School Summary

Arkansas Connections Academy (ARCA) is a tuition-free, virtual public charter school serving students in grades K-12 statewide. ARCA is authorized by the Arkansas Charter Authorizing Panel and the State Board of Education and is governed by an independent Board of Directors. The school contracts with Connections Education to provide its educational program and other services. ARCA is accredited by the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement, the Northwest Accreditation Commission, and the Southern Association of Colleges & Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI), which are accrediting divisions of Cognia.
Arkansas Connections Academy strives to create an inclusive environment that welcomes and values the diversity of the people we serve. We foster fairness, equity, and inclusion to create a workplace environment where everyone is treated with respect and dignity.

Position Summary and Responsibilities

Working remotely from your home office, the Director of Student Success will establish processes and procedures to implement a high-quality Student Success Program in the virtual school. The Director of Student Success will provide direction to the Student Success Team and will assist students and parents in understanding and meeting graduation requirements, course selection and scheduling, post-secondary school planning, overall student success, student engagement, and crisis intervention. The Director of Student Success will support the entire educational program of the school.
The job responsibilities include but are not limited to:

● Develop, plan, and implement student success programs for students and families related to academic/career planning and graduation;
● Oversee the Student Success Department and develop processes to maintain the Student Success Plan for each student; An integral part of this process is assisting students and parents in developing a Four-Year plan for meeting graduation requirements;
● Supervise leadership and staff consisting of student success coaches and counselors who comprise the Student Success Department;
● Keep abreast of all high school graduation requirements, including special requirements such as community service, and communicate this information to the principal;
● Plan and supervise the secondary school course selection process according to specific state credit and graduation requirements and student needs and interests; Support students and staff with issues related to dropping courses and changing schedules;
● Supervise and oversee administrative assistant support for entering student transcript credits into the online transcript system;
● Develop and implement procedures to ensure that Connections Academy transcripts are accurate and up-to-date; Generate and authorize official transcripts for families upon request;
● Supervise efforts to secure complete and accurate records for Connections Academy students;
● Oversee the support of families through the school withdrawal process, confirming the accuracy of data collection regarding withdrawal;
● Design, strategize, and execute initiatives for students and families addressing comprehensive counseling plans;
● Design, implement, and monitor crisis prevention and management plans for the school and provide leadership to the Crisis Management Team;
● Oversee the reporting and referring of critical incidents that jeopardize student well-being as obligated by law, administrative regulations, or ethical standards;
● Lead the Student Success Team in identifying school and community resources and maintain an up-to-date list of those resources, making them available to school teams and families;
● Coordinate and staff to develop and implement processes to regularly and frequently review the status of each secondary school student related to attendance, participation, and performance;
● Ensure that the Student Success Team can assist teachers when students enroll mid-semester, making sure that teachers receive guidance on integrating the students into their coursework, and ensuring that previous grades, credits, and evaluations are handled appropriately;
● Provide support regarding all high school testing and coordinate alongside the District Testing Coordinator, including exit exams, ACT, and AP exams; develop and implement programs like AP support, SAT/ACT preparation, and college entrance preparation.
● Design and implement professional development activities for teachers and school staff members that enhance staff knowledge of state requirements and protocols for crisis intervention;
● Support Administration and Staff with the planning and implementation of high school graduation ceremonies; and
● Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

● Please note, if given a job offer, 2-step authentication is required to login to all systems
● Arkansas Teaching, Counseling, Social Work, or Administrative License
● Advanced degree in Counseling, Social Work, or Administration
● Minimum 3 years of leadership experience in a secondary school setting preferred
● School Counseling experience preferred
● Willingness to travel for administration and state testing events (may require occasional overnight travel)
● Ability to work some occasional evening hours, as needed to support some families
● Must have a dedicated, distraction-free office space and ensure careful monitoring of student information.

Skills:

● Strong leadership and team management abilities.
● Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
● Proficiency in data analysis and program assessment; development of processes, procedures, and key outcomes
● Demonstrated ability to design and implement student success initiatives.
● Knowledge of academic advising, retention strategies, and student development theory.
● Technologically proficient (especially with Microsoft Office products and Google Suite)
● Customer focused approach
● A high degree of flexibility
● Demonstrated ability to work well in a fast-paced environment
● Team player track record with demonstrated leadership skills

Key Competencies:

● Leadership and Vision
● Problem-Solving and Decision-Making
● Interpersonal and Communication Skills
● Data-Driven Approach
● Collaboration and Teamwork