Director of Education, Lower School Doctor Franklin Perkins School

Position: Director of Education, Lower School Doctor Franklin Perkins School Location: Lancaster, MA
Job : 789 # of Openings: 1

Director of Education

Salary Range: $90,160 - $94,160

$2,500 Sign-on Bonus!

Join our passionate team in Lancaster, MA as our new Director of Education and help us create transformative learning experiences every day!

We seek an experienced education administrator and proven instructional leader to serve as the Director of Education for our K-8 Lower School program at the Doctor Franklin Perkins School (DFPS). This role is the primary driver of instructional excellence and curricular fidelity. You will lead the design of rigorous and responsive educational programming that is deeply rooted in instructional best practices and a therapeutic framework.

DFPS is a year-round, state-approved special education day and residential school program that proudly serves students with significant social, emotional, and behavioral disabilities using a trauma-responsive approach. Our team focuses on developing student attitudes and actions that promote problem-solving, independence, and academic achievement. We are committed to a learning environment that has an academically challenging curriculum, a philosophy of teaching that focuses on individual student strengths, and an emphasis on seeing students succeed.

Responsibilities:

Instructional Leadership & Educator Development

• Serve as a deeply empathetic and collaborative leader who actively seeks out and incorporates input from staff, students, and caregivers to drive a shared, inclusive vision for the DFPS Lower School.
• Cultivate instructional excellence by coaching, mentoring, and guiding all education staff to refine their practice and achieve mastery as professionals.
• Champion and model research-based best practices in the classroom, providing demonstration lessons and facilitating job-embedded Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) focused on instructional effectiveness and collaborative planning.
• Conduct regular observations and implement targeted supervision and coaching to provide staff with timely, reflective feedback and individualized support.
• Design and deliver comprehensive professional learning, ensuring all staff are trained in a trauma-informed approach to education and effective instructional strategies that integrate clinical and social emotional supports throughout the milieu.
• Supervise, support, and formally evaluate Lower School teachers in accordance with RFK Community Alliance standards.

Curriculum Design, Fidelity, and Assessment

• Serve as a curriculum specialist, strategically overseeing the selection, design, implementation, and evaluation of a high-quality, research-based curriculum and associated instructional materials aligned with student needs and state standards.
• Lead the instructional design process, including comprehensive curriculum mapping and the alignment of all learning objectives, materials, and formative/summative assessments to ensure curricular fidelity.
• Drive data-informed instruction by leading teachers in the analysis of student data to identify instructional needs, adjust curricular approaches, and measure program effectiveness.
• Ensure instructional programs are highly differentiated to support the development and implementation of robust, goal-driven Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).

Strategic and Organizational Leadership (New Section)

• Serve as a vital member of the DFPS leadership team, contributing to high-level operational and instructional decisions, the integration of the Lower School's goals with the organization's strategic plan, and the articulation of a cohesive therapeutic and academic vision across the entire campus and K-12 continuum.
• Act as a critical liaison and colleague between the Lower School and Upper School, DFPS residential programs, and the broader RFK Community Alliance, fostering interdepartmental collaboration and resource alignment to advance the holistic, therapeutic mission of the agency.

Qualifications:

Required:

• Master's Degree
• Minimum of 3-5 years of experience working in a K-8 school, with a proven track record of positively impacting instructional outcomes
• Valid Massachusetts driver's license is required

Preferred:

• Advanced degree in Education, Teaching and Learning, or Curriculum and Instructional Design
• Extensive experience in leading curriculum development, instructional coaching, and assessment design
• DESE Licensure as an administrator (Principal, Superintendent, Special Education Administrator, or equivalent)
• Experience providing trauma-informed care and working with students with disabilities

Shift:

8:00am- 3:30pm Mon
- Fri

Who We Are
RFK Community Alliance provides high-quality care and support to people and families facing complicated challenges. As a multi-service agency, we offer a wide range of programs serving a variety of needs across all ages, from infants to seniors. We are team players when it comes to caring. We work with the people we serve, their families, schools,…