National Summer School Initiative, Inc.

Senior Director, Math
(Remote, full-time)

About the organization

Founded as a nonprofit organization in 2020, the National Summer School Initiative (NSSI) partners with schools and districts nationwide to accelerate learning and deepen teacher practice through our distinctive summer programming.

NSSI programming offers districts a new approach to building teacher capacity and driving academic gains. Our mentor teacher model connects some of the country's most exceptional educators with teachers across the nation, equipping and inspiring them to deliver discourse-rich math and literature lessons that are rigorous, culturally responsive, and deeply engaging.

Through intensive pre-service training and dynamic weekly professional development sessions, our summer programming focuses on research-proven instructional practices that accelerate learning. We provide teachers and school leaders with the targeted support and hands-on practice needed to elevate their craft. Our core belief is simple: teachers get better faster by observing the best and practicing. 

Our comprehensive approach combines daily exposure to excellent curriculum, observation of outstanding mentor teachers, targeted professional development to help teachers across the country improve rapidly and effectively, and exceptional operational support. 

Impact and Growth: In 2025, NSSI served approximately 72,000 students. Building from 48,000 students served in 2023, we continue to refine our approach to maximize impact. With a goal of reaching 150,000 students by summer 2028, we are positioned for strategic growth based on our strong track record of results. Students consistently achieve double-digit learning gains on average across all partner sites, while stakeholder satisfaction remains remarkably high.

About the role

The Senior Director of Math is responsible for creating and delivering high-quality curricula and professional learning that drive student, teacher, and leader growth and achievement. This is achieved by setting a clear vision for curriculum and training, managing a small team of curriculum designers to build and enhance materials, as well as attracting, onboarding, and leading a team of mentor teachers to facilitate impactful training. The Senior Director of Math consistently uses data to reflect on and improve the effectiveness of their programs, ensuring that partner teachers and leaders are equipped to utilize these resources effectively.

Role and responsibilities 

Program Vision & Subject Expertise

• Define, codify, and champion a clear vision of excellence for math instruction, curriculum, and pedagogy, aligned with NSSI’s mission and goals.
• Stay at the forefront of mathematics education research and best practices, including fluency development, problem solving, explicit instruction, and supports for multilingual learners, and integrate new insights into curriculum and training.
• Build and maintain a library of exemplar math teaching models — including classroom videos, annotated lessons, and sample student work — that bring the vision of excellent math instruction to life.
• Translate the program vision into clear criteria for success and actionable guidance for curriculum development and professional learning.
• Make recommendations for research studies to better understand the impact of our program design on student learning and teacher practice. 

Curriculum Leadership

• Lead the design, review, and refinement of NSSI’s K–8 math curriculum, ensuring it is rigorous, engaging, and research-backed.
• Conduct curriculum evaluations using survey data, classroom feedback, student outcomes, and partner input to identify enhancements.
• Develop original, high-quality curriculum materials across key strands such as fact fluency, skill fluency, problem solving, and interleaved practice.
• Establish quality criteria and oversee outsourced work to ensure consistency with NSSI’s standards.
• Recruit, onboard, and retain a strong team of curriculum developers and consultants to support math content development.
• Partner with copy editors, translators, and design experts to deliver materials that are polished, accessible, and user-friendly for teachers and students.
   

Professional Learning & Training

• Design and oversee professional learning that equips teachers and leaders to deliver NSSI’s math program with excellence.
• Recruit, onboard, and retain outstanding Mentor Teachers with deep math expertise, ensuring they are prepared to model and facilitate instruction.
• Develop and implement comprehensive onboarding and rehearsal processes for Mentor Teachers, guided by NSSI’s Vision of Excellent PD rubric.
• Lead the design of high-quality math training content for teacher and leader Institute and ongoing professional learning.
• Use data from surveys, focus groups, classroom observations, and student work analysis to continuously improve the math training scope and sequence.

Contribute to a Healthy Organization

• Manage the math program budget, ensuring responsible stewardship of resources and alignment with Program Team priorities.
• Provide input into long-term budget planning, making recommendations that balance program needs with organizational sustainability.
• Partner with the Partnerships Team on sales calls and in the creation of marketing materials that accurately represent NSSI’s math programming.
• Represent NSSI at conferences, sharing insights of our math program to an audience of prospective users, buyers, and policy makers
• Collaborate with the senior director of ELA to ensure alignment and coherence across subject areas.
• Actively contribute to the leadership culture of NSSI by modeling excellence, fostering collaboration, and strengthening our evolving virtual organization.

Skills and competencies 

• Math Instructional Expertise: Deep knowledge of research-based practices in fluency, problem solving, and explicit instruction, with a track record of improving math outcomes.
• Curriculum Design & Development: Proven ability to design, evaluate, and refine rigorous, research-backed math curriculum materials that are accessible to diverse learners, including multilingual learners and students performing below grade level.
• Professional Learning Leadership: Skilled at designing and facilitating adult learning experiences that strengthen teacher and leader capacity to deliver high-quality math instruction.
• Team & Talent Development: Demonstrated success recruiting, onboarding, and managing high-performing consultants, curriculum developers, and mentor teachers.
• Data-Informed Decision-Making: Strong ability to analyze student work, classroom observations, and survey data to inform continuous program improvement.
• Project & Resource Management: Experienced in managing budgets, timelines, and large-scale projects with precision and accountability.
• Communication & Collaboration: Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to inspire, influence, and partner effectively with teachers, leaders, and cross-functional teams.
• Equity & Inclusion Orientation: Commitment to designing curriculum and training that honors student diversity and advances equity in math learning.
• Experience & Education: 8–12 years of progressive leadership in education, with demonstrated expertise in math curriculum development and/or professional learning (advanced degree preferred).

Travel expectations 

• Annual team meetings: 3-4 days per year (mandatory for all team members)
• Regular role-specific travel: 5-7 days per year 
• Seasonal variations: During summer months (June-July), travel may increase to up to 3-5 days per month

Compensation: The starting salary ranges from $140,000 to $175,000, based on qualifications and relevant experience.

As an employee, the senior director of math will be eligible for healthcare coverage, participation in NSSI’s retirement plan, and stipends to offset remote work expenses.

Non-Discrimination Statement

NSSI is an equal employment opportunity employer committed to maintaining a non-discriminatory work environment. We do not discriminate against any employee, volunteer, vendor, contractor, or applicant on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, arrest record, conviction record, or any other personal characteristic protected by applicable law. This policy covers all programs, services, policies, and procedures, including procurement of services, recruiting, hiring, training, promotion, and administering all personnel actions, such as compensation, benefits, transfers, layoffs, or terminations.