Under the direction of the assigned Division Chief, the Innovation Officer will be responsible for the research, creation, design and monitoring of innovative projects and programs that support the strategic priorities and initiatives of the Chief.  The incumbent of this position will strategically facilitate organizational management and development under innovative models, in order to enhance organization coherence, the instructional skills of school and district leaders, and ensure alignment and equity of resources to schools for system success.  The Innovation Officer will serve as a subject matter expert and will respond to related inquiries from the Board of Education, other school system administrators and the Superintendent of Schools.

Researches and develops innovative ideas and insights, and introduces group tools and processes that encourage creative thinking in educational and organizational leadership;

Serves as a conduit between the offices in the division and other offices where partnerships are necessary when creating and implementing innovation projects;

Designs and establishes ideas, generation of programs and formats, such as innovation labs, for the benefit of improving instructional and organizational leadership;

Conducts research regularly to stay current and abreast of emerging and innovative classroom practices and leverages this critical insight to inform executive leadership decision-making and facilitates leadership development at all levels of the organization;

Creates feedback loops for school and district leaders to help them reflect and understand how academic strategic decisions, policies and actions shape and constrain classroom practice;

Utilizes data to support the development of innovative programs and researches and assesses the educational field to identify new leadership trends and recommends new initiatives to executive leadership;

Facilitates organizational management and development and other customized supports for school and district leaders;

Conducts action research of the implementation of innovative leadership programs and writes analyses and reports for the district throughout design and execution phases, as appropriate;

Develops and implements innovative strategies that target critical leadership behaviors in an effort to lead school and district improvement effectively;

Partners with teacher leaders and district work groups to support, complement and enhance the execution of key initiatives and projects;

Handles and manages various special assignments as directed by the Chief; and

Performs other duties as assigned.

Ability to provide leadership, guidance, training and support to internal and external partners in the development and delivery of equity programs and tools;

Ability to develop work plans and training materials;

Demonstrated success facilitating organizational change efforts from concept to execution;

Demonstrated use of computer technology skills through the creation of projects in an administrative and educational setting;

Background in leadership coaching and adult learning and development;

Experience with design thinking, including the ability to design processes for soliciting and synthesizing stakeholder feedback;

Dynamic, driven and organized administrator with excellent oral and written communication skills;

Accomplished classroom teacher and school-based administrator or supervisor, as evidenced by student achievement data;

Effective time management skills;

Exceptional analytic, strategic-thinking and problem-solving skills; and

Strong research and writing skills; proven track record for publishing reports and/or journal articles preferred.

Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in educational leadership, supervision or administration required; Doctorate degree preferred. A minimum of five (5) years of successful experience driving innovation or spearheading special projects and working across departments in a school system as a supervisor.

Maryland Professional Certificate with Administrator II endorsement required.

May provide guidance and oversight to assigned personnel.

The physical demands are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, talk, hear, walk, sit, and use fingers, tools or controls. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision such as to read handwritten or typed material, the ability to adjust focus, and depth perception. While performing the duties of this job, the employee may occasionally push or lift up to 25 lbs.




The work environment characteristics are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of the job.




Work schedules may include evenings and weekends. Drivers’ License is required, inasmuch as there will be a need to travel to sites throughout the school district.