Curriculum Development Director, Spanish

Job Description

Job Description

Description:

As the Curriculum Development Director-Spanish, you are responsible for leading curriculum design, editorial development, maintenance, and instructional quality across Wayside’s Spanish titles and programs. This role ensures that curriculum development aligns with portfolio priorities, market needs, and organizational goals while upholding high standards of instructional integrity and proficiency-based language learning.

Reporting to the VP of Product Development, the Director leads Spanish curriculum planning, instructional design, and development, exercising judgment and accountability for curriculum decisions and outcomes. The role partners with the VP of Product Development on portfolio strategy, market opportunities, business cases, and investment priorities, aligning Spanish curriculum leadership with the broader world language portfolio.

The Director leads external contractors, freelancers, development vendors, and assigned team members, setting direction and maintaining accountability for curriculum quality, timelines, and delivery. Working across the organization, the Director partners with Product Management, Project Management, Production, Sales, Marketing, and Professional Learning to connect curriculum needs with digital experiences, customer expectations, and business goals. People management responsibilities evolve as the curriculum development team grows.

Primary Responsibilities

Editorial Resource and Workflow Leadership

• Provide leadership and direction across Spanish editorial resources, including contractors, freelancers, vendors, and assigned internal team members.
• Set clear expectations for quality, scope, timelines, and deliverables across curriculum development and maintenance work.
• Provide instructional and editorial guidance, feedback, and course correction to ensure outcomes meet established standards.
• Recommend and manage team and contractor plans; monitor capacity, workload distribution, and sequencing to support curriculum priorities and effective resource use.
• Select and onboard development partners and manage assigned employees through coaching, feedback, and performance expectations.

Curriculum Strategy and Instructional Development

• Lead Spanish curriculum strategy and development planning, working with cross-functional teams to translate business priorities, customer evidence, and digital considerations into actionable curriculum plans.
• Lead instructional design and develop program architecture, scope and sequence, proficiency progression, assessments, and teacher supports; engage curriculum and cross-functional partners to strengthen instructional approaches.
• Lead development and maintenance of all current Spanish titles and programs across print and digital formats.
• Drive continuous curriculum improvement using customer feedback and instructional evidence to strengthen the overall product experience and customer satisfaction; partner with the Product Management Team on improvements that involve the digital experience.
• Ensure materials meet high-quality instructional standards and support meaningful communication, interculturality, accessibility, differentiated learner needs, and practical teacher implementation.

Cross-Functional Planning and Delivery

• Lead strategic curriculum initiatives involving Editorial, Instructional Development, Product Management, Project Management, Production, Creative Services, Marketing, and external partners.
• Create and manage end-to-end curriculum and editorial plans, including scoping, estimation, timelines, and dependency management.
• Lead the Spanish curriculum development roadmap and sequencing, aligning curriculum priorities with portfolio goals, customer needs, and cross-functional delivery plans.
• Work with the Product Management Team to align curriculum milestones, instructional requirements, and platform dependencies.
• Define pedagogy, instructional use cases, content structures, and assessment requirements; partner with Product Management, UX, and Engineering to support the intended learning experience.
• Clearly communicate progress, risks, tradeoffs, and mitigation strategies; align editorial priorities with business objectives as conditions evolve.
• Lead curriculum and editorial decisions, balancing instructional quality, scope, timelines, and resources; resolve development tradeoffs and bring significant portfolio or investment decisions to leadership.

State Adoption and Curriculum Readiness

• Lead Spanish instructional analysis, standards alignment, correlations, revisions, and curriculum readiness for state and district adoptions; partner with the adoption coordinator and cross-functional teams on submission readiness.
• Analyze RFPs, quality and suitability rubrics, and submission requirements to identify curriculum gaps and recommend instructional responses.
• Direct development and review of curriculum documentation and responses to reviewer feedback, ensuring instructional accuracy and readiness against established milestones.
• Coordinate adoption-related curriculum work with Project Management, Production, and the Product Management Team; identify dependencies and escalate risks early.

