Biddeford, Dayton and Saco Schools are seeking a Director of Family Engagement and Multicultural Education
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Specific Job Details:
Starting Janaury 2025
The Biddeford and Saco School Departments are seeking a dynamic and compassionate educational leader to serve as the Director of Family Engagement and Multicultural Education. This pivotal role will oversee our Welcome Center, which focuses on supporting New Mainers, serving homeless students and families,leading the district’s ESOL program coordinator, and interfacing with city, state, and nonprofits that support these populations
School Description:
We expect staff and students to embrace challenges and strive to attain excellence while exemplifying Tiger PRIDE: Perseverance, Respect, Integrity, Dependability, and Empathy.
Find Biddeford School Department's Three Pillars of Commitment to Students attached.
Brief Job Duties:
The ideal candidate will have experience in the following areas:
- Lead the Welcome Center, ensuring it provides comprehensive support to families who are new to our communities, including new Mainers, homeless students, and those affected by trauma.
- Liaise with multilingual (ML) teachers, Ed Techs, administrative staff, and Resiliency Coordinators across the Biddeford, Dayton, and Saco districts
- Serve as the District Liaison to the State of Maine Office of New Americans
- Serve as the state-registered McKinney-Vento liaison, or designate a Welcome Center employee in the event of future expansion.
- Confer with and be an active, contributing administrator on the districts’ joint leadership team.
- Share the value of the Welcome Center’s work in the community, and coordinate with colleagues in the district to oversee grant funding from application to performance reports in an effort to support its mission.
- Serve as the primary point of contact for the Office of Refugee Resettlement’s RSIG program
- Develop and manage a self-sustaining budget, including grant writing and program development
Full Job Description
Certification/License:
Criminal History Record Check (CHRC), which includes Fingerprints on file with the Maine Department of Education
Education: - Master's degree in Education, Social Work, or related field required
- Minimum of 5 years of experience in educational leadership or related field
- Fluency in multiple languages preferred
Experience: 1. Educational Leadership Experience
- Proven track record in educational leadership, particularly in family engagement and support services
- Demonstrated success in managing programs for newcomer and trauma-affected students
2. Expertise in Working with Diverse Populations
- Deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by newcomer families, those experiencing housing instability, and students affected by trauma
- Ability to advocate for these populations and navigate the complexities of accessing school and community services
3. Program Development and Budget Management
- Experience in strategic planning, grant writing, and program development
- Proven ability to develop and oversee a self-sustaining budget supported by grants and other funding sources
4. Collaboration and Leadership
- Exceptional communication and collaborative skills
- Ability to work effectively with multilingual teachers, guidance staff, resiliency coordinators, and outside agencies
- Experience in coordinating efforts across departments and external organizations
5. Staff and Program Oversight
- Strong supervisory and mentoring skills
- Ability to guide and support diverse teams across multiple districts
6. Advocacy and Outreach
- Proactive approach to community engagement and partnership building
- Commitment to removing barriers to student success and promoting equitable access to resources
Live and Work in the Biddeford, Maine Community
Equal Opportunity
The School Department is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The district shall actively work to have the teacher and administrator workforce reflect the student body's diversity.
The School Department's selection will be based on those with the highest capabilities, the most vital commitment to quality education, and the greatest probability of effectively implementing the learning program.
Therefore, selections will be made without consideration on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, religion, ancestry or national origin, age, marital status, parental status, disability or genetic information, pregnancy, membership in an employee organization, military service, political affiliation, and any other state or federal prohibitions.
For the purpose of this policy, "sexual orientation" means a person's actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, or gender identity or expression.
Criminal Background Check
All employees of Maine schools must be fingerprinted for a criminal history background check. Please create a Department of Education log-in and make an appointment for a fingerprinting appointment at https://www.maine.gov/doe/cert/fingerprinting
Please see other Job Openings at :
Biddeford Schools
Dayton School
Southern Maine Administrative Collaborative
PILLAR 1 PILLAR 2 PILLAR 3
We are a leader in student-
centered learning in the
region. We will not retreat to
one-size-fits-all academics.
We will continue to educate
ourselves and our communi-
ty about serving the whole
child, being mindful of trauma
and the ravages of substance
abuse. We will not ignore--nor
excuse--the impact of what
happens outside of school.
We will support all learners.
We will not norm our expec-
tations to the population we
serve. Those who struggle or
excel will be met, each in her
own way.
COMMITMENT TO STUDENTS
Faculty and staff recognize the individuality of
our students and will continue to provide learn-
ing opportunities that are engaging, rigorous,
and based on personal need.
The school-as-factory model will be abandoned.
Learning will not be governed by bells, class
periods, and top-down instruction. Instruction-
al leadership in Biddeford will move toward the
facilitation of learning at all levels.
Teachers will continue to utilize the power of
formative assessments to modify instruction to
best meet the needs of our students.
All faculty and staff, ranging from instructional
personnel to bus drivers to athletics coaches to
food service workers, will better understand
how chronic stress and adverse childhood expe-
riences inform student behavior.
District leadership will allocate resources for
additional staff to support teachers and students
who work to better understand and mitigate the
impact of trauma day in, day out.
Instructional personnel will work together
to refine and expand a curriculum of social-
emotional learning.
All faculty and staff will redouble efforts to
engage the families of “new Mainers,” and sup-
port the programs and staff required to educate
those for whom English is a second language.
We will begin a three-year cycle of aligning
and reinforcing our efforts around inter-
vention. Students who struggle will be met
earlier, with greater intentionality, and will
realize better outcomes. Students who excel will
engage in rigorous learning opportunities.
Everyone is a teacher of literacy. Professional
support for parents, faculty and staff will be
paired with refinements to curricula, schedule,
outreach, and summer programs to support
increased student literacy.
As Biddeford becomes younger, more
diverse, and continues an economic
and cultural renaissance, our schools
must also change. We are a caring
faculty and staff who want our stu-
dents to be healthy, balanced, and
equipped to compete in post-second-
ary pursuits. We will improve academ-
ic and social-emotional outcomes with
a laserlike focus on three foundational
pillars in the next five years.