Headmaster

Meet Clear Lake Classical:
Clear Lake Classical seeks to graduate culture-shaping young men and women whose minds and hearts have been trained to love that which is worth loving. Using the principles of the classical and Christian tradition, we desire that CLC graduates will be known for 4 key traits: Christian Character, Depth of Knowledge, Wisdom in Discernment, and Excellence in Communication.

Clear Lake Classical is located in Clear Lake, IA, a resort-style town in north Iowa (equidistant from Minneapolis and Des Moines). Famous for being the last place where Buddy Holly played a concert (at our still operating, Surf Ballroom), Clear Lake is a quaint lake town of ~8000 people, surrounded by farming communities that swells in population during the summer months. Clear Lake Classical draws students from 30 miles in every direction and has grown from a few students in 2014 to
~150 students in the 2024-25 school year. The school operates out of two campuses. Our 2-acre “Mars Hill campus” houses Pre-K through 4th grade and is located in the heart of Clear Lake, one block from the lake itself. Our ~25 acre “Ventura campus” is located on the west end of the lake in the neighboring community of Ventura, IA.

About the Head of School:
The Clear Lake Classical Board of Directors is searching for a Headmaster to serve as the academic leader of the school. The Headmaster is the sole employee of the Board in keeping with the policy governance model. Clear Lake Classical is looking to fill this position in time for service in the 2025-26 school year. The Headmaster serves many roles as outlined in the job description below. We recognize that one person cannot fulfill all of the duties included on his/her own, but that a candidate might lean into certain strength areas more, while delegating in other areas. While not explicitly listed below as a responsibility, the culture of Clear Lake Classical encourages administration to take opportunities to teach/lead a class as time and bandwidth allows.

Essential Traits and Functions
• Embodies and displays a faithful and genuine faith in Jesus Christ as Savior
• Accurately demonstrates knowledge of CLC, understands and promotes the classical Christian education model and
procedures and protocols of CLC
• Consistently demonstrates the highest standards of confidentiality and discretion
• Leads by example and cultivates a culture of service and collaboration among colleagues
• Embraces and advances a love of learning within the community, including parents, staff, faculty, and students. Ensures that Clear Lake Classical does not drift from its core vision and purpose
• Possesses a deep commitment and passion for classical Christian education
• Maintains a “meaningful” presence with students and staff throughout the year. Aims to know and be known by students and to be available for staff interaction (not inaccessible)
• Actively listens to new and different viewpoints and engages in dialogue regarding these viewpoints; ultimately, demonstrates the courage to be decisive

The Head of School Responsibilities Include:
Leadership of the Clear Lake Classical Administrative team (Deans, Education Council, Administrative Staff)
• Directs the daily operations of CLC by providing direct oversight of the Administrative Team through regular meetings, informal touchpoints, and annual evaluations
• Provides strategic leadership for the Administrative Team, including strategy development, execution support, and accountability
• Fosters a culture of collaboration among the Administrative Team, providing a venue for a healthy exchange of ideas
• Empowers the Administrative Team to implement changes, solve problems, and overcome challenges in their sphere of leadership by applying principles of CLC’s philosophy of education (contained in our manuals and handbooks)
• Provides Administrative Team personnel with support, encouragement, accountability, and constructive feedback
• Helps with student discipline at Lower and Upper School as needed

Staff Leadership
• Identifies needs for hiring of personnel and collaborates with other staff and Board to recruit and retain faculty members that can fulfill the vision and purpose of CLC
• Creates an atmosphere to assimilate faculty and staff members in order to minimize turnover and to ensure that new teachers are trained and ready on day 1
• Extends contacts (or not) to new and renewing staff, balancing the available budget with the need for high quality faculty and staff
• Sets and promotes clear standards of excellence including cultural and behavioral expectations for all staff; models them personally; and empowers the Administrative Team to implement expectations within respective programs
• Leads in the professional development of staff throughout the year and encourages faculty to pursue training in classical Christian pedagogy via leadership emphasis, time allocation, budget support
• Oversees the culture and atmosphere of CLC, ensuring an ordered and loving environment with an aesthetic that distinguishes and differentiates CLC from other schools.
• Monitors cultural trends in and out of classrooms, making small course-corrections as needed in collaboration with the Administrative team, supports the faculty through classroom visits, observations, and annual evaluations
• Establishes and communicates clear lines of responsibility within the CLC’s organizational structure

