Executive Director

Executive Director – Brynmor at Diplotots

About Brynmor (find us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X @brynmorearlyed)

Established in 2022 with a vision that high quality early childhood education is within reach for every child, family and community. Our mission is to ensure that: each child reaches their full potential; parents are free to do their best work with peace of mind because their children are safe, loved and thriving; and early childhood educators are respected and valued for the critical role they are playing in the development and learning of young children.

We are a privately owned business established with the belief that private companies have a responsibility to be a force for good. We believe that the growth of our company must be in partnership with the children and families we serve, the early childhood educators and staff we employ, and the companies and public agencies with whom we partner. Here's more on our values and beliefs and how our existence is dedicated to the experiences children, families and our team have in our programs each and every day.

Our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging is core to our character as an early childhood education company. We are strengthened because of diversity of thought, culture, traditions, language, experiences, spiritual practices and religion. It is evident in our position descriptions, our hiring practices, our salaries and benefits, in the aesthetics, equipment and materials at our centers, our curriculum and assessment practices and in the experience our employees, children and families have as they see themselves in our organization. Here's more on our commitments to culture, our team, and the children and families we serve.

Job Location: Washington, DC (on site)

Reports to: CEO

Salary range: $75,000 - $95,000 annually

About the Position

The Executive Director will report directly to the CEO, serve on Brynmor's executive team, and is accountable for all aspects of center operations. The Executive Director will provide Brynmor with an innovative advantage by identifying and implementing promising new ways of delivering exceptional care and experiences to our children, their families and our team. This is a high-profile role requiring a thought leader with an entrepreneurial mindset, exceptional operational and people leadership skills, and a demonstrated commitment to high quality early care and education.

The position covers a broad range of responsibilities including building the team of educators, promoting the value of Brynmor in a way that differentiates it from the competition, and ensuring that the operations are compliant with all applicable regulations. Additionally, the candidate will identify and cultivate partnerships that meaningfully increase the value of Brynmor's early childhood education.

The candidate will be a committed, engaged leader versed in building exceptional teams who are trusted and empowered in their work with children and families. The candidate should be enthusiastic about contributing to the evolving operations and growth of the organization. The executive director will set the tone and the daily culture to ensure all team members are living into our commitment to children and families including strong adherence to all policies and practices designed to ensure the health, safety, development and learning of each and every child in our care.

The candidate is a transparent and collaborative leader and partner willing to innovate and experiment to support the evolving practice of high-quality early childhood education.

Key Responsibilities:

• Establish and maintain a culture where the vision, mission and values of Brynmor are carried out through the program's practices, policies and procedures.
• Ensure the safety, care, well-being and learning of children at all times and compliance with all local, state and federal laws, standards and regulations.
• Serves as member of executive team to set direction that shapes the future for the organization.
• Exemplify the highest level of business and personal integrity, mission driven and has a team orientation at all times.
• Recruit, hire, oversee performance, professional growth & development, and retention of all team members.
• Serve as a mentor and coach to foster an environment of trust and belonging that inspires employees to achieve our vision.
• Establish and maintain strong, proactive relationships and communications with families.
• Ensure adherence to all licensing regulations, managing the licensing renewal process and serving as the liaison to the center's licensing specialist and their designees.
• Achieve and maintain NAEYC Accreditation.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with partner organizations and vendors (local schools, early intervention services, surrounding businesses, etc.).
• Manage the operational and capital expense budgets and adhere to strong fiscal and fiduciary management, procurement practices and operating policies and procedures including the oversight of payment and fee processing.
• Lead efforts toward ensuring full enrollment.
• Work with educator team leads to ensure implementation fidelity to HighScope Curriculum, COR Advantage and Brightwheel childcare management system.

Critical Competencies for Success

• Role model for Integrity and Honesty: Has the highest standards of integrity and honesty. Will be an ambassador for Brynmor and have a direct impact on Brynmor's brand.
• Demonstrates strong service orientation: Adept at working with children, families, team members and other stakeholders from many racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds to positively impact, build futures and do good. Recognize contributions and celebrate what is unique about each of us.
• A People Leader who embraces the principles of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging: Ability to attract, build trust and energize diverse teams. Creates an inclusive and safe environment where team members have the opportunity to contribute to their full potential while developing a powerful sense of shared purpose that motivates the team to achieve higher levels of performance. Inspires and communicates a clear and compelling message to a diverse set of stakeholders. Ability to develop the long-term capabilities of team members and finding satisfaction in influencing or even transforming someone's life or career.
• Innovation and Expertise: Fosters a culture of care and collaboration that inspires innovative ways to build Brynmor's brand in early childhood education. Proactively communicates challenges and opportunities to the CEO and the team while implementing solutions to overcome the constraints. Adept at anticipating local community trends and shaping the business for sustainable long-term growth.
• Care and Collaboration - Demonstrates a highly collaborative leadership style grounded in a service mindset by balancing between an entrepreneurial spirit and the day to day needs of the program, i.e., both the ability to operate comfortably in a start-up environment and the requisite ability to deal with ambiguity.
• Drives results: Strong bias for nurturing creativity, curiosity and learning to deliver results that are aligned with our vision and values. Sense of urgency, goal orientation and focus; ability to solve problems in a way that consistently meets or exceeds established goals; sets new and stretch goals for self and team even under adverse circumstances; motivated by creating better ways of doing things, so that higher levels of performance are possible.

Qualifications:

• Exceptionally adept in building and leading strong, cohesive, diverse, high performing teams.
• Clear, proactive oral and written communicator.
• Minimum bachelor's degree, master's degree preferrable, in early childhood education or closely related field.
• Minimum five years of early education leadership, supervisory, business and administrative experience.
• Preferred experience in leading a NAEYC Accredited early education program.
• Preferred experience in HighScope curriculum.
• Familiarity with COR Advantage Assessment and Brightwheel childcare management is welcomed.
• Familiarity with Reggio Emilia approaches and practices is welcomed.
• Fluency in multiple languages is welcomed.
• Ability to lift 50 pounds, sit on floor, kneel, bend, and carry young children.

Compensation:

Brynmor offers competitive compensation and strong benefits including:

• Compensation range: $75,000 to $95,000 annually
• Paid Holidays
• Vacation
• Sick Leave
• Parental and Family Leave
• Flexible spending accounts
• Group health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance
• 401(K) with a matching plan
• Tuition reimbursement for coursework leading to a degree or credential in early childhood education.
• Child care tuition discount
• NAEYC Membership
• Annual professional development

Brynmor Early Education & Preschool is a Certified Women Owned Business and a Certified Virginia Values Veterans (V3) Business.

All educator positions at Brynmor align to the Early Childhood Educator I, II and III in the Professional Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood Educators and the construct of the Unifying Framework for the Early Childhood Education Profession.