Director / PreK- 1st grade Educator, Holler Creek Outdoor School

Opportunity

Holler Creek School is excited to offer the opportunity for a dedicated, innovative educator to lead our school.  This individual will act as both director and lead teacher for 8-10 students ages 4-7 (pre-K through 1st grade).  The position will officially begin in August 2024, but this individual will participate in board meetings and other important aspects of the Director role starting in April 2024, including recruiting students for enrollment, fundraising, and participating in monthly meetings with our Board of Directors.

Traits and Requirements

Strong candidates will demonstrate:

• Experience teaching children ages 4-7
• A minimum of a bachelor’s degree, preferably with coursework in elementary education or child development
• Strong understanding of childhood development, including social/emotional as well as academic–scope and sequence of math, literacy, and other curriculum areas for this age group and beyond
• Ability to create and implement curriculum that uses the school’s unique resources and surroundings to provide experiential learning opportunities
• Interest in the school’s mission and place-based educational philosophy, including a love of nature, project-based learning, and the Blue Ridge region
• Ability to work collaboratively with an assistant teacher
• Proficiency, promptness, and clarity in written communication such as texts, emails, etc.
• Rich repertoire of teaching strategies to address a variety of learning styles, needs, personalities, and developmental phases
• Ability to evaluate student work in both qualitative and quantitative ways and to provide both formal and informal feedback on student progress to families and in student records
• Desire and skills to foster positive relationships among students, families, staff, and the wider community
• Willingness to work outside with students most of the day, most days of the year
• A natural inclination to take initiative and work in a self-directed manner
• Ability to meet varied demands with integrity, enthusiasm, creativity, and flexibility
• Ability to complete basic bookkeeping using Quickbooks (with basic training provided) to keep track of school’s expenses and revenue
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in email donation campaigns, grant writing tasks, and updates to donors
• Ability to maintain an organized, clean school environment
• Enthusiasm in recruiting new students each spring, including creating social media posts, reading applications, scheduling and leading tours, and enrolling new students
• Ability to organize and lead school community events such as project shares and celebrations to help families connect with one another

The School Organization

Holler Creek School of Appalachian Ecology is a small non-profit private school currently serving children in K-5th grade located in Carroll County, VA, just below the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Some have described us as a “micro school”  because we usually only have about 10 students enrolled.  We are also known by many as an “outdoor school” because we spend so much time learning in our school’s outdoor classrooms and land surrounding us.  We use place-based education to connect children to their community and deeply engage them in their academic, social, and emotional growth.  We seek to provide a radical educational experience for all children who enroll, regardless of background, economic means, or learning style.  Our students engage daily in shared experiences on our campus to provide them with common ground and a solid foundation on which to teach core subjects such as math, reading, writing, arts, social studies, and science.  In addition, our school connects students with their community by teaching them to pay attention and plug into the world around them.  We encourage all applicants to explore our website further to learn more about us.

For the past 3 years, our two founders have shared their roles and responsibilities, leading our organization as both co-directors and lead educators.  They have developed curriculum, practices, a school community and culture, traditions, and led students and families in learning experiences through projects and daily activities both on and off campus.  They have fostered connections in the community, with donors, and with their Board of Directors.  In addition, they have taken on administrative and development roles to ensure that accounting practices, fundraising, record keeping, and communication with the public are all up-to-date and accurate.  The school has helped its students and families greatly, and is held in high regards by its community.

Both of our directors are leaving their positions this summer.  Their aim, with the support of the Board of Directors, is to continue the organization of Holler Creek School in its mission, style, infrastructure, and facilities, but serving a younger age-group, and with only one lead teacher and one assistant teacher.