Opportunity Academy Program Manager

DISTRICT OVERVIEW Holyoke Public Schools is a PreK-12 public school district serving nearly 5100 students of whom 80 percent are Latino/Latina in 11 schools. We employ nearly 1300 people who together educate and support a richly diverse community of learners. We are committed to recruiting and retaining top-quality educators who believe all children can and will learn and who strive daily to make school a joyful place of discovery support and belonging.

Holyoke Public Schools strategic plan Moving Forward Together builds on the strengths of our past while serving as a call to action to accelerate student learning by thinking differently about how we teach how we work together and how we support students well being.

Our Equity Commitments are pledges we are making to address systemic equity challenges.

• We intentionally build a community that is anti-racist inclusive and culturally responsive.
• We ensure that students families and staff get the support they need to be successful.
• We seek out and incorporate the voices of those impacted with a commitment to include those who have been excluded in the past.
• We promote access and inclusion for all students staff and families.
• We respect embrace and honor the diversity of our students families staff and community.
• We reflect on our own behavior to minimize harm to others.
• We create a culture of acceptance and empathy so that everyone feels valued and is able to contribute to our communitys success.

Please visit the Holyoke Public Schools website to learn more about us as well as some of our recent accomplishments.

Holyoke Public Schools (HPS) is seeking passionate student-centered program managers to join the team at Holyoke High School Opportunity Academy (HHSOA) an innovative alternative high school designed for students who have not found success on traditional campuses. We believe that schools are the unit of change and that program managers are essential to a schools success. At HHSOA program managers play a central role in building strong relationships with students delivering engaging instruction and supporting each students individualized path to graduation. We are looking for educators who are committed to equity flexibility and helping every student thrive in a non-traditional setting.

HPS has engaged in a high school redesign process starting in 2018 with the founding of HHSOA as one of the three main high school campuses as a critical piece of that redesign. Built upon choice flexibility and access to diverse and challenging educational opportunities HHSOAs unique approach to the alternative model deepens student engagement and provides families and business and civic leaders explicit opportunities to partner with educators to help guide students career and college plans as well as strengthen our local economy; while simultaneously addressing each students path to graduation and post-secondary readiness through an individualized approach.

HPS Grades 7-10 Alternative Program

The HPS grades 7-10 Alternative Program is designed to provide a supportive flexible and individualized learning environment for students in grades 7 through 10 who are significantly struggling behaviorally academically socially and/or emotionally. The program will begin as a gr 9 and gr 10 pilot and will extend to grades 7 and 8 in a future year. Target enrollment for the pilot year would be 15-30 students. For the full 7the-10th grade span the targeted enrollment would be 40-60 students. The program focuses on meeting the unique needs of each student with an emphasis on overcoming challenges and fostering personal growth. The programs mission is to create a positive empowering environment that helps students who are struggling to overcome obstacles gain confidence and succeed in their education and beyond. Through a combination of supportive behavioral systems and structures emotional guidance rigorous academics and life skills training the program seeks to build student capacity to succeed in the classroom and beyond.

Key Features

1. Small Class Sizes: With a low student-to-teacher ratio students receive more one-on-one attention ensuring they are fully supported in their academic journey and have the opportunity to engage in meaningful interactions with instructors.
   
   
2. Core Curriculum: The English language arts (ELA) and Math curriculum draw upon the HPS curricula used in middle and high schools and are aligned to HPS course sequences. The science and history curricula draw upon the same standards as middle and high school courses but are organized as 1 semester courses in order to make room for a robust SEL program which includes opening and closing community and restorative circles a year-long course centered around healthy adolescent development and to ensure students have daily access to health fitness and the arts.. We offer a variety of electives and project-based learning to keep students motivated and involved. Students will also like their general education peers engage in activities events and opportunities that inform their preparation for opportunities and responsibilities beyond high school (athletics clubs and college and career planning and civic and family engagement).
   
   
3. Emotional and Social Support: In addition to academics we focus on emotional well-being self-regulation and social skills. Our counselors and support staff work with students to develop coping strategies self-confidence and resilience enabling them to build stronger relationships with peers and adults.
   
   
4. Clear Expectations and Abundant Support: Program systems and structures implemented by trained teachers and staff are designed to create an environment in which students can intentionally and thoughtfully learn from experience to make choices that support their success within school and beyond.
5. Scheduling: The school hours will be the same as Holyoke High School North and Dean Campus and students will be eligible for full participation in athletics and extra-curriculars.

Description of Duties:

(The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar related or a logical assignment to the position)

1. Assists district personnel with all aspects of planning and programming
2. Disseminate referral information and provide professional development to teachers/administrators
3. Communicates with parents students staff community providers and agencies about school information
4. Attend/participate in IEP meetings as needed
5. Nurturing and building community partnerships
6. Manages program staff with support from principal
7. Daily logistical planning
8. Supervising and coaching program teachers and support staff on campus and at job sites and community placements
9. Managing program budget
10. Any other duties assigned by principal and/or designee

Qualifications

Education Training and Experience

1. Bachelors or Masters Degree from an accredited college or university

Knowledge/Skills Required

1. Foundations and implementation of referral services.
2. Special Education Law and Regulations
3. Effective listening speaking reading and writing skills.
4. Effective interpersonal and collaboration skills.
5. Skills in the specific tasks entailed in assessing students transition needs and developing goals and objectives to meet those needs.
6. Effective caseload management skills.

Required Experience:

Manager