Headteacher at African Science Academy

The African Science Academy (ASA) is a girls-only Advanced Level school for maths and science, founded by African Gifted Foundation. Established in 2016, ASA is a boarding school for young women from across Africa with outstanding maths and science potential. In just one academic year, our students complete globally respected Cambridge International A-Levels in Maths, Further Maths and Physics. We also provide our students with robotics and computer science programmes alongside their A-Levels to prepare them for careers in Engineering, Science, Computing and more. Means-tested scholarships and bursaries are available to all students.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Headteacher

Location: Tema - Accra, Ghana
Employment Type: Contract
Duration: Fixed-term two-year contract (with possibility to extend, if mutually agreed)
Reports To: Board of Trustees

Overview

• ASA was founded by the African Gifted Foundation and is governed by African Gifted Foundation’s Board of Trustees.
• The African Gifted Foundation is also a Ghana Registered NGO (No: A 026/10/4) as African Gifted Foundation Ghana which is overseen by our Board of Directors.
• We have an outstanding set of board members in both the UK and Ghana who are leaders in education, business and the nonprofit sector who have a solid understanding of what it takes to run a successful school in Africa.
• Our board members are looking to appoint an exceptional, highly qualified and experienced Headteacher who relishes the challenge of being at the forefront of a new and innovative school.

About the Role

• The Head is expected to provide overall professional leadership and management for the Academy. The African Science Academy runs an academically-intense programme and the Head will secure success through setting high quality academic standards, and a commitment to student development and care. This will include ensuring the students supporting students with university and scholarships application and ensuring they fulfil their potential.
• The Head will be responsible for upholding the core values and mission of the academy to promote STEM education for girls both inside and outside the school. The Head will also focus, amongst other things, on school admin, extra-curricular activities, student destinations and building relationships with parents, schools and universities.
• The Head will also work closely with the African Gifted Foundation’s Director of Programmes to maintain and develop partnerships with core donors, build relationships with schools and universities both within Africa and internationally and to ensure the long-term success of the school. The successful applicant will be a visionary leader who will play a lead role in the expanding and developing the School, overseeing all staff, and the day-to-day running of the school.

We are looking for an outstanding individual who clearly demonstrates that they:

• Possess the skills, vision and ability to inspire and enthuse the whole school community.
• Lead by example and have the ability to motivate and develop staff and pupils to reach their full potential.
• Are an excellent communicator who can engage effectively with staff, parents, governors and outside agencies.
• Are committed to working in partnership with all stakeholders to understand and bring the school together.

Key Responsibilities

• The education and operational management of the Academy in terms of academic standards and outcomes, student welfare, staff and faculty management and professional development, meaningful parent communication and health and safety.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• The Head Teacher will take overall responsibility for the leadership management, organisation and conduct of the school in accordance with:
• Education Acts, regulations, Codes of Practice and other legislation, as in force and updated at any time;
• The policies of the Ghana Education Service and the National Inspectorate Board
• The school’s vision, mission statement, values, plans, priorities and targets.
• The Head will also lead on pastoral care with an oversight of student behaviour and welfare.

Key Objectives:

• To develop, agree and implement a strategy for the school’s next five years
• Develop a culture that promotes inspired teaching and outstanding learning experiences;
• To develop and implement policies which promote effective learning in a safe and secure environment;
• To take a strategic role in the development and use of existing and emerging learning resources to ensure the continuous improvement of the learning experience and outcomes for pupils; and
• Continuously monitor, evaluate and review every aspect of school life and take any and all action necessary to achieve successful outcomes.

Key Accountabilities
Strategic Direction and Development of the School to:

• Lead by example and provide inspiration and motivation to the school community;
• Generate vision, ethos and policies for the school which promote high levels of achievement and meet equality objectives;
• Developing and securing agreement on a rolling strategic plan for the school;
• Support all staff in achieving the priorities and targets which the school sets for itself, provide them with the motivation to support its aims;
• Ensure that the management of the school, including finance and administration support the school's policies, its vision and aims; and
• Monitor and review all aspects of attainment, priorities, targets and policy and take necessary action.
• Create and implement a strategic school development plan, underpinned by sound financial planning, within the national and local context, which identifies priorities and targets for ensuring that pupils achieve high standards and that teaching is effective;
• Build and establish an effective positive working relationship with the Trustees and the African Gifted Foundation
• Securing success and improvement for the school through school self-evaluation;

Teaching and Learning to:

• Ensure that the curriculum promotes the vision and aims of the school;
• Create an environment which secures effective learning across the breadth of the curriculum and to promote high standards of achievement, behaviour, discipline and attendance;
• Determine and organise the curriculum and monitor and evaluate its effectiveness;
• Monitor the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievements including the analysis of performance data;
• Develop links with parents, other schools, educational establishments and the wider community, including business and industry, in order to enhance teaching and learning and pupils’ personal development;
• Promote opportunities for and encouraging participation of all pupils in a wide range of extracurricular activities, including culture, sport, the environment, and citizenship;
• Contribute, as appropriate, to the teaching in the school;
• Encourage and engage in sharing good practice; and ensure effective assessment procedures, including assessment for learning.

