What: The objective of the Portfolio Office is to ensure students in every part of Chicago have access to high quality educational options by building coherent and aligned systems for school applications, enrollment, regional school planning, incubation of quality school options, and accountability and oversight.
The Chief Portfolio Officer is responsible for the successful performance and oversight of the following duties, in addition to other related duties as assigned:
- Lead the development of a strategic school portfolio plan that ensures all students have access to high-quality school choices.
- Evaluate students' access to high-quality educational programs and/or school options and the availability of sufficient high-quality seats to serve community needs.
- Measure the implementation and effectiveness of short and long term portfolio strategy.
- Identify the highest-priority communities in which educational services must be addressed and develop equitable solutions to meet the needs.
- Lead a cross-functional team, inclusive of the Teaching & Learning and Network Support functions, that identifies clear roles and responsibilities across CPS for school support and accountability functions.
- Collaborate with senior CPS leaders, the Communications team, and key external stakeholders with regard to internal and external communications to key stakeholders on Portfolio Office initiatives. Develop policies to support increased choice, access and equity for students and families to high-quality school options.
- Identify, assess and recommend changes to district policies, operating models or capabilities that better support a choice-based school system.
- Design and lead the school action process, including the creation of recommended actions and implementation plans developed in partnership with community stakeholders, as well as district experts in education, operations, and family and community engagement. Establish a transparent, stream-lined, and customer-focused school enrollment process for students and families.
- Oversee the expansion of the GoCPS enrollment platform and long-term enrollment strategy.
- Build awareness of GoCPS and manage continuous improvements in its communication. Define and implement a comprehensive strategy that ensures consistent access to clear, understandable, and transparent information to drive school and programmatic planning.
- Track, monitor and report student achievement, enrollment, and performance trends across the district, and collaborate with district's research strategy and agenda.
- Lead annual regional data analysis cycles, information dissemination, change initiatives, communication and measurement, with the purpose of better informing policy design.
- Develop user-friendly portal to enable the public's interaction with key district data.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in Education, Public Administration, Public Policy, Urban Planning, or a related field.
- Master's degree in Business Administration or Public Policy/Administration preferred.
- Type of Experience Required:
- Minimum of 7 years of dynamic & effective results-oriented leadership experience, preferably in a large urban school district;
- Demonstrated experience building and leading high-performing teams to achieve ambitious goals with strong outcomes;
- Proven record of building and leading large-scale complex programs, projects and change management initiatives;
- Experience with multi-year strategic planning and budgeting preferred;
- Experience related to the design and implementation of new school models preferred.
- Strong analytical skills, a high degree of intellectual curiosity, and the ability to engage with senior leaders in addressing complex issues;
- Familiarity with school performance measurement, new school models, new school creation, and school choice and enrollment activities;
- Ability to build consensus among diverse stakeholders around a clear vision for serving schools and achieving optimal student achievement outcomes;
- In-depth knowledge and experience in leading data-driven practices at a systems level, including distilling analysis into insights and translating insights into action;
- Initiates, builds, and manages cohesive partnerships and professional relationships with stakeholders at all levels internal and external to the district, governmental agencies, and community partners;
- Demonstrates a sense of urgency regarding closing the achievement gap and driving equitable educational opportunities for all students