Dayton, Ohio Director of Lower School Search Process: October - December 2016 Start date: July 1, 2017
The Position
The Director of Lower School is the educational leader of the lower school division and responsible for its day-to-day operation. Responsibilities include: creating the best possible environment for student learning (including cognitive, social, and emotional needs of students); evaluating current programs; developing new initiatives; serving as the primary spokesperson about the division; supervising and evaluating teachers; strengthening the quality of the curriculum; advancing the school’s mission, vision, and commitment to the Immersion Method; working closely with the admissions office on selecting the best students for enrollment; building a strong team spirit among the faculty; creating a positive culture for students and teachers together; and serving as an active member of several teams (division directors, academic team, administrative team). The position reports directly to the Head of School.
Mission y The Miami V The Miami Valley School challenges young people of promise to become self-sustaining learners and compassionate global citizens.
Vision For half a century, MVS has provided a unique learning option for families in the Dayton region. Today, MVS has established a truly differentiated educational opportunity and has become a nationally recognized leader in academically rigorous, experience-based learning. Our vision includes: • • • • • •
Providing Tools for Self-Navigation Advancing The Miami Valley School Immersion Method Expanding Opportunities in Applied Math and Science Forming Healthy Relationships Embracing our Community and World Aligning Resources, Organizational Structures, and Systems
Full vision statement: Imagining the Future of MVS Core Values We practice INTEGRITY in all that we do to build an environment of honesty, honor, and trust that affirms the dignity of our work and of our fellow human beings. We CELEBRATE individuality and encourage acceptance and open-mindedness, nurture diversity, and ensure equality for all. We demonstrate GRIT, both in and out of the classroom, as we persevere, move forward, and pursue our goals. We practice KINDNESS, and treat ourselves and others with empathy and compassion.
School History
The Miami Valley School was founded over fifty years ago and remains the only independent school in the Dayton region accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS). Members of the Mead family were among the first founders of the school and donated the land now occupied by the school’s campus. The school has a heritage of academic excellence balanced with attention to the social and emotional needs of each student. Students and teachers work closely as co-learners in an environment that fosters innovation and self-discovery. Alumni often speak about the way teachers helped them explore new ideas and discover personal interests and passions that have been formative in their development as self-sustaining learners and compassionate global citizens. The close relationship between teachers and students is at the heart of the school’s heritage. The “Immersion Program” in the upper school is unique nationwide. The program creates opportunities for all upper school students to spend an entire month focused on studying one topic in-depth, often in far-flung places around the globe. MVS is one of the few schools in the nation to devote this amount of time and resources toward student experiential learning. Lower school students also travel outside the boundaries of the campus, and last year the lower school faculty launched a new interdisciplinary, project-based program of “mini-immersions” that occur twice during the school year.
Fast facts Campus: picturesque 24-acre campus Total enrollment: 462 Early childhood: 26 Lower school: 146 Middle school: 103 Upper school: 187 Student diversity: 38% students of color 3500+ hours of community service a year 3 languages studied starting in Early Childhood Voted #1 high school in Dayton
(niche.com)
The School Today
This small school in Dayton is quickly emerging as one of the most innovative schools in the nation. The school’s vision statement, Imagining the Future of MVS, has gained national attention at the NAIS annual conference and through social media. Building on this foundational document, a team of teachers, parents, and students spent a year in collaboration designing a philosophy of teaching and learning called the “Immersion Method.” This statement is unique in the way it was allowed to grow from the bottom up, rather than top down, and in the way that it provides a framework for teaching and learning that doesn’t limit or restrict teacher freedom or autonomy but rather encourages greater teacher innovation and risk-taking. Building on the school’s historic commitment to immersive learning, this document now helps to provide critical direction to efforts to empower students to take greater ownership of their own learning, from Early Childhood through twelfth grade.
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The Lower School
The lower school division is small enough (averages 150 students) that each student is well known and cared for. The student body is diverse in many ways, including economics, culture, religion, race, learning style, and more. Lower school children are bright, joyful, eager to arrive at school each day, and naturally embrace a warm spirit of caring and community. The entire lower school assembles once a week as a community in “morning meeting,” and each classroom practices responsive classroom strategies daily. The school has a well-developed social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum, as well as training in “love and logic” to support thoughtful and effective classroom management. This year the lower school has implemented all of the components of a balanced literacy program that emphasizes process writing and guided reading. Teachers recently went through renewed training in Singapore Math (Math in Focus) and updated all teaching resources. The educational program in lower school lends itself well to differentiation of all subject areas, and staffing in lower school includes a learning specialist and intervention specialist as resources for students and teachers. Innovation is created through a spirit of collaboration among a very talented faculty, including the recent creation of a “mini-immersions” program from K-5. Technology is woven naturally into the curriculum and an elective in “coding” was started this year. Lower school students have access to excellent facilities, including a fully-equipped lower school science lab, instrumental music classroom, choral music classroom, visual art studio, and a gymnasium used primarily by lower school. Significant outdoor space is dedicated to lower school students, including an Outdoor Exploration Center (OEC), outdoor science pond, woods, playgrounds, and athletic fields. Classes are small (averaging 14 students per class). The new Lower School Director will replace an interim director who has been at MVS for two years. The teachers are flexible and willing to work as a team, and open to change and progress in ensuring best practices in lower school education. This transition will provide a unique opportunity for the new director to work in collaboration with the teachers as well as to bring fresh insights and an innovative approach to the lower school curriculum.
