Director of Education

OVERVIEW: COSI, The Center of Science and Industry, a place for all learners, is entering an exciting and unprecedented period for positioning itself at an even higher level than enjoyed today as the #1 science center (Parents Magazine) with several notable factors including but not limited to:

The appointment of a new President & CEO, Dr. Frederic Bertley, a nationally renowned and celebrated thought leader in the fields of applied science, education, and community engagement.

A first-of-its-kind partnership between COSI and the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), in collaboration with the Columbus Downtown Development Corporation (CDDC), to establish two significant new exhibition areas at COSI, the American Museum of Natural History Dinosaur Gallery and the American Museum of Natural History Exhibition Gallery.

Serving as an integral part of an emerging cultural destination area with the opening a new underground parking lot and city park in late 2017, and the opening of the National Veteran?s Museum in 2018.

With these amazing experiences, COSI has high ambitions to magnify its role as a community learning resource through real and relevant science experiences offered ONSITE (in the building), OFFSITE (in schools and in our communities) and ONLINE (where we live, learn, and lounge). COSI attracts an over 600,000 visitors to the science center annually and reaches an additional 300-400,000 people through outreach initiatives.

OBJECTIVE: COSI is seeking a Director of Education who will be responsible for leading and invigorating the educational mission with innovative strategies that captivate and connect local, regional, national, and international audiences to the joy of science learning. Additionally, the Director will be expected to aggressively build financial resources for the COSI Center of School & Community Partnerships by expanding its profile and increasing its impact with high-quality, outcome-oriented and cohesive STEM content. The successful candidate will also align natural history educational programs and educational content for programs, exhibits, and experiences across the science center for learners of all ages.

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ACCOUNTABILITIES/ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS include, but are not limited to:

Leading People

Promote and maintain a level of excellence, consistency, relevance and accuracy for COSI educational programming provided onsite, offsite and online as a leader in STEM education.

Ensure the highest quality educational experiences onsite, offsite, and online; serving participants from diverse backgrounds. Review, reflect, and evaluate existing programs on an annual basis (or as needed), revising activities and curriculum as needed.

Create and maintain an environment of cross program integration and constructive communication.Provide solid leadership for all Team Members through motivation, modeling, and regular performance driven feedback.

Oversee the hiring, training, performance evaluation, and professional development of the COSI Center for School & Community Partnerships Team.As part of the supervisor responsibility of this job, conduct performance evaluations in accordance with COSI procedures for direct reports.

Work in conjunction with the program managers to hire, train, evaluate, and coach their direct reports within the COSI Center for School & Community Partnerships.

Attend and present at professional conferences and meetings, locally, regionally and nationally.

Collaborating and Influencing

In collaboration with internal vested parties, maintain and cultivate relationships with community leaders, schools, corporations, government/community agencies and other informal educational institutions to strengthen COSI?s position as a community learning resource and service provider.

Working in areas that are increasingly multi-disciplinary, integrated, and heavily reliant on a network of partners and stakeholders, nurture a culture of engagement and team work by driving mutually-beneficial collaborations, both within and external to the organization.

Work closely and creatively with the COSI Center for Research & Evaluation (CRE) and program managers to develop and oversee strategies to ensure educational program development and improvement is aligned with current research and practice in informal learning. This includes systematic review, reflection, and evaluation of existing programs as well as evaluation activity in the development stages of new programs.

Work strategically and proactively with the Marketing Department and program managers to oversee strategies for CCSCP to ensure maximum target audience penetration and effective cross-promotional efforts.This includes involvement with educators, professional organizations, higher education institutes, and other cultural/informal science education organizations in order to maintain a solid working knowledge of resources and ideas related to the needs and expectations of our community.

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Fiscal Responsibility

In consultation with the SVP of Engagement & Impact, CCSCP program managers, and the Finance Department, develop and administer financial planning and closely monitor revenue and expenses in each program area.

Seek, cultivate, solicit, and maintain service contracts.Activity participate in fundraising activities in partnership with the Philanthropy Team by recommending funding opportunities and stewarding donor support.

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Other Essential Characteristics

Authentic belief in and support of access and equity.

Support general COSI operations through participation in meetings as appropriate.

Serve as an example to other COSI Team Members and Volunteers in matters of appearance, attitude, and performance in a manner best serving COSI paid and Volunteer Team Members and Guests.

In accordance with COSI’s Guest Services Strategy, and as opportunities present themselves, provide excellence in Guest Services by assuring Guest safety, using courtesy to drive each Guest interaction, by delivering the COSI show, and by keeping operations efficient.

Perform other duties as assigned by the Senior Vice President of Engagement & Impact. POSITION REQUIREMENTS / EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE: The ideal candidate will have passion for and deep knowledge of science education that is fortified by a reputation built from substance, experience, and integrity, with the ability to quickly earn the trust of internal and external constituents. The successful candidate will direct/oversee the conceptualization and implementation of innovative STEM and natural history educational programs for students, educators, families and learners of all ages. Knowledge of teaching and learning principles, education technology, and the formal/informal educational landscape will combine to define programming that is hands-on, engaging, and aligned with community needs. The candidates’ proven ability to build and influence strategic internal and external teams to create relationships and partnerships that are entrepreneurial and make a difference in the community is critical to promoting COSI as a community learning resource where a wide and diverse audience lives, learns and lounges in Central Ohio and beyond . A successful candidate will have:

Master’s degree in education, science, or humanities required; Ed.D. or Ph.D. degree preferred or equivalent years of experience with five plus years’ experience in related role.

Supervisory experience high quality, high impact educational and professional development programming, from development through implementation.

Proven ability and experience that includes a history of building, mentoring, and developing strong, interdisciplinary teams that intersect with a variety of stakeholders throughout an organization and in the community.

Demonstrated understanding of pedagogy, practices, and current trends in the PreK-12 teaching environment with experience teaching in the classroom.

Exposure to fundraising from a variety of sources, including federal grants, to help achieve revenue goals.

Must possess excellent leadership skills including planning, resource development, budget management and P&L operating experience.

Experience in international educational arenas is a plus.