Lower School Technology and Innovation Specialist

Lower School Technology And Innovation Specialist

The Pingry School, a prestigious K-12 coeducational, independent day school with a rich history dating back to its founding by Dr. John

F. Pingry in 1861, stands at the forefront of academic excellence in the United States. With campuses located in Basking Ridge, Pottersville, and Short Hills, New Jersey, Pingry is celebrated for its academic programs, a student-written Honor Code that underpins our community values, and a comprehensive commitment to arts, athletics, community, and civic engagement. Our mission is to inspire in our students a lifelong passion for learning, personal development, and social responsibility, preparing them to be global citizens and luminaries of the 21st century.

Rooted in relationships and guided by our foundational philosophy, Pingry is a vibrant community of more than 1,100 students hailing from over 90 towns across New Jersey and New York. At Pingry, we are united by a love of learning and a commitment to preparing students to navigate the complexities of the 21st century with confidence and integrity.

Position Summary:

The Lower School Educational Technology And Innovation Specialist is a visionary leader and the driving force behind how technology is learned, taught, and experienced at Pingry's K-5 campus. This is a 12-month staff position based at the Short Hills Campus. The role reports directly to the Director Of Research And Academic Innovation and collaborates closely with the Lower School Director and academic leadership.

While embedded in the school's K-12 academics team, this individual operates with significant independence at the Lower School level, setting direction, building culture, and making consequential decisions about how technology shapes learning for young children. This is explicitly a leadership role rather than a support role. The Innovation Specialist serves as the resident expert, trusted partner, and creative engine behind the Lower School's approach to educational technology.

The successful candidate will inspire teachers to see what is possible, guide students to become confident and responsible digital citizens, and ensure that Pingry remains at the forefront of thoughtful and purposeful technology integration in primary education.

Candidate Profile:
The ideal candidate for this role is not just a technical expert, but a relational leader, a cultural catalyst, and an educator gry is looking for an individual who embodies the following traits:

• You possess the unique ability to make technology feel exciting rather than overwhelming.
• You meet educators where they are with a non-evaluative, supportive approach, earning their trust, sparking their curiosity, and empowering them to take creative risks in the classroom.
• You thrive in environments that offer significant independence. You possess a proactive, entrepreneurial mindset, someone who naturally sees an institutional or pedagogical need and confidently steps up to execute a solution.
• You are a forward-looking leader capable of running high-level task forces (like AI literacy working groups) and designing long-term scope and sequences. However, you are equally skilled at translating that grand vision into practical, day-to-day classroom realities and digestible resources for busy teachers.
• You are deeply passionate about elementary pedagogy and child development. You know how to balance rigorous computational thinking with joyful, age-appropriate play, always advocating fiercely for the distinct developmental needs of K-5 students within a larger K-12 framework.
• You understand that true innovation is a collaborative effort. You are skilled at building bridges across academic divisions, amplifying the excellent work of your peers, and weaving digital citizenship organically into the daily fabric of school culture.

Responsibilities:

Technology Leadership At The Lower School:

• Serve as the driving force behind activating the Lower School's educational technology vision, translating shared goals into day-to-day practice across classrooms and grade levels.
• Shape and advance the vision, taking accountability for the quality and coherence of educational technology programming across K-5.
• Develop and maintain an integrated technology scope and sequence across all K-5 grade levels, establishing clear goals for student learning at each stage.
• Lead working groups and task forces (including the Lower School AI Working Group) and serve on faculty hiring committees to ensure prospective hires align with the school's commitment to innovation.
• Collaborate with members of the K-12 academic team and other school leaders to connect Lower School programming to a coherent, school-wide approach while effectively advocating for the divisional needs of young learners.
• Attend conferences, workshops, and school visits to remain at the forefront of the field and bring current pedagogical thinking back to Pingry.

Instructional Coaching & Teacher Inspiration:

• Partner with classroom teachers…