Budget and Operational Stewardship

• Develop curriculum estimates and resource proposals, contribute to operating budget planning, and manage approved Spanish editorial budgets and cost goals.
• Lead the curriculum contribution to business cases, defining instructional scope, differentiation, development estimates, resource requirements, and recommendations to support portfolio investment decisions.
• Supply curriculum requirements and evaluate instructional implications of digital investments in partnership with the Product Management Team.
• Use a shared business-case framework to connect market need, instructional requirements, digital experience, resources, costs, and expected outcomes.
• Manage curriculum resources and priorities to balance quality, scope, timelines, and costs; address constraints, recommend investment adjustments, and unblock development work.

Market Awareness and Instructional Insight

• Engage educators through classroom visits, focus groups, conferences, surveys, and advisory conversations to inform curriculum decisions and implementation supports.
• Lead curriculum and instructional analysis of market opportunities, defining learner and educator needs and developing curriculum recommendations that address the market problem and target audience.
• Evaluate opportunities in new grade bands, learner segments, and adjacent markets; develop instructional concepts, feasibility assessments, and resource recommendations to inform broader world language portfolio strategy.
• Incorporate digital feasibility, usage, and customer-experience insights from the Product Management Team into curriculum planning and opportunity assessments.
• Partner with Sales, Product Marketing, and Professional Learning on curriculum positioning, presentations, launch readiness, educator support, and customer-facing initiatives.

Culture and Collaboration

• Champion Wayside’s collaborative culture and values in daily work and decision-making.
• Build trusted relationships with senior leadership, curriculum colleagues, and cross-functional partners.
• Represent Spanish curriculum development as a strategic, solution-oriented partner across the organization.
• Contribute curriculum expertise to Imagine Learning world language courseware evaluations and improvement opportunities, partnering with existing teams to strengthen instructional quality and portfolio alignment.

Other Responsibilities

• Participate in special projects, organizational initiatives, and development support as needed.
• Travel periodically for conferences, customer engagement, adoption presentations, and team collaboration.
• Perform additional duties as assigned to support team and organizational effectiveness.

• Bachelor’s degree in Education, Spanish, Second Language Acquisition, Applied Linguistics, Curriculum and Instruction, or a related field; relevant graduate study preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive experience in curriculum development, instructional design, or editorial leadership within educational publishing or a closely related field.
• 5+ years of experience leading complex curriculum or editorial initiatives and coordinating contractors, vendors, and cross-functional partners.
• Deep knowledge of K–12 Spanish instruction, proficiency-based language learning, world language standards, assessment design, and teacher implementation needs.
• Native or near-native proficiency in Spanish, with the ability to critically review instructional materials.
• Demonstrated ability to develop curriculum architecture, evaluate market and instructional needs, and contribute to business cases and development recommendations.
• Experience with print and digital educational materials, including online learning platforms; state adoption experience preferred.
• Proven ability to set direction, influence outcomes, develop people and external partners, and maintain accountability for quality and delivery.
• Exceptional leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills; strong organizational, planning, and problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to manage multiple complex initiatives with attention to detail and operate effectively through ambiguity, change, and demanding timelines.

Why You'll Love Working Here

At Wayside, we care deeply about our mission, our customers, and our people. We strive to create an environment where talented individuals can do meaningful work, grow professionally, and maintain a healthy balance between work and life.

What We Offer

• Competitive compensation
• Comprehensive health benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, and more
• Retirement savings plan with employer contributions
• Employer-paid Short-Term Disability (STD) and Long-Term Disability (LTD) coverage
• Paid holidays and generous time away from work
• A culture that values collaboration, flexibility, and work-life balance
• The opportunity to make a meaningful impact on Spanish language education for educators and students across the country

Our Commitment to Inclusion

We believe that traditional hiring practices can unintentionally exclude talented individuals from underrepresented communities. Because diverse perspectives strengthen our work and our impact, we strongly encourage applications from people of color, individuals from working-class backgrounds, women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and members of other historically marginalized communities.

Wayside Publishing is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

Ready to Apply?

If you're excited about helping shape the future of Spanish language learning and educational publishing, we'd love to hear from you. Please submit your resume and a brief cover letter describing your experience and why this role is the next best step in your career.

No phone calls or recruiters, please.