Managing Director – Special Populations (Elementary)

Job Description

POSITION: Managing Director – Special Populations (Elementary)

REPORTS TO: Deputy Chief Schools Officer (Elementary)

POSITION TYPE:12-month

START DATE: June 1, 2026

COMPENSATION: $119,363 - $149,204, Home Office Grade 12

At YES Prep, work for a mission that impacts the life trajectory of students and their families. YES Prep creates pathways to extraordinary opportunity through best-in-class development, competitive compensation and benefits, and recognition for your impact. Grow as an authentic leader and be part of a high-performing, team-oriented culture. 

Some quick stats about us:

• 21,000+ Students
• 2,400 Team Members
• 16 Secondary Campuses
• 11 Elementary Campuses
• 92% Students Who Qualify for Free/Reduced-Price Lunch
• 96% Hispanic & African-American Students
• 90% Students Who Are Accepted to a 4-Year University
• 88% First-Generation College Students
• Ranked in the Top 100 High Schools in the Nation, U.S. News & World Report

We serve the students of Houston, Texas, the 4th largest city across the United States. There are over 20 public-school districts and other great public charter school options within Houston’s city limits serving our increasing population.

THE OPPORTUNITY

YES Prep needs a dynamicManaging Director – Special Populations (Elementary) with a robust set of experiences, to make our mission a reality. As a YES Prep employee, you will achieve jaw-dropping results, create pathways to opportunity for our students, and build transformative relationships.

To put it simply, you will lead the vision, strategy, and execution of YES Prep's Elementary Special Populations program—ensuring that every student served through Special Education, MTSS, Section 504, and Homebound receives the excellent, equitable education they deserve. You will manage a high-performing team, drive data-informed decisions, and collaborate across campuses and departments to build programming that ensures every student in Special Populations has equitable access to an excellent education — and the results to prove it.

THE ROLE

When you join the YES Prep team, some of the work and responsibilities will include:

Strategic Vision & Executive Leadership

• Collaborating with the Deputy Chief Schools Officer (Elementary) to lead the vision, execution, and implementation of the YES Prep Special Populations Program that addresses the needs of Elementary students served by the Special Education, MTSS, Section 504 and Homebound programs;
• Providing high stakes recommendations to the Deputy Chief Schools Officer (Elementary) regarding changes to YES Prep’s core Special Populations program;
• Innovating to find solutions to improve results across Elementary grade levels and courses for Special Populations offerings;
• Managing the financial, human, and digital resources allocated to Elementary Special Populations programming with strong stewardship and strategy.

Program Design & Instructional Alignment

• Designing a Special Populations Program that codifies the instructional approach to academics and interventions designed to achieve excellent student outcomes across all YES Prep Elementary Campuses;
• Aligning all aspects of curriculum, instructional resources, assessment, and teacher development in Special Populations towards excellent student outcomes in underserved communities.

Talent Development & Team Management

• Consulting the Deputy Chief Schools Officer (Elementary) on a vision for deeply developing teachers who work directly with students in Special Populations in their content and instructional knowledge and execute the vision by maximizing system Content Days in collaboration with content leaders and through communication channels;
• Managing a high performing team of Special Populations leaders towards increased student outcomes in all courses as evidenced by a reliable and effective internal assessment system that drives strong results on external assessments such as NWEA Measures of Academic Progress (MAP), Circle, Texas Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA), State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR), Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS).

Data, Assessment & Continuous Improvement

• Analyzing Special Populations assessment data and developing a strategy to ensure that it is accessible to Home Office and campus leaders and drives the continuous improvement of Special Populations programming for students.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration & Partnerships

• Working with leads of other programs to ensure robust and supportive programming for students in Special Populations to ensure ALL students have support through core programming, teacher development, and data- driven decision making, leading to equitable access to an excellent education with the goal of increasing college readiness and life readiness where appropriate in every Elementary grade level;
• Building relationships with and leading cross-functional projects with various campus leaders and Home Office departments to drive academic programming excellence and outcomes for students in Special Populations (peer Program leaders, Analytics, Heads of Schools, School Culture, Operations, Talent, Principals, Assistant Principals, campus Special Education Managers, etc.);
• Managing partnerships with vendors and contractors to ensure students services are delivered at a high quality with fiscal and legal responsibility;
• Collaborating intensely with the Compliance team to ensure YES Prep is compliant with all rules and regulations applicable to Special Populations in a way that best serves our Elementary students and campuses.

• Additional duties as assigned.

THE PERSON

We seek staff with a multitude of backgrounds, talents, interests, and ideas. Certain traits consistently shine through our most successful employees: passion for the mission, drive for results, care for students, and resilience. Other traits needed and desired for this role are:

THE MUST HAVES

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university
• 8+ years of experience leading in a field of special populations such as special education
• Demonstrated success in program management and implementation in an Elementaryspace
• Ability to work outside of normal hours and on weekends

• Belief in and commitment to the mission and core value of YES Prep Public Schools
• Openness to giving and receiving frequent feedback
• Ability to maintain emotional control under stress
• Ability to work urgently in a fast-paced and results-oriented environment
• Creates and maintains positive working relationships on a teamand/or in a highly collaborative environment
• A dedication to learn, grow, and develop as a professional

THE MUST HAVE BELIEFS 

• Belief in and commitment to the mission and core values of YES Prep Public Schools 
• Desire to disrupt systemic status quos in education 
• Willingness to go above and beyond to disrupt said status quos 
• Passion to develop resiliency through a relentless pursuit of jaw-dropping results 
• Conviction that high expectations + high accountability = high performance and high growth 

THE NICE TO HAVES

• Master’s Degree in educational leadership, special education, or literacy
• 3 or more years of experience in work related to this role
• Exceptional skills in self-awareness, self-management, and relationship management
• Bilingual – Spanish or other language
• Ability to juggle multiple tasks and initiatives at once

THE PERKS

• Compensation – This position is an exempt, salaried position; offers commensurate with experience.

• Health and Supplemental Insurance – A $0 monthly medical option or a $24 monthly option that includes $50 YES Prep Paid Health Savings Account contribution, in addition to a variety of supplemental benefits including Dental, Vision, Disability, Life, etc. Employees must work 20+ hours a week to be eligible for a full spectrum of benefits, and 10 hours a week minimum for medical benefits.

• Retirement Plans – Participation in Teacher Retirement System of Texas and an optional 457b Retirement Plan.

• Paid Time Off – Employees working 20+ hours a week receive 15 days of Paid Time Off in addition to the system closures during the Academic Calendar.

• Paid Leave Programming – In the event you need to be out due to medical needs (including maternity and paternity leave), YES Prep offers paid leave, paid out at 100%, based on eligibility and tenure.

• Professional Development - YES Prep values longevity and performance over time. We invest in developing leaders through high-quality programs, effective coaching, and ongoing professional development.

• Award Winning Culture – The strong cultures of our campuses and Home Office are just one of many reasons we were named Houston’s Best Place To Workin 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2025.We won the 2012 Broad Prize for Excellence in Urban Education   and were a 2016 finalist as well.

YES Prep is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, national origin, disability, age, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or parenthood.