Chief Academic Officer, Cleveland Metropolitan School District

Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) is seeking a Chief Academic Officer (CAO) to champion the district's instructional vision, and enable academic excellence for every scholar, in every school. The CAO will join CEO Warren Morgan's cabinet after several years of pivotal work to build a centralized academic strategy anchored in high-quality core curricula, and a unified assessment system. The next CAO will bring coherence to the work that matters most in classrooms and deliver on the Board Goals: increasing proficiency in reading, math and college readiness.

CMSD is Ohio's third-largest district, serving more than 34,000 students, and offering families a wide range of school choices, including STEM, the arts, single-gender education, International Baccalaureate, Montessori, and early college. With Building Brighter Futures, adopted by the Board in December 2025 and now in its first year of implementation for the 2026-27 school year, CMSD has made tough but necessary choices, in partnership with the community, to close a $150 million shortfall, consolidate schools, and move students into newer buildings with richer opportunities.

Today, every CMSD high school offers college and career pathways, and every elementary school offers enrichment courses.

The next CAO will build on that progress, accelerating proficiency, graduation, and college and career readiness while expanding access to advanced coursework so that where a student attends school no longer determines how far they can go.

The Chief Academic Officer is a key leader on the CEO's cabinet spearheading the district's efforts to support, empower, and create exceptional schools through sound leadership and instructional practices. This leader provides leadership across the Office of Teaching & Learning, the Office of Student Services, and the Office of Schools. The role aligns these functions to support high-quality instruction and effective school operations across the district.

This Division is committed to being student-focused, in order to provide intellectually rich experiences for children that ensure they graduate prepared for college, career, and life.

This role requires strong instructional and operational leadership, sound judgment, and the ability to manage complex systems in a large, unionized public sector environment. It also requires a working knowledge of Cleveland: its schools, people, relationships, and community and labor dynamics.

This leader ensures that the Academics Division remains grounded in the district's Core Values:
Equity & Inclusion, Student & Community Focused, Growth & Learning, Care & Well-Being, Excellence & Achievement.

• Lead the academic aspects of Building Brighter Futures implementation, including ensuring more students are enrolled and scheduled in advanced coursework in all schools so that students and families experience continuity of high-quality instruction and support.
• Ensure coherence across all academic programming, including curriculum and instruction, career and college success, early childhood, and fine arts.
• Enable the district to demonstrate growth in academic proficiency in alignment with our District's Goals and Guardrails by strengthening the district’s existing academic structures and driving continuous improvement.
• Increase student enrollment and participation in the college and career pathways and programs offered in the district.
• Ensure that the core curriculum instruction addresses the needs of diverse learners and is supplemented by enrichment and interventions as needed.
• Serve as the primary academic advisor to the CEO and Cabinet and drive alignment between…