PEDAGOGICAL DIRECTOR (.50 FTE)
Orchard Valley Waldorf School in East Montpelier, Vermont, is seeking an Pedagogical Director.
This key role supervises and supports all faculty in order to ensure their success in delivering quality Waldorf pedagogy to students, families and the broader community. The OVWS Pedagogical Director will serve in the following four main capacities, to support both administrative and pedagogical practice at Orchard Valley Waldorf School:
Working collaboratively and in combination with the Administrative Director to:
1) maintain human resource and pedagogical accountability of faculty and staff.
2) address parent concerns in a proactive and timely way. This includes supporting faculty when parent and student concerns arise.
Working in collaborative leadership with the Collegial Circle to:
3) assure implementation, continuity and shared holding of parent education, stemming from a broad understanding of human development and how Waldorf Pedagogy meets today’s child.
4) coordinate with the Chair of the Collegial Circle in developing both the short and long term direction for the Collegial Circle and Faculty Meeting agendas and inspirations.
These four areas will be complemented with additional responsibilities to fill a 50% position.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Candidates should:
Be a person who is accessible and approachable, who deals with people in a welcoming and engaging way and who leads by active involvement in the life of the school.
Be an individual who is responsive and emotionally intelligent, who leads through a balance of inspiration and vision and practicality.
Have a commitment to collaboration, objectivity, relationship and consensus building as well as conflict resolution.
Ability to imbue anthroposophy into all aspects of the organization.
Have a demonstrated ability to set priorities and maintain accountability.
Be timely, well-organized, responsive and able to effectively manage multiple projects.
Demonstrate excellent oral and written communication skills.
Proficiency with office equipment and software including MS Office and Google Suite.
Ability to facilitate meetings across and within interest groups.
Ability to represent OVWS articulately and passionately within and beyond the school community
Ability to attend meetings outside of regular school hours
Qualifications
A bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in related field, Master’s degree preferred
5+ years of experience leading teams in an educational setting
Experience supervising employees and performing pertinent human resource duties
Ability to acquire and maintain up-to-date training and certifications as mandated either by law or by school policy
Understanding and enthusiastic support for Waldorf educational philosophy
The ideal candidate would also have:
Completion of Waldorf Foundation Studies or Waldorf Teacher Training
Experience holding the pedagogical vision for a program
Understanding of human development according to Rudolf Steiner, particularly from birth through 12th grade
Understanding of Anthroposophy
Understanding of the Pikler Philosophy
Orchard Valley is a small, rural school set on a beautiful 55-acre campus that encompasses meadows, forests, orchards and gardens, and is abutted by the Kingsbury Branch of the Winooski River. We also have chickens, goats, and sheep, which our students help to care for as part of our rich Waldorf curriculum. Our programs include combined elementary grades classes and our campus is also home to an early childhood program.
The Pedagogical Director will report to both the Collegial Circle and Board of Trustees. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. If you are interested, please send a letter of interest, your resume and three references to employment@ovws.org by July 8, 2022.
