Job Description:
Founding Center Director
St. Lawrence Campus
Anticipated Start Date: January, 2027
FLSA: Salary Exempt
Salary: $100,000 (commensurate with experience)
Build the flagship campus. Form a joyful Catholic culture. Shape a model for the Diocese. A Rare Opportunity to Build Something Lasting. The St. Carlo Acutis Catholic Early Learning Network seeks an exceptional Founding Center Director to launch and lead the flagship St. Lawrence Campus. this position reports to the Executive Director. This leader will unite Catholic identity, educational excellence, strong operations, and family partnership so every child is known, loved, challenged, and formed as a child of God. You will establish the culture, systems, traditions, and standards that will influence future St. Carlo Acutis Early Learning Centers. You will build an outstanding team, partner with the Executive Director, and translate the Network's vision into a thriving campus.
Primary Responsibilities
- Ensure Catholic identity is authentically integrated throughout every aspect of the Center.
- Lead daily prayer and faith formation for faculty, children, and families.
- Oversee faithful implementation of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.
- Model joyful Christian discipleship through humility, servant leadership, integrity, and authentic witness.
- Partner with parents as the primary educators of their children.
- Build a culture marked by reverence, beauty, gratitude, kindness, excellence, and joy.
- Collaborate with parish leadership to strengthen the relationship between the Center, parish, and Diocese.
- Support family faith formation and encourage lifelong discipleship.
People & Educational Leadership
- Recruit, hire, onboard, mentor, evaluate, and retain an exceptional founding faculty and staff.
- Build a culture of trust, accountability, professionalism, and continuous improvement.
- Provide instructional coaching, develop future teacher leaders, and oversee curriculum and classroom quality.
- Monitor child development and school readiness across key academic and social-emotional areas.
- Maintain beautiful, engaging, and developmentally appropriate learning environments.
Operations & Growth
- Lead the successful launch and daily operation of the Center.
- Ensure compliance with Connecticut licensing requirements and diocesan Safe Environment standards.
- Maintain the highest standards of health, safety, supervision, emergency preparedness, and child protection.
- Oversee enrollment, admissions, scheduling, attendance, recordkeeping, staffing, and approved purchasing.
- Manage the operating budget and Center resources with prudent stewardship.
- Provide timely updates to the Executive Director and implement approved strategic priorities.
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Educational Leadership, Child Development, or a related field.
- Meets or is eligible to meet Connecticut Office of Early Childhood requirements for a licensed child care center director.
- At least five years of progressively responsible leadership experience in early childhood education, including staff supervision.
- Practicing Catholic in good standing who wholeheartedly embraces the mission of Catholic education.
Strongly Preferred Experience:
- Master's degree in Early Childhood Education, Educational Leadership, or a related field.
- Experience in Catholic education, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, and Montessori/Montessori-inspired environments.
- Experience launching, expanding, or significantly improving an early childhood program.
- Demonstrated success building teams, strengthening enrollment, and leading organizational improvement.
Join us in building something extraordinary from the very beginning.
Help shape a new model of Catholic early learning that forms children in faith, nurtures their God-given potential, and strengthens families for generations to come. Interested candidates should complete the CT Reap application and send a resume and three letters of recommendation to milski@diobpt.org and John.Alfone@diobpt.org.
TO VIEW THE COMPLETE JOB DESCRIPTION: Founding Center Director, St. Carlo Acutis Early Learning Network - Diocese of Bridgeport