Entrepreneurship Program Director, Founders School - $250,000​/year USD

Develop founders, not curricula. Many believe high school exists to prepare students for what comes next. We believe what comes next begins immediately. Founders School operates as a four-year secondary institution for students unwilling to postpone building something significant until they reach adulthood. These students aren't engaged in simulated business exercises. They’re creating functioning companies, collaborating with experienced entrepreneurs, achieving AI mastery, and addressing real challenges.

Our expectations are elevated because our students are exceptional: launch a million-dollar enterprise, pinpoint meaningful problems, and gain AI fluency ahead of the curve. Your mission is to sustain that level of ambition.

Your work won't involve classroom instruction or prescribing business tactics. Instead, you'll guide a cohort of emerging founders daily, ensuring they remain accountable, navigate challenges, and maintain momentum when entrepreneurship becomes demanding. You'll recognize when to push, when to support, and when to facilitate introductions to the appropriate mentor or tool. The curriculum, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence, and founder ecosystem deliver startup knowledge. You deliver the structure, rigor, and drive that convert capability into achievement.

This position also represents a chance to contribute to something foundational. As part of our inaugural team in New York City, you'll influence the culture, infrastructure, and lived reality of an institution built to transform what high school graduates can accomplish. Your contributions will extend beyond a single student cohort. They will inform the operational model for every subsequent Founders School location.

If you're drawn to startup environments, believe rigorous standards yield exceptional performance, and want to channel your effort into cultivating emerging entrepreneurs, we should connect.

• Guide and energize a group of student entrepreneurs through structured weekly 1:1 sessions, daily progress reviews, and team stand-ups that ensure continuous, measurable advancement.
• Maintain exceptionally high performance standards while delivering the guidance and accountability required for students to navigate roadblocks and sustain momentum.
• Track student development via FounderOS, recognize when individuals encounter barriers, and facilitate connections to mentors, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence, or resources that drive their progress forward.
• Contribute to establishing the culture, rituals, programming, events, and operational cadence of an elite entrepreneurial high school environment.
• Accompany students on multiple annual trips while cultivating enduring relationships with founders, investors, business operators, and entrepreneurial communities.

• Serving as the lead business strategist or formulating company plans for students. FounderOS, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence, and external mentors fulfill that function.
• Delivering conventional academic instruction or evaluating traditional coursework.
• Tolerating mediocre output from students demonstrably capable of excellence.
• Facilitating sessions beyond your domain of expertise or depending on superficial startup guidance.
• Operating within an inflexible institutional framework where administrative barriers compromise student impact.

Establish conditions under which each student advances consistently as an entrepreneur by integrating exceptional mentorship, rigorous accountability, strategic relationships, and a culture that develops ambitious adolescents into competent founders.

• A minimum of 3 years in leadership or high-impact roles within a startup or high-growth company.
• Solid business acumen and the capability to engage confidently with early-stage entrepreneurs while recognizing when specialist input is needed.
• Proven track record coaching, inspiring, and maintaining accountability among high-performing individuals.
• Regular, applied experience leveraging AI to enhance work quality and efficiency.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal abilities with students, families, mentors, and entrepreneurial professionals.
• Commitment to full-time, on-site presence in New York City, including periodic travel during the year.
• Valid authorization to work in the United States.

• Experience founding or co-founding a company.
• Background in coaching, mentoring, or managing programs for adolescents or emerging adults.
• Existing relationships with founders, investors, business operators, or mentors.
• History working in early-stage ventures where you routinely handled diverse functional responsibilities.

Founders School is a four-year high school built for ambitious students who want to create, build, and solve meaningful problems. The program combines Alpha School's elite academics, real-world experience, and mentorship from world-class entrepreneurs around three…