success. We know that we can best serve our scholars by helping you to meet your long‑term professional growth and career goals.

Teacher Leadership

Deans manage and coach a group of Lead Teachers, Associate Teachers and Fellows toward high performance. This includes conducting weekly observations and one on one meetings with teachers, coaching teachers on targeted areas and evaluating teachers.

School-Wide Instructional Leadership

• Contribute to the School Leadership Team
• Collaborate with members of the LT to analyze and act on school wide academic data and ensure effective school wide instructional practice
• Set and take responsibility for performance goals for grade band or subject area
• Work with the Dean of Culture to plan and lead school-wide culture routines and events and ensure that Alma scholars are developing as service-minded leaders

Who We're Looking For

We seek outstanding leaders with the following qualifications:

• A bachelor's degree or higher
• At least three (3) years of classroom teaching experience in a K-12 public charter or district school with a high population of students on IEPs and English Language Learners required
• A track record of off-the-charts student achievement. Please include specific data in your resume demonstrating the success of your students and the adults you have coached.
• Proven effectiveness leading by example and coaching adults
• Authorization to work in the United States is required
• English proficiency is required
• Multilingual candidates are highly encouraged to apply, especially those with proficiency in Spanish. Fluency in Portuguese or Cape Verdean Creole will also be an asset to this role.

In addition, the ideal candidate has the following competencies:

• Show me the Outcomes: Filters every decision through the lens of potential impact on scholars and their academic success
• High Demand, High Support: Sets a high bar for self, colleagues, teachers they manage and scholars
• Crew: Believes that working with a diverse crew – with a range of perspectives, backgrounds, and communication styles, across schools, leadership teams, and external stakeholders – makes us stronger and seeks to uncover and address personal biases and structural inequities
• It's Your Ship: Takes collective responsibility for the success of the campus
• Challenge, Challenge: Sees difficult problems as opportunities to increase capacity and grow skills and seeks out, and improves through, feedback
• Leadership: Communicates clearly and strategically, both verbally and in written form, and is able to lead effectively with peers, staff and students
• Detail Orientation & Accuracy: Maintains high standards of precision and reliability
• Constructive Collaboration: Develops trust-based partnerships and collaborates effectively

What You Can Expect

• A comprehensive benefits package including:
  • Paid sick, personal, and vacation days, as well as paid holidays and school winter break
  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance with PPO and HMO options
  • Paid parental leave and short term disability available
  • Multiple retirement options, including a 403(b) with matching
• A salary based on years of prior experience in the range of $80,000-$95,000 starting
• Weekly meetings with a manager who supports you
• This role reports to the Principal

Compensation: Salary will be competitive and commensurate with experience. Starting salary is $80,000 to $95,000, depending on previous experience. Multilingual candidates are compensated higher.

This is a 12 month position starting around July 15, 2026. School hours are 8:20-4:00 for staff.

Alma del Mar is an equal opportunity employer and an organization that values diversity. People from all diverse backgrounds and identities are strongly encouraged to apply. Spanish language proficiency is a plus.