Early Education & Lower School Principal

Christian Heritage Academy; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Christian Heritage Academy in the Greater Chicago area seeks a Christ-centered Early Education and Lower School Principal to lead spiritual, instructional, and administrative initiatives across CHA's early years.

The role emphasizes nurturing young learners, mentoring teachers, and partnering with families to execute CHA's mission, faith-based philosophy, and strategic vision while fostering a safe, engaging learning environment.

Qualifications

• Must be a committed follower of Jesus Christ with active church involvement.
• Clear understanding and commitment to CHA's mission, faith statements, and philosophy of Christian education.
• Master's degree in Education, Educational Leadership, or School Administration (preferred).
• Minimum five years of K-8 teaching experience with school leadership experience.
• Ability to cast and execute CHA's vision for dynamic, engaging, rigorous learning in preschool and elementary.

Responsibilities

• Provide spiritual, instructional, and administrative leadership for CHA's Early Education and Lower School divisions.
• Lead, develop, and evaluate faculty, fostering collaboration, professional growth, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Partner with families, students, and staff to support CHA’s mission and values.
• Recruitment and retention efforts for faculty and staff; ensure a safe, Christ-centered learning environment.

Skills

Spiritual leadership

Vision casting

Instructional leadership

Collaboration

Communication

Church involvement

Staff mentorship

Education

Master's degree in Education

Job description

Christian Heritage Academy (CHA) is a top-ranked Christian school in Illinois, serving students from preschool through high school in the Greater Chicago area. The school is recognized with an A+ rating on Niche.com, reflecting strong academics, supportive community, and commitment to excellence. Christian Heritage Academy provides a Christ-centered education that integrates faith and learning across all grade levels. Educators join a collaborative environment that values spiritual growth, academic rigor, and character formation.

Role Description

We are seeking a committed, Christ-centered leader who actively supports our mission, vision, and strategy and has a passion for nurturing young learners, developing and inspiring teachers, and partnering with families. The Early Education and Lower School Principal provides spiritual, instructional, and administrative leadership for CHA's Early Education and Lower School divisions.

Qualifications

• A committed and authentic follower of Jesus Christ who demonstrates spiritual maturity and active involvement in a local church.
• A clear understanding of and commitment to CHA's mission, Statement of Faith, and philosophy of Christian education.
• Master's degree in Education, Educational Leadership, or School Administration (preferred).
• Minimum of five years of K-8 teaching experience, along with school administration or leadership experience.
• Ability to collaboratively cast and execute our vision for dynamic, engaging, and rigorous learning culture in preschool and elementary grade levels.
• Strong instructional leadership, organizational, and problem-solving skills; is able to balance competing priorities while managing the needs of a dynamic school environment.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
• The ability to partner effectively with different stakeholder groups, maintain confidentiality, exercise sound judgment, and lead with both compassion and accountability.

Leadership Profile

• Demonstrate an authentic, growing relationship with Jesus Christ and a deep commitment to CHA’s mission, Statement of Faith, and philosophy of Christian education.
• Lead with spiritual maturity, integrity, humility, and a servant’s heart, modeling Christlike character in relationships with students, faculty, staff, and families.
• Understand the importance of integrating biblical truth into teaching, learning, decision-making, and the daily life of the school community.

Instructional Leadership:

• Possess deep knowledge of early childhood and elementary instructional best practices.
• Cultivate a positive and dynamic teaching and learning culture that promotes CHA’s Expected Student Outcomes, student-centered instruction, academic rigor, collaboration and critical thinking, biblical worldview integration, and real-life meaning and application.
• In collaboration with the Dean of Academics, use thoughtful observation, assessment, and sound judgment to identify needs, strengthen instruction, and support student learning.

Relational and Organizational Leadership:

• Lead, develop, inspire, and evaluate faculty, fostering a culture of collaboration, professional growth, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Build trust and strong partnerships with faculty, students, parents, and families through effective communication, active listening, collaboration, and discernment.
• Create a safe, orderly, nurturing, and Christ-centered teaching and learning environment where issues and challenges are addressed effectively and student culture reflects the values of respect, responsibility, and personal courage.
• Champion recruitment and retention efforts by actively participating in the process and engaging faculty in the shared responsibility.