School Director in Training

Overview

DSST Public Schools is seeking a School Director in Training (SDiT). This is a full-time, in-person role based in Denver, CO, with multiple locations and a salary of $90,000-$108,500 based on years of aligned experience, up to 10 years. A relocation stipend is available for moves from more than 75 miles from Denver.

Start:
Summer 2026. A current School Year Calendar is available for viewing.

The School Director in Training (SDIT) Program is DSST’s multi-year advanced leadership development pathway for rising School Directors. The program focuses on developing leaders who can drive rigorous, vibrant, and equitable schools for DSST students. Core beliefs include:

• Classroom teachers and school leaders are the critical levers for student success.
• Leaders own their development and opportunities to grow.
• Equity is central to educational excellence and leadership.

In Year 1, SDITs participate in professional development, coaching, observation/debrief cycles, and on-the-job opportunities while working with a Mentor School Director. They serve as systems, culture, curriculum, and instructional leaders, coaching and managing teams toward strong results.

In Year 2, SDITs continue Year 1 development and may rotate leadership placements, observe excellent schools, access external professional development, and potentially serve as Interim School Director. Depending on network needs and experience, the program may accelerate, allowing an SDIT to assume the School Director role after one year.

You should consider this role if you want to lead a DSST middle or high school and are committed to DSST’s mission, equity, and continuous growth.

• Leadership:
  Demonstrate urgency about achievement for all students; pursue solutions to maximize student achievement; model professional maturity; mentor and coach staff; identify and develop future leaders; act as strategic partner to the School Director; supervise a substantial portion of the team.
• Culture:
  Cultivate a values-centered culture; ensure robust Morning Meetings; collaborate to support students’ academic and socio-emotional development; lead with a positive, structured culture.
• Instruction, Coaching & Evaluation:
  Provide instructional leadership; track coaching meetings and observations; give actionable feedback; manage a data-driven instructional process aligned to assessments and college readiness; develop DSST curriculum documents; maintain student records; oversee standardized testing; arrange staff development; co-manage department chairs.
• Systems:
  Implement scalable systems; develop solutions involving all stakeholders; manage with fiscal responsibility and priority planning.
• Evaluation:
  The SDIT will be evaluated on data-driven indicators such as attendance, student learning gains, benchmark assessments, retention, and satisfaction.

Additional Duties include recruiting faculty and students, community engagement, family communications, developing network-wide standards with the Home Office, network-wide professional development, possible teaching duties, and acting as a student advisor where applicable.

• Commitment to serving students of color, students with disabilities, students experiencing poverty, and multilingual students.

• Belief that all students can succeed in high school and reach postsecondary goals.
• Desire to grow as an anti-racist educator; self-awareness and ongoing improvement mindset.
• Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited university.
• Proven success coaching, leading, and managing adults; commitment to equity; love for students, families, and a thriving school environment.
• 5+ years of school experience and 3+ years in school-based leadership (assistant principal or similar).
• Experience in 6th-12th grade leadership preferred; principal or senior leader experience preferred.

DSST Public Schools is proud to achieve transformational results for 7,500+ students — 97% attend Green (top-rated) schools. We value a culture that is values-centered and human-focused. We invite educators and leaders who share our belief in more brilliance, courage,…