Executive Director Legacy Aviation Learning Cener

ACTE; Traverse City (MI); On-site; USD 110,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, vision and dental

401(k) with employer match

Professional development budget

Paid time off and holidays

Job summary

Legacy Aviation Learning Center at Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Michigan, seeks an Executive Director to lead daily operations, ensure FAA Part 147 compliance, grow enrollment, and oversee accreditation efforts.

The role focuses on building a strong team, expanding partnerships with industry, maintaining financial sustainability, and driving data‑driven decision making to advance the school’s mission.

Qualifications

• Educational operations leadership: ran a school, training program, or post-secondary department, hiring and developing instructors, delivering curriculum, student services, academic integrity.
• Accreditation experience: understood documentation, compliance cycles, audit preparation; COE preferred.
• People leadership: coaches, develops, and challenges people to perform; builds learning cultures.
• Management discipline: builds systems, runs tight operations, professional conduct.
• Systems discipline: works through platforms, assesses health, drives adoption.
• Budget management: created and managed operating budgets, cash flow awareness.
• Track record growing programs: expanded enrollment or participation via outreach and measurable results.
• Industry credibility: aviation or regulated training experience, and plan to earn fluency in aviation maintenance culture.
• Learning orientation: embraces transparency and learning from mistakes.

Responsibilities

• Safety and FAA Part 147 Compliance: set safety culture, strengthen SMS, conduct FAA audit, ensure compliance with 14 CFR Part 147.
• Build a Strong Team: clarify roles, establish evaluation rhythms, develop instructors, foster accountability and learning.
• Enrollment, Retention, and Career Placement: audit recruitment channels, measure conversions, map student experience, track outcomes and employer relations.
• Financial Sustainability: publish dashboards, align enrollment forecasts with financial plan, pursue cost improvements and regulatory compliance.
• COE Accreditation Progress: self-assessment, accreditation calendar, draft policies, advance candidacy.
• Build Partnerships: collaborate with the Board, develop industry relationships, ensure transparency.
• Systems Stewardship: manage compliance platforms, record keeping, data reconciliation, and system migrations.

Skills

Educational operations leadership

Accreditation experience

People leadership

Management discipline

Systems discipline

Budget management

Track record growing programs

Industry credibility

Learning orientation

Job description

About Legacy Aviation Learning Center

Legacy Aviation Learning Center (LALC) is a nonprofit, FAA-certified Part 147 Aviation Maintenance Technician school based at Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Michigan. Our students train for FAA Airframe & Powerplant certification. These credentials open high-skill, high-demand careers across commercial aviation, general aviation, and aerospace manufacturing. The industry faces a national workforce shortage, and our graduates are part of the answer.

We are a small, ambitious organization in a meaningful chapter of growth. We are building enrollment, pursuing institutional accreditation, and developing the governance and infrastructure to serve students sustainably for the long term.

The Opportunity

We are seeking an Executive Director. This is a hands‑on leadership role: overseeing daily operations, ensuring FAA Part 147 compliance, developing the team, driving enrollment growth, and leading the accreditation work that will determine the school's long‑term trajectory.

Key Responsibilities

Safety and FAA Part 147 Compliance

Set the tone for a safety‑first culture from day one. Strengthen the school's Safety Management System with active incident and near‑miss reporting. Conduct a full FAA compliance audit, close any gaps identified, and establish audit‑ready rhythms that keep the school's certificate secure. Ensure student records, facilities, and equipment meet all 14 CFR Part 147 requirements.

Build a Strong Team

Clarify every role with written expectations. Establish a performance rhythm of regular one‑on‑ones, quarterly goals, and constructive feedback. Build instructor depth so no single person is irreplaceable. Cultivate a culture where staff feel supported, accountable, and heard, and where mistakes become learning opportunities.

Enrollment, Retention, and Career Placement

This is the school's growth engine. Audit recruiting channels to identify what actually drives student enrollment. Measure conversion at every stage from inquiry through start. Map the student experience to strengthen retention. Track completion rates, pass rates, and job placement. Build employer relationships that create demand for our graduates. Deliver a data‑driven recruiting plan to the Board of Directors.

Financial Sustainability

Publish a clear financial dashboard: cash on hand, budget versus actual, and forecast. Connect enrollment forecasts to the financial plan. Identify cost improvements that support net operating income. Ensure the school remains current on all nonprofit IRS, tax, insurance, and regulatory requirements.

COE Accreditation Progress

Complete a self‑assessment against COE Handbook requirements. Build an accreditation calendar. Draft required policies and advance the candidacy application. Accreditation unlocks federal financial aid and represents the single most important strategic milestone for the school's future.

Build Partnerships

Work alongside the board to develop and deepen industry relationships. Lead through transparency, surfacing issues early and partnering with the Board on solutions. The Executive Director supports the Board; the Board sets governance.

Systems Stewardship

The school runs on platforms that serve as its institutional memory for compliance, student records, finances, and accountability. Assess system health, publish a Systems of Record policy, reconcile financial data across platforms, and evaluate the planned migration of the learning management system. Every staff member works through designated systems, not through email, texts, or personal workarounds.

Required Qualifications

• Educational operations leadership. You have run a school, training program, or post‑secondary department. You know how to hire and develop instructors, deliver curriculum, handle student services, and protect academic integrity.
• Accreditation experience. You have been through an accreditation process. You understand documentation, compliance cycles, and audit preparation. COE preferred, and any credible accrediting body counts.
• People leadership. You coach, develop, and challenge people to perform their best in a constructive way. You build cultures where mistakes are learning opportunities and feedback is normal.
• Management discipline. You build systems, run a tight operation, and treat people with professionalism and respect.
• Systems discipline. You work through platforms and documented processes. You can inherit a technology stack, assess its health, update where required, and drive adoption across a team.
• Budget management. You have created and successfully managed an operating budget. You understand cash flow, unit economics, and what it means to lead an organization that earns every dollar.
• Track record growing programs. You have grown enrollment or program participation through outreach, relationships, and measurable results.
• Industry credibility. You bring credibility in a technically regulated training environment — through direct aviation experience (pilot, maintainer, or military aviation), through leadership in another regulated training environment (automotive, marine, industrial maintenance), and can create clear plan to earn fluency in aviation maintenance culture and terminology quickly.
• Learning orientation. You say "I don't know" and "I was wrong" out loud. You set the tone for a team that communicates openly and learns from mistakes.

Preferred Qualifications

• Community college or private career school administration, including financial aid and enrollment management.
• Direct aviation experience as a pilot, maintainer, or military aviation professional.
• A&P certification or hands‑on aviation maintenance background.
• FAA Part 147 experience (strong leaders with accreditation experience can learn Part 147 specifics quickly).
• Military leadership experience, including budget management, personnel decisions, safety systems, and regulated environments.
• Public speaking and relationship‑building skills to represent the school at career fairs, industry events, and community functions.

Compensation and Benefits

Salary range: $110,000 – $130,000 annually, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

Health, vision and dental.

401(k) with employer match.

Professional development budget, including conference attendance (up to two per year).

Paid time off and holidays.

Location

This is an on‑site position at the Legacy Aviation Learning Center at Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Michigan. Consistently ranked among the best small cities in the United States, Traverse City offers world‑class outdoor recreation on the shores of Lake Michigan, a vibrant local economy, and a strong sense of community.