Posting Timeline

PPS strongly encourages and recommends everyone who is able, to be vaccinated and remain current on the COVID-19 vaccine.

This job is open until filled. Applications will be reviewed as received. Portland Public Schools reserves the right to make a hiring decision at any point during the posting period.

Position Details

Portland Public Schools is seeking talented people from diverse backgrounds and experiences, who are inspired by our mission and who are highly motivated to inspire our children to succeed. We want leaders who are strong collaborators, skilled communicators, problem solvers and who thrive in a community that is dedicated to continuous learning. When you join our team at Portland Public Schools, you can expect to be part of an innovative and equity-focused organization focused on building citadels of learning that develop strong academic proficiency, healthy socio-emotional development, and opportunities for all children to discover their inner gifts and talents.

As the Innovation Studio Manager, you will play a critical role in managing a department that houses the organization’s innovation practice so that all staff and students develop the capacity to use innovation processes and tools to address challenges in the system, and have a supportive structure in place to enable them to do so. This department will sit in the Instruction and School Communities Division as a central hub for which PPS teams across the organization can safely take risks and design equity-centered solutions in support of PPS ReImagined.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

You will serve PPS in a critical capacity to socialize the organization’s innovation practice and shepherd new projects that move the district closer to PPS reImagined from concept to implementation.

• Consult with organizational stakeholders as needed for additional thought-partnership on emerging innovation needs.
• Sponsor cohorts of design teams through complete innovation cycles including technical support, coaching, and seed funding.
• Build the organizational capacity to apply innovation approaches by training diverse cohorts of process facilitators.
• Maintain alignment with Portland Public Schools’ other priority areas, namely those called out in Forward Together, Strategic Plan for Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Excellence and accelerate progress by demonstrating early models for which the organization can learn from, modify, and scale as needed
• Leverage both public and private resources to develop an Innovation Fund for which teams can apply to design and prototype equity-centered solutions.
• Oversee staff’s development and maintenance of a comprehensive dashboard using formal and informal data reporting metrics of historic and present innovation projects as an organizational resource to promote positive story telling, continuous improvement, and design research.
• Collaborate with senior leadership to anticipate emerging priority areas to focus on in the Innovation Studio and to audit the organization’s capacity to implement innovation projects with fidelity.
• Make strategic recommendations to senior leadership about the opportunities for improvement and successes to scale across the organization with a comprehensive analysis of the opportunities, risks, strengths and weaknesses of each recommendation.
• Develop and maintain an accessible communication strategy across multiple channels to amplify innovations across the organization and to share opportunities to engage with the Innovation Studio.
• Research and maintain a pulse on the latest innovation and design research in order to modify the Innovation Framework as needed.
• Direct the performance of assigned staff.
• Design a communication strategy for innovation projects.

ABILITY TO AND KNOWLEDGE OF:

Ability to inspire change, align disparate systems, think creatively, and drive a culture of forward thinking.

Strategy and Systems Thinking:

• Strong organizational development background.
• Ability to situate projects within the context of a larger organization.
• Ability to inspire the broader community and organize ecosystems of support.
• Quick problem solving and capacity building.

Program Management:

• Strong program and project management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and ambiguity.
• Attention to detail and a highly organized, process-focused aptitude required to manage the variety of responsibilities and deliverables.

Data and Situational Analysis:

• Strong analytical skills and ability to translate metrics, research, and trends into strategy and improvement opportunities.
• Managing the innovation grant application, and technology to ensure it is efficient.

Cross Group Coordination:

• Experience and credibility as a leader in an environment where the ability to influence, work across a complex matrix, and build relationships is critical.
• Influences others without direct authority to achieve solutions to meet organizational objectives, and is proactive in providing solutions, resolving issues and overcoming hurdles to results. Effectively collaborates with partners to resolve.
• Ability to motivate, influence and optimize senior leadership, stakeholders and peer groups.
• Demonstrated team leadership, coaching and group facilitation skills. Challenges employees and leadership effectively and respectfully.

Excellent Oral and Written Communications:

• A highly effective communicator, using both data-driven and storytelling conversation methods, with the ability to clearly and concisely articulate ideas, concepts, and proposals to engage team, peers, and leadership.
• Strong interpersonal awareness and skills with particular emphasis on being: assertive, supportive, listening, and group process. Also a keen understanding and awareness of their own diversity and how it impacts and influences their role in building a culture of innovation.

Education and Training:

• A Bachelor’s degree in Education, Counseling, Psychology, Sociology, Criminology, Social Work or related field is required.

Experience:

• Three (3) years of experience working with children and/or adolescents to effect positive academic, social and/or emotional life-skills behaviors or one (1) year as a Student Success Program Supervisor or two (2) years as a Student Success Advocate is required.
• Experience in a lead, supervisory or management role is preferred. Experience serving the needs of a richly diverse student and community population is highly desirable.
• Any other combination of education, training and experience which demonstrates the candidate is likely to possess the skill, knowledge, ability and trait characteristics essential for this classification may be considered.

CLASSIFICATION AND SALARY:

This position is classified asStudent Success Programs Manager, Pay Grade32,on the Non-Represented, Confidential, Professional and Management Employees salary schedule FLSAExempt.

The Non-Represented Confidential Professional Management and Employees Salary Schedule for 260 day employees can be found here . A full review of the Classification Specification can be viewed here .

SALARY RANGE: $95,028 - $113,468

This position is a 260 day work year.

Benefits Information

Portland Public Schools (PPS) offers several competitive and comprehensive benefit packages to employees.Fringe benefits include medical, dental, vision, prescription, life and disability insurance, employee assistance program, 403(b) retirement savings plan and various leave and professional development programs. Depending on the insurance option selected by the employee, there may be an employee contribution toward insurance.

Portland Public Schools is a public employer and participates in the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS/OPSRP). Eligible employees are required by statute to contribute 6% of salary on a pre-tax basis to OPSRP/IAP, after serving six months under a PERS employer.

For moreinformation about additional benefits or compensation options by employee group, please visit our website at: https://www.pps.net/Page/1635