Executive Assistant to the Head of School

ABOUT MERIDIAN PCS

Meridian is a PreK-8th grade school located in Washington DC’s vibrant U Street Corridor. Our mission is to inspire a passion for learning in our students and to help them build their self-confidence and self-respect through academic achievement. 

Our 650+ students are a diverse mix of African-American, Latino, Asian, African, and White students. Almost 30% of our students are English language learners, and we have one of the largest Hispanic populations in DC charter schools. We are committed to building a community of teachers and staff who reflect the rich diversity of our student body. Our middle school campus serves nearly 200 students in the Columbia Heights neighborhood in grades 6-8.

Meridian is committed to serving families from our local communities; and one-third of our students live within a half mile of the school. The U Street Corridor was once the heart of black culture in DC and offers a tangible historical archive for our students, and Columbia Heights is one of the most racially and economically diverse neighborhoods in the District. We are also proud of the fact that Meridian is a school of choice for parents— all eight wards of the city are represented among our student population.

Meridian’s strengths include two beautiful and historic campuses, with nearby outdoor and recreational grounds; state of the art technology for students and teachers; updated and aligned curricula; an academic program laser-focused on student growth, achievement, and social-emotional development; extensive professional development and support for teachers and leaders; and a school culture grounded in student achievement, collaboration, and student-centered learning.

Join us as we continue to take Meridian from good to great! For additional information about Meridian visit mpcs-dc.org.

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Executive Assistant is responsible for providing critical support to the Head of School’s daily operation of the school, short and long-term goals, and institutional projects. The Executive Assistant directly reports to and works most closely with the Head of School, by facilitating effective coordination and communication among the school and its stakeholders. helping to coordinate the work of the leadership team and the team’s interactions with Meridian’s Board of Trustees. The Executive Assistant role is a full-time, salaried, 12-month position.

RESPONSIBILITIES   

Under the guidance of the Executive Assistant will perform specific responsibilities that include, but are not limited to:

Administrative Support 

• Manage the activities and projects emanating from the Head of School and other designated school leaders and administrators
• Handle and manage administrative duties to schedule meetings as well as manage calendar of Head of School
• Open, discard and distribute incoming mail, sending outgoing mail, as needed
• Serve as a point of contact for all Head of School visitors
• Establish positive and professional relationships via communication with all Meridian PCS staff
• Maintain Head of School’s critical files within a secure area of office
• Draft and customize letters for the Head of School
• Create and edit agendas for leadership team meetings for Head of School and other designated team members
• Create various dashboards for Head of School to help with internal tracking
• Create and maintain a database to house all critical documents
• Ensure all Head of School is meeting deadlines for all deliverables issued by school and external agencies
• Provide assistance to students, staff, and the public, as needed
• Any additional duties assigned to help support the Head of School

Special Projects 

• Lead or serve as a critical team player on school wide initiatives related to school recognition programs (i.e.. birthdays, work anniversaries and special school recognition events)
• Work with Head of School in efforts to have disciplined processes to create and track progress of assigned special projects against organizational priorities and goals
• Support the Head of School workflow management- providing capacity for the organization by taking ownership of key cross functional tasks and projects

QUALIFICATIONS

Successful candidates will possess the following:  

Required Education and Experience 

• Associate’s degree preferred by not required and/or
• Minimum of five years of experience working in a non- profit organization in Operations/Business Administration or Finance
• Must be able to work with confidential information
• Bi-Lingual in Spanish (speaking/writing) is a plus, but not required
• Administrator of Medication (AOM) training within six months of employment
• Knowledge and experience using Google Suite and Microsoft Office

Required Core Competencies

• Excellent communication skills, and the ability to communicate persuasively in positive and negative situations
• Capacity to accept feedback from others, make decisions, and exhibit sound and accurate judgment
• Able to work independently or with others in a team approach

Desired Attributes

• Work comfortably with people from diverse backgrounds
• Excellent organizational skills and timely completion of tasks
• Solid writing skills
• Math Aptitude: Comfort with numbers and accounts payable
• Conscientiousness: Understanding that everything going out the door matters to the customer; striving for excellence
• Customer Orientation: Good customer service skills with internal and external customers, attention to detail
• Dedication: Being persistent, punctual and dependable, with a positive, can do attitude
• Sense of Urgency: Understanding the urgency of situations and address matters promptly
• Flexibility/Adaptability: Open to change and to considerable variety in the workplace
• Honesty: Trustworthiness with company resources and information

Physical Demands of the Position

These physical characteristics are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job safely. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Mobility sufficient to move about, stand, and/or sit for extended periods, and access all locations in the work environment
• Manual skill to appropriately control and manipulate objects, tools, materials, and equipment used on the job, including a telephone and a computer
• Flexibility and strength to reach with hands and arms, bend and stoop
• Ability occasionally to lift and or move up to 50 pounds
• Ability to hear and understand speech at normal room levels, and to hear and understand speech on the telephone
• Ability to speak clearly in audible tones so that others may understand
• Specific vision abilities required by this job includes close vision, distance vision, ability to adjust focus and peripheral vision

SALARY AND BENEFITS

A recent TNTP Insight Survey of our teachers placed our staff’s satisfaction with compensation in the top quartile of all charter schools in DC. We also lead the charter sector in compensation transparency and publish our salary scales for teachers, apprentice teachers, and dedicated aides here.

Meridian teachers and staff are compensated competitively for their time and have opportunities to earn additional income through leadership opportunities at the school level, offering extracurricular clubs and sports for students, and facilitating tutoring programs.