Leading and Managing Staff to:

• Develop the staffing structure for the approval of the Trustees that takes account of the changing needs of the school;
• Develop positive working relationships with and between all staff, the African Gifted Foundation team and Trustees;
• Implement and sustain effective strategies for the management of all staff;
• Plan, evaluate and support the work of groups of staff, delegate appropriately and clearly and evaluate outcomes;
• Enable and challenge staff to develop expertise in their respective roles through the identification of needs, ensuring an effective programme of access to continuing professional development;
• Enable performance management systems to operate effectively and to engage with appraisal requirements of the Head Teacher and relevant staff; and Sustain personal and staff motivation

Effective Deployment of Staff and Resources to:

• Work with Trustees and colleagues to recruit high-quality staff;
• Ensure that all staff understand their respective roles and responsibilities;
• Deploy and develop staff to make most effective use of their skills, expertise and experience to ensure the effective management of the school in the absence of the Head Teacher;
• Establish priorities for expenditure and monitor the effectiveness of spending in line with the priorities identified in the schools development plan;
• Monitor the use of resources with a view to achieving value for money, within the school’s financial context; and
• Manage ASA’s outreach programme, the bi-annual ‘Maths Masterclasses’, an advanced teacher training programme for local teachers across Ghana.
• Work with the African Gifted Foundation's Director of Programmes to maximise the school’s income from external funding streams;
• Manage and organise the use of the school accommodation efficiently and effectively;
• Manage student recruitment activities and entrance examinations
• Manage and organise relevant groupings of children to ensure effective teaching and learning takes place and that children's personal development needs are met;

Accountability to:

• Provide information and advice to the Trustees so that they can meet their responsibilities and ensure proper accountability throughout the school;
• Ensure the school meets all statutory and legal requirements including: Ensure that the financial accounts of the school are maintained and that the Trustees are effectively informed to enable it to be appropriately accountable;
• The use of such analysis to inform planning at all levels;
• Provide relevant information about all aspects of the school to parents, the community and other interested parties;
• Ensure that the school operates in the spirit of the law as well as to the letter; and
• Ensure that the school complies with all statutory requirements relating to the provision of education and other relevant legislation.
• Create an ethos in which all staff recognise their accountability;
• Account for the school’s performance to internal and external agencies through the analysis of performance data and appropriate reporting;

Strengthening Community:

• Build a school culture based on the Academies key values and making the school environment welcoming to all students from many different backgrounds;
• Establish a range of community-based learning experiences; Encouraging parent and community involvement, thereby enhancing the Academy’s value to the wider community;
• Working in partnership with other schools and organisations with similar aims and goals and sharing ideas and promoting innovative initiatives; and
• Co-operate and work together with the relevant agencies to protect the students.
• Ensure that the curriculum takes into account the richness and diversity of the school’s community;
• Enable to students to experience a wide range of cultures and engage with the local community, providing them with all the needed academic, moral, spiritual, social and emotional support;

About You

• We are seeking a highly qualified Head who is passionate about STEM education for girls and is seeking an exciting challenge to lead our innovative school through this period of uncertainty and help shape its future. Please note, we also welcome applications from candidates with experience as a Deputy Heads or as Heads of Department (in Maths or Science).

Person Specification
Essential Qualifications and Experience:

• Bachelor's Degree and Postgraduate Teaching qualification from a reputable university with a minimum of 5 years work experience.
• Fluency in English
• Experience in the secondary school sector
• Teaching experience
• A-Level experience
• Knowledge of use of technology to enhance learning and school efficiencies
• Passionate about the core purpose of the African Science Academy, focused on empowering young gifted African women in STEM

Highly Desirable Experience:

• Working in boarding schools
• Working in a multicultural team, preferably in Africa
• Working in a senior management post
• Marketing skills

Personal Qualities:

• Exemplary communication skills
• A confident and articulate individual, comfortable acting as a source of authority
• Enthusiasm, conviction, initiative and personal commitment to education
• Excellent team working skills
• Enduring resilience
• Demonstrate a commitment to equal opportunities
• Ability to develop and maintain a secure, safe and healthy school environment
• Ability to effectively run the school on a day-to-day basis, efficiently delegating tasks and monitoring their delivery
• Good organisation and ability to prioritise tasks and make decisions
• Good time management
• Ability to focus activities towards achieving the Academy’s Vision
• Seeking advice and support when necessary
• Consistency and accountability
• Leading learning innovation
• Community engagement
• Able to work under pressure and to deadlines
• Able to make sound financial judgments in conjunction with the Board of Trustees, to secure value for money

The following skills and experience is essential:

• Proven leadership and strategic skills, with the capacity to motivate and inspire both staff and pupils;
• Knowledge and experience of the special opportunities and challenges of international education;
• Culturally sensitive and capable of forging the right relationship with the Trustees;
• Experience in the secondary school sector, boarding experience an advantage
• Knowledge of new technology and its use in the classroom; and
• Proven business and financial acumen
• An innovative educationalist who recognises the central importance of teaching and learning;
• Effective manager with enthusiasm for building teams and developing excellent teachers;
• Ability to communicate, be inclusive and reach out to the wider community of Accra.

Remuneration

• Competitive Salary. An initial two-year contract is offered.
• The salary, benefits and terms of the contract will be commensurate with the qualifications and experience sought in the candidate.

Application Closing Date
20th December, 2020.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should send their Documents to "Yasameen Al-jboury" via: [email protected] using "ASA Headteacher Application" as the subject of the email.

Click here for more Information (PDF)

Application Documents to be Submitted

• A letter of application (no longer than two pages), briefly outlining why you wish to apply for this position, what specific skills, qualities and experience you can offer the school, and why you feel confident in meeting the challenges of this position and of living and working in Ghana.
• A statement outlining your educational and leadership philosophy
• A current CV (no longer than 3 pages)
• The names and full contact details, including current email addresses of three or more referees. Please also indicate the relation to the referees.

Note

• Interviews: Week commencing - 4th January, 2021 (in-person or via Zoom)
• For further information and discussion of the role, please contact Yasameen Al-jboury at [email protected]
• African Gifted Foundation is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to the safeguarding of our students.
• The appointment will be subject to an enhanced child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and criminal record.
• Please note that you may be required to bring documentation to interview providing proof of your identity and qualifications.