Executive Chief of Administration and Strategic Planning

*This position posting is anticipated, contingent on Board position approval. 

About Our District

The Syracuse City School District is undergoing a new phase of innovation and transformation with the goal of ensuring that all students graduate high school with the skills needed to be ready for college and career. For Syracuse, all means all. The School Board and Syracuse community have charged the Superintendent with improving student achievement, and she is seeking a dedicated and diverse team of educators to partner with her in moving the district toward its goals. The Syracuse City School District represents 34 schools including 4 alternative education programs, serving 19,000+ students Pre-K-12 of whom 77% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, 18% are served by the Office of Special Education and 78% are students of color. 

About This Position

The Executive Chief of Administration and Strategic Planning supports the district and Superintendent. Drawing from and applying experience and leveraging the skillset as an instructional leader across contexts, the individual in this role will directly engage in and provide parallel guidance and coaching to senior leadership. To increase and broaden districtwide accountability and engagement, this team member will provide explicit oversight to and have co-responsibility for the timely, transparent engagement of stakeholders in the operational development and dissemination of both the Strategic Plan and New York State Education Department District Comprehensive Education Improvement Plan (DCIP) submission processes. 

Who We Want

Successful SCSD employees are passionately committed to urban education and all in for Syracuse students. They: 

• Believe strongly that all students can learn at high levels; 
• Demonstrate commitment to serving urban students, schools or communities, and to closing the achievement gap; 
• Demonstrate willingness to put the interests of students above all others; 
• Actively contribute to a culture of high expectations in schools and the district; 
• Adapt seamlessly to the complexities of the urban school environment; and 
• Follow current trends in education policy and research. 
• Ability to work frequent nights, weekends and holidays as required. 
• Skills and ability to demonstrate leadership qualities and utilize motivational techniques and strategies. 
• Superior written and oral communication skills. 
• Knowledge of organizational and operating procedures including the decision-making process, program planning, improvement strategies, quality assurance and compliance 
• Ability to lead a team managing multiple projects in a high-paces work environment. 

REPORTS TO: Superintendent of Schools 

Duties And Responsibilities:

• Ensures systemwide coherence in aiding in supporting the implementation of policies, procedures, and regulations, coordinating, and integrating systems that result in sustained equitable access to high quality instructional programs and SEL-based services for all learners.
• Leads the prioritization of meeting Strategic Plan Targets at higher rates, resulting in:
• Increased ADA 
• Reduced CA 
• Reduced rates of behavioral recidivism 
• Increased Time on task in classrooms 
• Assists with developmental opportunities for students, staff, and leaders. 
• Leads sustained improvement, and ultimately increased proficiency and performance that result in higher sustainable graduation rates for ALL learners. 
• Facilitates district executive leaders, government agencies, public and private institutions and non-profit organizations into a partnership of support for the mission of SCSD. 
• Formulates and develops systems, policies, standards and procedures in compliance with a variety of federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations; coordinates department management and personnel, information and resources to assure services, organizations and departments run smoothly and efficiently. 
• Provides leadership and oversight in aligning administrative functions that engage multiple departments and works with administrators in charge of departments in the carrying out of their specific responsibilities. 
• Provides leadership for the planning, implementation and evaluation of strategic goals and objectives. 
• Ensures the collection of data, and preparation of reports essential to meeting the needs and objectives of SCSD. 
• Oversees, coordinates, plans, organizes, assigns and directs activities of SCSD primarily involved with building district capacity. 
• Plans, organizes and oversees organizational units to assure the proper delivery of services and programs to SCSD clients. 
• Interprets the philosophy, programs and policies of SCSD to staff, districts and the community; assists in reviewing, advising and development and implementation of SCSD policies and the strategies for achieving goals and objectives. 
• Builds positive working relationships and various community leaders and organizations; facilities and coordinates collaboration and partnerships with government and community agencies, organizations and educational institutions for mutual goal achievement. 
• Analyzes the impact of existing, proposed and new federal and state legislation, regulatory requirements and proposed changes and advises the Superintendent regarding their impact on SCSD and district operations and functions and provides recommendations for effective and compliant implementation. 
• Supervises and evaluates the performance of assigned personnel; reviews work to assure compliance with established standards, requirements and procedures; and assures employee understanding of established requirements. 
• Communicates with SCSD leadership to review, analyze and determine appropriate collective bargaining process. 
• Attends community related meetings, events and councils in conjunction with, or on behalf of the Superintendent or as an advocate of districts 
• Meets regularly with school district administration to determine educational needs and effectiveness of district office services. 
• Increased ADA 
• Reduced CA 
• Reduced rates of behavioral recidivism 
• Increased Time on task in classrooms 

Qualifications

• Minimum 3+ years building level experience and an additional 3+ years of district level leadership experience. 
• Master’s Degree from an accredited college or university in education administration, supervision, or curriculum development.
• New York State School District Leader (SDL) certification. 

This position is a supervisory "at-will" Superintendent's Appointment. As such, it is not a probationary appointment and may be terminated at any time. Applicants knowingly waive rights under New York Education Law or Civil Service Law to a permanent appointment or to Section 75 rights under Civil Service Law. 

Salary/Salary Range

Salary and benefits are provided in accordance with the Unit 3A Benefits Handbook. The annual starting salary for the 2025–2026 academic year is $205,000 – 215,000, commensurate with experience and qualifications and pending Board approval.