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The Dayton Community
Metropolitan Dayton is home to more than 840,000 people. The primary drivers of the area’s economy are healthcare, education, defense, and aerospace. Research and development in Dayton has led to significant technological innovations, primarily in association with Wright Patterson Air Force Base, the largest military research facility in the U.S. With a reasonable cost of living and a “can-do” attitude, Dayton is truly a community of entrepreneurship and optimism. Dayton is also known for its arts and culture. The rich cultural scene is exemplified in the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, Dayton Opera, Dayton Playhouse, and Dayton Ballet. Dayton is also home to two major universities: The University of Dayton and Wright State University. More than 35,000 acres of parks, nature preserves, bike paths, and river corridors are available for outdoor activities. In addition, Dayton is uniquely situated in the Midwest with an easy drive to three other major cities: Cincinnati, Columbus, and Indianapolis.
The Physical Campus The Miami Valley School is located south of Dayton in an area known for beautiful neighborhoods, high-achieving public schools, and attractive shopping options. The school campus is nestled by trees and attractive neighborhoods in a quiet suburban setting. The 24-acre campus provides ample space for athletic fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, and areas designed for outdoor education, including a natural pond environment. A unique aspect of the campus is several beautiful outdoor courtyards as well as a state-of-theart greenhouse and gardens, known as the Z-Lab. The school’s most ambitious building project was completed this past summer, resulting in new facilities that are architecturally stunning and significantly improve school programs. The new facilities added this summer include the Soin Early Childhood School, Cleary Gallery, Schear Library, Rose Theater, and Zorniger Colonnade. School facilities also include updated science labs in all divisions and two full-size gymnasiums.
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College Enrollment Following are some of the colleges and universities at which Miami Valley School graduates were recently accepted: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Baylor University Boston College Brandeis University Brown University Case Western Reserve University College of William and Mary Centre College Columbia University Connecticut College Dartmouth College Davidson College Denison University Dickinson College Georgia Institute of Technology Georgetown University Grinnell College Hampton University Harvard University Hobart and William Smith Colleges Kenyon College Macalester College Northeast Ohio Medical University Northwestern University Oberlin College Occidental College Miami University, Oxford Middlebury College New York University Rochester Institute of Technology Santa Clara University Simmons College Skidmore College Tulane University University of Rochester Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Opportunities for the New Director of Lower School • Faculty welcome a fresh perspective and innovative ideas • Working with a great team of teachers who are focused on lower schoolers specifically • A small division that allows the director to be actively involved in what happens each day • Opportunities to be very connected with students and teachers
Challenges for the New Director of Lower School • Continuing to move the division forward through best practices • Continuing to advance the school’s vision statement and commitment to the Immersion Method. • Continuing to advance innovative practices in process writing, guided reading, Singapore Math, integration of technology including coding, and effective use of indoor and outdoor science learning spaces. • Continuing to work with scheduling challenges related to an active performing arts and visual arts program that spans three divisions. • Support effective teacher professional development, for both new and experienced teachers. Empower teachers to move the lower school division to the next level of success. • Be committed to the lower school’s division’s success immediately, and for the long-term (at least the next five years).
Challenges for the new Middle School Directo
The Immersion Method The MVS Immersion Method reflects our shared beliefs of how all students learn best. It is our articulation of the best practices of the Progressive Era of education, founded on the principles of deep student experience and tailored to meet the needs of the individual learner. It dispels the notion that the principal role of a teacher is to provide information and it confidently proclaims that students learn more thoroughly via actual experience than throughteacher-centric content delivery. Building upon a positive learning environment, the driving forces of the Immersion Method require that we create opportunities to: EXPLORE: mentally, physically, and virtually venture from where students and teachers are today, to expand the footprint of their collective experience and comfort zone; to connect to those big ideas and themes that really matter in the world today
CONNECT: link frequently, closely, and authentically to the past and future, to one’s own background, perspective, and goals; collaborate in learning with and from a wide range of other people, places, backgrounds, and experiences
SHARE: design, create, build, make, comment on, publish, present and otherwise contribute original and derivative work in real time to the collective body of human knowledge and experience
REFLECT: make a point of frequently stepping away from the everyday habits at school; seek understanding about the WHY, HOW, and WHAT IF of the learning process and our positions within it
Qualifications & Qualities Desired in the new Director of Lower School • Knows and values what is developmentally appropriate for students (cognitive, emotional, social) and makes all programmatic and other decisions based on that perspective. • Astute to best practices in lower school education. • Relates to young children, and is comfortable around kids. • A team motivator with a strong leadership skills in implementing best practices. • Continues to foster an environment where teachers practice interpersonal skills as a team and model this collaboration for students. • Values faculty input. • A good listener. • Knows each teacher well enough to best support her/his growth as an educator. • Empathetic. • Respectful and values diversity in its broadest meaning. • Is flexible and has a good sense of humor. • Has a deep commitment to the mission, vision, and core values of the school. • Has demonstrated a commitment to innovative practices. • Good communicator with parents (responsive but not reactive).
How to apply
Candidates should submit a cover letter, resume, and employment application (found on the school’s website - www.mvschool.com) to: Jay Scheurle, Head of School The Miami Valley School 5151 Denise Drive Dayton, Ohio 45429 Email to: lisa.benedict@mvschool.com Search calendar: October - early November 2016: submit application materials November - interview top candidates December - decision July 1, 2017 - start date
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5151 Denise Drive Dayton, Ohio 45429
. 937-434-4444 . mvschool.com