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Department Head/Teacher, Social Studies (3174)

NATICK PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Natick, MA

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JOB DETAILS
SKILLS
Administrative Skills, Apple iPad, Assistive Technology, Best Practices, Budget Management, Business Writing, Communication Skills, Consulting, Copying Machines, Disciplinary Action, Educational Administration, Equipment Maintenance/Repair, Federal Laws and Regulations, Field Theory, Housekeeping/Cleaning, Inventory Reports, Leadership, Lift/Move 25 Pounds, Media Inventory, Multilingual, Multitasking, Office Equipment, Organizational Skills, Pedagogy, Performance Analysis, Performance Management, Performance Reviews, Policy Development, Portuguese Language, Presentation/Verbal Skills, Printers, Record Keeping, Reporting Skills, Safety/Work Safety, Secondary School, Spanish Language, Staff Development, State Laws and Regulations, Student Conduct, Systems Analysis, Team Lead/Manager, Team Player, Time Management, Training/Teaching, Training/Teaching Curriculum, University/School Policies, University/School Regulations, Videoconferencing, Writing Skills
LOCATION
Natick, MA
POSTED
1 day ago
The Natick Public Schools Seek a

Middle School Social Studies Department Head/Teacher

Start date: 8/24/2026

We invite you to explore a career with Natick Public Schools.

The Natick Public Schools educate approximately 5,300 students from Pre-K through age 22. We are an innovative, supportive, and high-performing district whose outstanding staff provides high quality services for our diverse students and their families from Natick and Boston. Natick Public Schools is a community dedicated to all students achieving high standards in a safe, trusting, respectful environment where learning is exciting, dynamic, and engaging, and where connectedness and belonging are valued and actively cultivated. We are home to families that speak almost 60 different languages and our student population is approximately 29% Students of Color and 71% White students. With a graduation rate of 97% and 90% of our students attending post-secondary schools, we are proud of our commitment to excellence in educating students to be informed and successful citizens of a global world.

We enthusiastically welcome educators to our district who seek and thrive in a diverse environment that focuses on the whole child in a strengths-based approach. Please partner with us in our mission to support the diversity of our school community, promote and deliver equitable practices for all of our staff, students, and families, and create meaningful connections that enable everyone to feel included and thrive.

Job Title

Social Studies Department Head/Teacher

Location

Wilson Middle School

Reports To

Principals at Kennedy and Wilson Middle School and the Asst. Superintendent of Teaching, Learning and Innovation

Work days/FTE

183 days/1.0 FTE

Salary/Benefits

Salary and benefits per contract with the Education Association of Natick

Benefits Eligible?

Yes

JOB GOAL

Responsible for maintaining a program of high quality curriculum, instruction and assessment in the individual's department across both middle schools and for being a productive and supportive member of the school's administrative team. The social studies department head will be responsible for being a valuable member of a team and will teach up to 3 sections of Social Studies at Wilson Middle School in a grade level within the school (Grade 5-8).

QUALIFICATIONS

Education:
  • Masters Degree and a minimum of three years teaching and/or administrative experience.
Professional Certification:
  • DESE Certification: Social Studies, 5-8
  • Supervisors license preferred
  • Assistant Principal/Principal license optional
Specialized Knowledge:
  • Adolescent development
  • Best practices in instructional pedagogy
  • Strong content area knowledge
  • Best practices for supervising adults
Preferred Experience:
  • Minimum of three years teaching and/or administrative experience
  • Prefer experience teaching in a diverse middle school
Skills:
  • Demonstrated aptitude for work to be performed
  • Bilingual skills, especially in Spanish and Portuguese, are highly desirable
  • Ability to apply knowledge of current research and theory in specific field
  • Ability to facilitate the writing of curriculum within the subject area
  • Ability to perform duties with awareness of all district requirements and School Committee policies Candidates should have a passion for working with students, families, and colleagues
  • Candidates must be flexible and collaborative
  • Candidates must be able to multitask in a fast-paced, supportive environment that nurtures student growth
  • Candidates must be organized and able to meet ongoing, time-sensitive deadlines for work production
  • Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of administrators, staff and the general public.
  • Ability to write reports, business correspondence and procedure manuals.
  • Candidates must have highly effective communication skills with a variety of audiences including staff, colleagues, students, families and caregivers.
Alternative degrees/experience may be substituted for the above at the discretion of the Superintendent, if such a substitution brings a strong candidate forward.

TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT USED
  • Phone, intercom, personal computer and software applications as outlined above, scanner, copy machine, calculator, camera, printers and fax machine.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS OF THE JOB (not limited to)

The information contained in this job description is for compliance with the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) and is not an exhaustive list of the duties performed for this position. Additional duties are performed by the individuals currently holding this position and additional duties may be assigned.
  • Establishes a positive and productive learning environment, setting challenging, yet realistic expectations for staff and students.
  • Demonstrates an understanding of the learning processes of adolescents and develops policies and programs which appropriately reflect these stages.
  • Demonstrates understanding of applicable educational theories and leads staff in applying effective methods of curriculum design, implementation and evaluation.
  • Encourages staff development of innovative curriculum concepts.
  • Oversee the writing of curriculum within the subject area.
  • Ensures department's curriculum and instructional methods are adapted to address the characteristics of different cultural groups and ethnic minorities.
  • Uses community resources to enhance curriculum and instruction.
  • Works toward designing and implementing assessment mechanisms to measure the school's performance on the statement of purpose criteria and for the curriculum.
  • Using assessment results, develops a constant feedback loop to improve academic performance within department and school-wide.
  • Designs and implements changes in curriculum and instruction to address identified areas of need (resulting from assessments).
  • Leads department's efforts to obtain new print and other media to continually update and support the curriculum.
  • Chairs committees as necessary to address areas of improvement as identified by the NESC accreditation process.
  • Teaches up to three classes.
  • Engages in various and appropriate professional development activities to remain current in the field of certification and provides information and resources gained on department's subject matter to staff.
  • Holds department meetings as needed.
  • Understands and utilizes effective models of staff development and in-service education.
  • Attends department head meetings, constructively contributing to discussions and supporting the school's mission and goals.
  • Works with staff and administration to actively promote a positive school climate. Represents the department at public forums (i.e. School Committee, PTSO, Parent Orientation Night).
  • Consults with same-subject teachers at the middle and elementary levels within the system, acquainting these teachers with the high school curriculum and gaining familiarity with same-subject curriculum at other grade levels.
  • Accepts and encourages individual differences in teaching style while demonstrating the ability to utilize the system's professional standards and evaluation system to assess professional performance, to improve classroom performance, to recommend and support improvement or to offer or support the recommendation for separation from service.
  • Responsible for student management and discipline in assigned area.
  • Complies with school regulations, programs and policies and with applicable state and federal regulations.
  • Responsible for determining the number of course sections based on student selections and assigning staff accordingly.
  • Maintains communication with parents and community, fostering a strong home-school connection.
  • Maintains annual media and equipment inventory reports and prepares equipment maintenance reports.
  • Plans department budget, preparing estimates of departmental needs. Maintains accurate records of all purchases and payments throughout the year.
  • Works with the principal and other district administrators to implement district's state and federal initiatives.
  • Evaluation of staff within your discipline is needed
Any other relative duties as assigned.

WORK ENVIRONMENT AND PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. The employee must be able to perform the essential functions of the job satisfactorily and, if requested, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job, absent undue hardship.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to:
  • move about the classroom, school, school grounds, office, and/or off-site locations.
    • On some occasions, it may be necessary to move quickly across even or uneven surfaces;
  • remain in a stationary position for periods of time;
  • operate a computer and other school/office productivity machinery (i.e., iPad, copy machine, computer printer, assistive technology, etc.);
  • read material from a computer monitor as well as handwritten or printed matter with or without visual aids;
  • position oneself to maintain files and access school/classroom/office materials;
  • communicate with others so that information received and given is understood and accurately communicated;
  • communicate and collaborate effectively with students, parents, and other staff members in person, via video conference, on the telephone, and/or in writing;
  • observe details at close range
  • in the school setting, ensure the safety of students;
  • multitask and meet multiple demands from several people;
  • may need to teach and support students with life skills development such as eating, cleaning, and toileting
  • lifting up to and including 25 lbs
  • the noise level in the work environment is moderate to loud.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES
  • Evaluation of staff within your discipline is needed (supervisory certification is preferred)
  • Collaboration with your building based leadership teams on evaluation caseload
SELECTION GUIDELINES
  • Formal application
  • Rating of education and experience
  • Oral interviews
  • Reference check
  • Strong record of work performance in current and previous roles required
  • Successful completion of Criminal Records Check (C.O.R.I.), Sexual Offender Record Check (S.O.R.I.), and fingerprints.


The Natick Public Schools do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, creed, color, religion, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, physical and intellectual differences, immigration status, homeless status, or any other class protected by law.

About the Company

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NATICK PUBLIC SCHOOLS