Dean of Students

CLASSICAL ACADEMY DE LAFAYETTE; Lake Saint Louis (MO); On-site; USD 85,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Health insurance

Paid time off

Job summary

Lafayette Classical Academy seeks a senior-level Dean of Students to guard the classical integrity, build academic excellence, and steward student character across grades K–12. The Dean will supervise all K–12 faculty, oversee discipline, and partner with the Head of School to lead the school’s intellectual and cultural life.

The role includes teaching one to two courses annually, managing academic operations, and shaping a safe, ordered, and virtuous school culture during a period of strategic

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
• Minimum 10 years experience in classical education.
• Demonstrated alignment with classical liberal arts philosophy.
• Experience supervising faculty and curriculum oversight.
• Strong classroom management and student discipline history.
• High moral character and evident personal virtue.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Deep understanding of grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages.

Responsibilities

• Oversee K–12 faculty and department chairs to ensure academic alignment with Hillsdale K–12 Program Guide.
• Lead curriculum oversight, assessment, and reporting while maintaining academic integrity.
• Mentor and develop faculty; conduct evaluations and observations with actionable feedback.
• Lead induction, recruitment, and professional development for teachers.
• Manage academic calendar, grading timelines, and parent communications.
• Coordinate student conduct, virtue formation, and school culture initiatives.
• Teach one to two courses annually and model classical pedagogy.

Skills

Leadership

Curriculum oversight

Faculty supervision

Communication

Classical education philosophy

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

Benefits:

• Competitive salary
• Health insurance
• Paid time off

This position is a co-guardian of the intellectual and moral cultivation of the school.

DEAN OF STUDENTS

Position Overview

Lafayette Classical Academy seeks a senior-level Dean of Students to serve as the guardian of classical integrity, the builder of academic excellence, and the steward of student character and conduct across grades K–12.

The Dean of Students is responsible for preserving and strengthening the school’s classical vision while ensuring measurable academic rigor, faculty development, operational clarity, and a well-ordered school culture in which virtue is taught, practiced, and expected. This role oversees all K–12 faculty, department chairs, instructional coaches, and literacy specialists; leads the school’s character education and student discipline; and partners closely with the Head of School as she leads the intellectual, moral, and cultural life of the Academy.

The Dean will teach one to two courses annually (schedule pending), modeling instructional excellence and remaining directly engaged in the life of the classroom.

This is a long-term leadership role designed to strengthen Lafayette Classical Academy’s academic and cultural foundation during a period of strategic growth.

Position Details

Reports to: Head of School

Leadership: Member of the school’s leadership (L10) team

Supervises: K–12 faculty, department chairs, instructional coaches, literacy specialists, and recess/lunch/duty supervisors

Status: Full-time, 12-month, salaried (exempt) position

Mission of the Role

The Dean of Students will:

• Guard the integrity of the classical model
• Ensure fidelity to the Hillsdale College K–12 Program Guide
• Build systems that sustain academic excellence
• Form students in virtue, so that they learn self-government and ordered liberty
• Maintain a safe, orderly, and joyful school culture in which learning can flourish
• Cultivate a faculty culture rooted in truth, goodness, and beauty
• Strengthen structures that support long-term institutional growth

Primary Responsibilities

1. Academic Vision & Classical Integrity

• Ensure full alignment with the Hillsdale K–12 Program Guide
• Protect and advance the classical liberal arts framework
• Strengthen the integration of grammar, logic, and rhetoric across grades
• Strengthen the language of instruction and execution of mathematics across grade levels
• Support the cultivation of intellectual virtue and ordered freedom
• Help nurture Lafayette’s house structure and academic culture

2. Faculty Leadership & Development

• Supervise all K–12 faculty
• Oversee department chairs, instructional coaches, and literacy specialists
• In concert with the Head of School, help conduct evaluations and classroom observations, with timely, actionable feedback
• Mentor and develop faculty
• Lead a structured induction program for new teachers
• Coach teachers in classroom management and train all faculty and staff in the schoolwide discipline plan
• Participate in teacher recruitment, demo lessons, and hiring processes
• Assist in leading faculty meetings
• Support professional development planning and implementation
• Build and refine department chair structures
• Long-term: Develop a classical faculty training institute

3. Curriculum & Assessment Oversight

• Oversee academic scope and sequence K–12
• Ensure assessment integrity through:
  • NWEA
  • CLT
  • Internal diagnostics
• Serve as testing coordinator and maintain the school-wide assessment calendar
• Monitor academic interventions and support systems
• Oversee academic probation monitoring
• Support and strengthen the Senior Thesis program
• Provide transcript oversight and academic record accuracy

