The Bridge Way School empowers youth in grades 9 through 12 on their recovery journey from substance use and co-occurring disorders by providing high-quality education, holistic support, and a compassionate environment that fosters personal growth and academic success.
The Director of Academics & Restorative Practice provides senior‑level leadership for the academic program and restorative culture of the recovery high school. This role ensures high‑quality instruction, peaceful learning environments, and consistent implementation of schoolwide systems. The Director supports teachers, oversees academic scheduling and course placement, and leads restorative practice with professional expertise. The role collaborates closely—but with clear boundaries—with recovery support and counseling staff, and partners as a peer with the Special Education Coordinator to ensure IEP accommodations are implemented.
As recovery high schools evolve across the country, driven by increasingly potent cannabis and a growing recognition that each student's recovery is shaped by their identity and circumstances, we need academic leaders who are grounded in evidence-based practice, willing to learn this field, and able to adapt as the work changes. If you are ready to align with our mission, vision, and values with connection, progress, and new opportunities in mind, you are ready for Bridge Way!
Essential Duties & Responsibilities
Academic Leadership & Instructional Support
- Provide ongoing coaching, observation, and feedback to teachers to strengthen instructional quality.
- Review student transcripts and ensure accurate course placement aligned with graduation requirements.
- Oversee implementation of the school schedule, including class rotations, special programming, and academic routines.
- Monitor academic progress data and support teachers in adjusting instruction to meet student needs.
- Ensure consistent implementation of grading policies, academic expectations, and classroom accommodations.
- Collaborate with the Special Education Coordinator to ensure IEP accommodations and modifications are delivered appropriately.
- Lead academic professional development sessions and training modules.
- Develop new curriculum and learning pathways for postsecondary college and career preparation, including internship programming, trade exploration, and other experiential learning opportunities; prepare curriculum for approval through appropriate internal and external processes.
Restorative Practice Leadership
- Recommend, implement, and lead the school’s restorative systems, including community‑building circles, harm‑repair processes, and reintegration protocols.
- Train staff in structured restorative methodologies, including facilitation techniques, affective statements, restorative questioning, and conflict de‑escalation.
- Conduct restorative interventions when classroom conflict disrupts learning, ensuring peaceful reintegration and clear agreements.
- Maintain restorative data systems to track incidents, agreements, follow‑ups, and trends.
- Coach teachers on proactive restorative strategies that build community and reduce conflict.
- Model regulated, restorative responses to student dysregulation and support staff in developing these skills.
- Collaborate warmly—but with clear role boundaries—with recovery support and counseling staff to align academic and restorative approaches.
- Uplift recovery values, emphasizing the Association of Recovery Schools definition of recovery: progress, connection, and new opportunities
- In a nimble and responsive fashion, hone and improve cohort model with Executive Director so that our community is recovery-focused, retains students, and provides space for all youth - especially justice-involved adolescents - to persevere with resilience
- Crisis management
School Operations & Daily Management
- Ensure day‑to‑day school operations run smoothly, including assigning mealtime supervision, hallway coverage, and other floor duties.
- Maintain high visibility throughout the school to support peaceful transitions and reinforce restorative culture.
- Implement schoolwide routines, expectations, and community norms in alignment with mission, vision, and values of our school, putting forth new policies for review by the Executive Director.
- Serve as a key on‑the‑ground leader ensuring the building remains calm, predictable, and recovery focused with high quality academics
- Operate with fidelity to fiscal policies, including accurate completion of reimbursement documentation, adherence to purchasing procedures, and timely submission of purchase requests in alignment with organizational guidelines.
- Ensure the school building remains clean, orderly, and conducive to learning by assigning staff to appropriate related tasks; monitor the physical environment to ensure spaces are safe, welcoming, and aligned with school expectations.
Cross‑Department Collaboration
- Work collaboratively with recovery support and counseling staff while maintaining clear hierarchical boundaries (this role does not supervise those teams).
- Partner with the Special Education Coordinator as a peer leader to ensure compliance with IEPs and student support plans.
- Participate in leadership team meetings and contribute to schoolwide planning and decision‑making.
Staff Training & Professional Development
- Develop and deliver training on academic best practices, restorative frameworks, conflict resolution, and classroom culture.
- Mentor new teachers and support ongoing staff development through structured coaching cycles.
- Ensure staff understand the distinction between restorative practice and general trauma‑informed approaches, emphasizing skill‑based, evidence‑driven restorative methods.
Other duties as immediate and assigned.
Pay: $90,000.00 - $105,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 403(b)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