Parent Community Leadership
• Represents Clear Lake Classical at numerous parent and community functions, including but not limited to open houses, back-to-school night, evening programs, etc
• Hosts initial parent interviews for new families and oversees placement testing to be administrated by staff. Final say on admissions decisions (in collaboration with the Ed Council)
• Maintains an open line of communication and displays a willingness to meet with parents in a timely manner when requested/needed
• Addresses parent concerns quickly and wisely according to our policies and procedures
• Communicates with the board, staff, and parents in the case of serious student misbehavior or danger
• Addresses significant issues from parents as elevated by the Administrative Team
• Engages with the parent community to foster parental partnership and to promote an increased understanding of the classical Christian model of education

Board Liaison
• The Headmaster is the sole employee of the Board of directors
• Monitors and ensures the execution of the strategic initiatives set by the CLC Board of Directors
• Writes a monthly board report and attends all board meetings
• Informs the board of significant school concerns, problems, and successes
Curriculum and Academic Progress
• Oversees curriculum development and usage in collaboration with the Administrative Team to foresee needs and improvements. Protects the school from significant changes in curriculum that have not been carefully considered and wisely rolled out
• As needed, researches and develops academic programs and curricula through attendance at educational conferences, scholarly research, and developing relationships with other classical Christian schools
• Ensures administration of standardized tests. These are to be limited in number (so as not to distract from academic program) but those that will maximize impact for our school and students. Current testing programs include: ERB (1st- 8th grades); ISASP (related to ESA eligibility); CLT (10th and 11th grades)
• Reviews schoolwide testing results with the Academic Dean, discerns academic weaknesses and strengths and makes recommendations based on patterns of data
• Ensures compliance with accreditation standards, including execution of yearly progress updates and preparation for site visits every 5 years

Administration
• Head of the Education Council
• Ensures compliance and execution of the Students First initiative in Iowa including Administration of the Education Savings Account funding from parents
• Review all school-wide communications before dissemination
• Maintains accurate personnel records in conjunction with the Administrative team
• Approves purchase requests by faculty and staff
• Oversees the development of the all-school calendar
• Oversight of transportation needs for CLC
• Ultimately responsible for regular school events
• Approves the development of extra-curricular activities and partnerships that support the vision and purpose of CLC

Financial
• Ultimately responsible for developing and maintaining annual budget and long-term planning for financial sustainability
of operations. Exercises fiscal responsibility by staying within appropriate budgetary guidelines set by the Board
• Promote CLC and, in collaboration with the Board, be responsible for fundraising initiatives as needed
• Grow the understanding and excitement for the vision and mission of Clear Lake Classical, resulting in investment from the community at large
• Develop and implement plans for facility improvement to meet the needs of the school to facilitate our enrollment and offerings
• Oversee fundraising and financial sustainability efforts to ensure long-term viability and relative independence from funding sources (i.e. ESA’s) that are not within our control
• Focus on the growth and improvement of the CLC’s compensation plans to retain and attract faculty and staff
• Oversee (in collaboration with the Board Treasurer) third-party preparation of reviewed or audited financial statements biennially

Executive Leadership
• Be a vigilant steward that makes sure Clear Lake Classical does not drift from its core vision and purpose
• Be an excellent team builder, team leader, and motivator; this person must inspire enthusiasm, cast the school’s vision, and be open to ideas for continuous improvement, growth, and development
• Be a key promoter of the school, responsible for enrollment, retention, and fundraising success
• Be a natural community leader, both on campus and off. Create further understanding, excitement and engagement in the vision of CLC resulting in the investment of time and resources of the total community
• Oversight of maintaining CLC facilities
• Be a developer and implementer of future plans regarding facility improvement, and maintain healthy enrollment and offerings

What You Bring:
The following describes many of the characteristics of the ideal candidate for the Head of School:
Education & Experience
• BA/BS, advanced degree welcomed
• Preferred minimum of ten years teaching or administrative experience, at least five years within a classical Christian school environment

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• Enjoys and manages a diverse set of responsibilities in a fast-paced environment
• Servant leader who demonstrates the ability to seek advice and counsel as needed
• Demonstrated success with managing and leading people. Able to recognize strengths and weaknesses in staff building on and capitalizing on the former while gracefully helping to them to improve on the latter
• Excellent written and oral communication and presentation skills
Personal Characteristics & Qualifications
• Demonstrates dependability and a teachable spirit
• Demonstrates self-awareness, thirst for learning, and openness to professional growth
• Spiritual Leader
○ Spiritually vibrant Christian displaying Christ-centered servant leadership that integrates faith and work in a spirit of humility
○ Conversant in classical Christian pedagogy
○ Articulates a Christian worldview to students, faculty, staff, parents, and the community
○ Demonstrates a life of impeccable character, is respected as trustworthy, and lives the values of
integrity, service, and respect for others

**First wave applicants will be reviewed October 1st. Interested candidates should send their CV to info@clearlakeclassical.org