MSHS English Language Arts Department Head

OVERVIEW OF THE POSITION

Heads of Department hold important positions of leadership and responsibility within the school and should possess the following attributes:

·         Demonstrated student-centered leadership ability.

·         Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

·         Demonstrated ability to succeed in complex and changing environments.

·         Proven ability to communicate effectively and collaboratively with people of diverse backgrounds including administrators, teachers, staff, parents, guardians, and students.

Department Heads are the liaison between the departmental teaching faculty and the academic leadership team.

SCHEDULE

Department Heads maintain a half-time weekly teaching load (4 of 8 classes).

EVALUATION

Department Heads are supervised by the Division Vice Principals. Annual performance data will be gathered from teachers and other Department Heads to determine the continuation of position and areas for improvement.

 QUALIFICATIONS

Department Heads must hold a valid teaching license and have a minimum of three years teaching experience. 

·         Master’s degree in education

·         Valid teaching license

·         Minimum of three years teaching experience in content specific secondary education

·         Experience in secondary curriculum development, curriculum review/evaluation, preferred

PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Department Head will assist the Vice Principal in providing supervision and evaluation of faculty and along with management of the department’s academic program.

PROGRAM EVALUATION

·         Gather and analyze evidence about the quality of the school program with respect to the performance standards and the Expected Schoolwide Learning Results (ESLRs).

·         Oversee the development, implementation, and monitoring of a comprehensive action plan for the department including curriculum assessment, program support, co- and extra-curricular activities, and staff development.

·         Complete an annual report on the status of the department action plan.

CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

·         Define, promote awareness of, and maintain adopted curriculum and program support.

·         Maintain and/or revise instructional materials based on current research and department/school philosophy, utilizing the web-based Atlas curriculum mapping tool.

·         Contribute to the school Curriculum Review Cycle and course catalog, as needed.

·         Review Atlas Rubicon units created by teachers in the department and provide feedback.

·         Research and analyze content curriculum needs of the department and perform a continuous audit of departmental curriculum to ensure both relevance and equity.

·         Leads regular review of the curriculum in the department to ensure vertical continuity and alignment of content, skills, and assessment with the school’s mission and vision.

FACULTY OVERSIGHT AND DEPARTMENTAL LEADERSHIP

·         Facilitate regular department meetings for planning, collaboration, assessment, standards-based practices, and instructional priorities.

·         Attend as-needed meetings with teachers, specialists, and administrators to ensure program continuity and facilitate ongoing implementation of the schoolwide action plan.

·         Lead in the supervision and evaluation of faculty within the department.

·         Provide the first line of support to teachers who are either new to the profession or who might be struggling professionally; partner with the academic leadership team when more significant intervention is needed.

·         Work with teachers in the department to identify students-at-risk, or those who need additional support; work together to devise improvement plans for students, be it academic or behavioral.

·         Cover classes within the Department as needed; when the DH reaches 3 blocks per day when covering for an absent teacher, they must then coordinate coverage for any additional classes. 

PROMOTING COLLEGIAL SHARING

Observe teachers in the department to:

·         Collect effective ideas and techniques to share with others.

·         Provide feedback to teachers regarding various effective approaches to learning and instructional best practice.

·         Coordinate peer observations within the department.

·         Meet regularly with other Department Heads to evaluate, develop, monitor, and plan implementation of school-wide curriculum, and to encourage interdisciplinary connections in teaching and learning.

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

·         Request new materials and equipment in order to provide instructional support to teachers in their attempts to meet curricular outcomes.

·         Assess the need for instructional resources based on teacher input.

·         Facilitate and be knowledgeable of information resources and technology use for instruction.

COMMUNICATION

Work closely with the School Principals to:

·         Keep him/her informed regarding progress toward departmental goals or lack thereof.

·         Provide information regarding implementation of the curriculum and the department action plan.

·         Follow up on curricular decisions.

·         Provide accurate and substantive feedback in a timely manner.

·         Collect periodic feedback from teachers to drive departmental change.

·         Disseminate relevant information from the administration to the departmental teaching faculty.

STAFF RECRUITMENT

·         Work with the School Principals to recruit, hire, and retain high quality teachers.