Staffing & Scheduling Manager

Job description:

Where great planning helps great teachers do their best work.

Are you someone who loves solving the puzzle when there are a dozen moving pieces?

Do you naturally think ahead, spot potential problems before they become emergencies and stay calm when Plan A suddenly isn’t going to work?

First Roots – Wild Roots is seeking a thoughtful, resourceful and collaborative Staffing & Scheduling Manager to oversee staffing and scheduling across our three early childhood programs.

This is not your typical scheduling position.

It’s a unique early childhood leadership role that combines workforce planning, problem-solving, decision-making and time spent directly in our programs — all with one important goal:

Making sure our classrooms have the people and support they need to thrive.

At First Roots – Wild Roots, we know great programs depend on great educators — and great educators need thoughtful systems behind them.

As our Staffing & Scheduling Manager, you’ll look at the big picture across FRWR, anticipate staffing needs, balance competing priorities and develop solutions that work for the organization as a whole.

• Own staffing and scheduling across FRWR.
• Develop and maintain staff schedules across our three programs.
• Evaluate staffing needs based on child attendance, employee availability, qualifications, ratios and program priorities.
• Respond to call-outs, early departures and changing needs by determining the best coverage solution.
• Decide when to use substitutes, flexible staff or move qualified employees between classrooms or programs.
• Create coverage plans for PTO, meetings, onboarding, coaching, professional development and planning time.
• Communicate schedules and changes clearly and consistently.

• Maintain a 2–4 week staffing outlook and anticipate potential coverage challenges.
• Identify staffing risks before they become emergencies and develop solutions.
• Balance competing needs and make routine staffing decisions independently.
• Analyze call-outs, substitute use and recurring staffing challenges to identify patterns.
• Recommend improvements to staffing practices, scheduling systems and workforce capacity.
• Partner with Program Directors and the Director of Operations & Administration on staffing needs and solutions.

• This isn't a position where you'll spend every day behind a desk.
• You’ll also serve as a flexible organization-wide resource, providing direct classroom or program support as staffing needs require — currently estimated at approximately 15–20 hours per week.
• That might mean helping cover a classroom, stepping in during a meeting or break, supporting onboarding or simply going where your help is most needed that day.
• Your classroom support will vary from week to week because your primary responsibility is managing FRWR’s organization-wide staffing and scheduling function.

We’re looking for someone who combines strong organizational skills with good judgment, flexibility and a people-centered approach.

Ideal candidates will have:

• Experience in staffing, scheduling, workforce planning, operations management, early childhood program administration or a related field.
• Experience in a licensed early childhood program preferred.
• Strong organizational, analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Confidence making decisions when there are competing priorities and more than one possible solution.
• The ability to recognize patterns and turn them into practical solutions.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Comfort using scheduling systems, spreadsheets, databases and other administrative technology.
• The ability to maintain confidentiality.
• The ability to meet and maintain BFIS requirements to serve at…