Director of Operations

Kairos Academies; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 63,000 - 77,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

Wellness reimbursement

Coaching and growth opportunities

Job summary

Kairos Academies in St. Louis, MO seeks a Director of Operations to own campus operations, from arrival to dismissal, food service, safety, facilities, transportation, and events.

The role emphasizes driving performance metrics like enrollment, attendance, and staff satisfaction, not just executing processes. The successful candidate will supervise the operations team, collaborate with staff and vendors, and report to the COO.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of operations experience, ideally in a school, nonprofit, or mission-driven setting.
• Demonstrated experience supervising staff, including coaching and performance management.
• Comfort with data systems and the ability to build and interpret operational reporting.
• Track record of managing competing daily demands without dropping recurring commitments.
• Eligible to work for any employer in the United States.

Responsibilities

• Daily Campus Operations: Arrival and dismissal, reporting, walkie-talkie logistics, teacher supply requests, furniture repair and relocation.
• Food Services: Cafeteria POS and food service operations, lunch logistics, FRPL tracking, meal participation monitoring.
• Safety, Security, and Risk: Safety drills, staff training, security cameras, alarm systems, campus security operations, risk management.
• Facilities: Cleanliness, janitorial requests, vendor management, construction planning and monitoring.
• Transportation: Daily operations and vendor relationships, route issues, delays, family communication.
• Events and Calendar: Campus event planning, on-campus events, field trips, calendar management.
• Cyclical Operations: Yearly planning, summer ops, payments, supervision of office admins and school nurse, growth of operations team, coverage planning.

Skills

Staff supervision

Operations management

Data reporting

Time management

Analytical thinking

Tools

PowerSchool

Job description

Location: St. Louis, MO 63118
Department: School Operations
Reports To: Chief Operations Officer
Supervises: Office Administrators, School Nurse

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Position Summary

The Director of Operations owns the daily operating system of the Kairos campus — the conditions that make instruction possible. This includes arrival and dismissal, food service, facilities, safety and security, transportation, and campus events.

This is not solely a logistics role. The Director of Operations owns performance goals with real analytical weight — enrollment verification, average daily attendance, and meal participation — and is accountable for moving those numbers, not just executing the processes underneath them. The right candidate is someone who can run a flawless dismissal and also build the analysis that explains why attendance dropped in Cycle 3.

The Director of Operations supervises the campus operations team and serves as the primary operational point of contact for staff, families, and vendors.

Performance Goals

• Enrollment: 100% Enrolled by First Day of School
• Attendance: 90/90 Average Daily Attendance
• Staff Satisfaction: 85% on the Cyclical School Operations Staff Survey
• Safety Compliance: 100% of State (DESE) and Network (MCPSC) Requirements Met

Core Responsibilities

Daily Campus Operations

• Arrival and dismissal, including carline logistics and reporting
• Walkie-talkie and radio logistics
• Teacher supply requests
• Furniture repair and relocation

Food Services

• Cafeteria POS and food service operations
• Lunch service and lunch logistics
• FRPL tracking and lunch application completion
• Meal participation monitoring and intervention

Safety, Security, and Risk

• Safety drills: fire, lockdown, severe weather
• Staff training on safety protocols
• Security cameras, security footage requests, and alarm systems
• Campus security operations
• Safety and risk management (with COO)

Facilities

• Facilities cleanliness and building appearance standards
• Janitorial requests and vendor management
• Pest control (CPH)
• Construction planning and monitoring (with COO)

Transportation

Daily transportation operations and vendor relationships

Route issues, delays, and family communication

Events and Calendar

• Campus event planning: logistics and support
• On-campus events and field trip planning
• School calendar management for approved events

Cyclical Operations

• Beginning-of-year operations
• Summer operations
• Scholar payments and money collection
• Direct supervision of office administrators and the school nurse, including coaching, performance management, scheduling, and time-off approval
• Development of the operations team against role-specific growth goals
• Coverage planning for absences across the operations team

Qualifications

Required:

• 3+ years of operations experience, ideally in a school, nonprofit, or other mission-driven setting
• Demonstrated experience supervising staff, including coaching and performance management
• Comfort with data systems and the ability to build and interpret operational reporting
• Track record of managing competing daily demands without dropping recurring commitments
• Eligible to work for any employer in the United States

Preferred:

• Experience managing external vendors and contracts
• Familiarity with PowerSchool or comparable SIS platforms
• Systems thinking — builds repeatable processes rather than solving the same problem twice
• Analytical judgment — can look at attendance or participation data and form a defensible hypothesis about what's driving it
• Steadiness under pressure — operates well when the day goes sideways, which it will
• Direct communication — raises problems early, including with supervisors
• Monday – Friday
• Availability to be on campus during arrival and dismissal windows
• On-site role at Kairos Academies in St. Louis, MO.
• Salary: starts at $70,000 per year
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Paid time off & wellness reimbursement
• Comprehensive Coaching and Growth Opportunities

About Kairos Academies

Kairos Academies is a forward-thinking public charter school network in St. Louis reimagining education for the 21st century. Our mission is to cultivate an integrated community of self-directed learners, leaders, and citizens. Recognized nationally for innovation and excellence, Kairos replaces traditional lectures with personalized, project-based learning and emphasizes executive-function coaching to help students take ownership of their education and lives.