4. Academic Operations & Systems

• Own the academic calendar
• Manage academic communication to parents
• Schedule parent-teacher conferences
• Oversee grading timelines
• Ensure report card accuracy and distribution
• Maintain academic handbook
• Oversee gradebook systems and policies
• Create and refine the academic school schedule (master schedule) for both teachers and students

5. Student Academic Oversight

• Support academic probation structures
• Oversee academic standards and performance monitoring
• Collaborate with faculty on student progress
• Coordinate individual learning, intervention, and accommodation plans with teachers and parents
• Maintain and uphold the Academic Honor Code; meet with students who commit academic violations (such as cheating or plagiarism) to determine consequences and remediation

6. Character Education & Virtue Formation

• In conjunction with the Head of School, support the school-wide character education program, grounded in Lafayette Classical Academy’s four cardinal virtues: fortitude, prudence, justice, and temperance
• Ensure virtue is integrated at all levels and in all activities (in classrooms, House Time, assemblies, and daily routines, etc.)
• Steward the house system as a source of belonging, student leadership, service, and friendly competition
• Oversee the merit and demerit system so that virtue and achievement are recognized and expectations are clear
• Help lead assemblies, recitations, and school traditions that reinforce character
• Develop opportunities for student leadership and service
• Personally model the virtues the school seeks to form in its students

7. Student Conduct & Discipline

• Develop, maintain, and consistently apply a school-wide discipline plan rooted in virtue and aimed at formation, not punishment
• Maintain the Student Code of Conduct, dress code, and behavioral sections of the Family Handbook
• In conjunction with the Head of School, coordinate procedures for discipline referrals, documentation, and parent notification, and maintain confidential disciplinary records
• Meet with students referred for discipline to determine consequences and steps toward restoration
• Serve as the primary liaison to families on conduct matters, communicating promptly, clearly, and respectfully
• Help teachers resolve conduct and communication concerns with students and parents
• Develop behavior support plans with teachers and parents for students with recurring concerns
• Coordinate suspensions and make recommendations on expulsion to the Head of School in accordance with policy
• Oversee attendance and tardiness policies, monitoring, and family follow-up
• Report discipline and attendance trends to the Head of School

8. School Culture, Safety & Student Life

• The Dean serves as next in line whenever the Head of School is unavailable
• Attend school events
• Serve as administrator on duty at after-school and evening events if needed
• Create supervision and duty schedules for arrival, carline, lunch, recess, assemblies, and events
• Participate in dismissal (carline) procedures
• Plan and run all safety and emergency drills (fire, severe weather, and lockdown) and be present for each drill
• Coordinate field trips in keeping with the school’s mission
• Oversee Club Coordinator

9. Teaching Responsibilities

• Teach one to two courses annually (schedule pending)
• Model excellence in classical pedagogy
• Demonstrate strong classroom culture and instructional clarity
• Contribute to the intellectual life of the school

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
• Minimum 10 years experience in classical education
• Demonstrated alignment with classical liberal arts philosophy
• Experience supervising faculty
• Experience in curriculum oversight
• Demonstrated success in classroom management and student discipline
• High moral character and evident personal virtue
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Deep understanding of grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages

Preferred

• Master’s degree or higher
• Experience with Hillsdale K–12 Program Guide
• Experience building academic systems in a growing school
• Experience mentoring faculty
• Experience leading character education, a house system, or school-wide discipline
• Experience with student support plans and standardized testing coordination

Personal Characteristics

• A guardian of classical integrity
• A builder of academic excellence
• A steward of virtue who forms hearts as well as minds
• A cultivator of beauty and order
• A systems thinker
• Calm, steady, and principled
• Firm and fair, holding high standards with patience and love
• Courageous and clear in difficult conversations
• A joyful presence with students, parents, and faculty
• Able to combine rigor with warmth
• Deeply aligned with Lafayette Classical Academy’s mission

Leadership Context

Lafayette Classical Academy is entering a period of intentional growth, with projected enrollment increases and expanded academic programming. The Dean of Students will help build durable academic and cultural structures capable of sustaining growth while preserving institutional integrity.

Why This Role Matters

The Dean of Students safeguards both the intellectual architecture and the moral culture of Lafayette Classical Academy. As the school grows, this role ensures that excellence and virtue do not erode under expansion but instead deepen in clarity, coherence, and beauty.