School Background
Hudson Lab School is a new K-12 school opening in Fall 2017 for ages 4.5 – 8. Learning at Hudson Lab is
rooted in project-based learning. We strive to integrate the rigorous academics of a classical liberal arts
education with collaborative, interdisciplinary project-based learning and thoughtful self-reflection.
Hudson Lab School‘s mission is to instill a love of learning and to teach children how to design and build
a life in which they can thrive. We are expecting a total enrollment of 15 students in our first year and will
open in Hastings-on-Hudson, which is located 40 minutes north of New York City.
School Director/Teacher Job Description
Hudson Lab School seeks a Founding School Director/Teacher to work with the founder to establish the
groundwork for the Fall 2017 open. The duties of a School Director/Teacher are many, yet center around
a single concern: the creation and maintenance of a rich, varied, and engaging program which
empowers students. All students and teachers are unique. As such, there is no one formula that defines
an excellent School Director/Teacher. The following duties and responsibilities serve as guidelines, which
communicate the priorities of the Hudson Lab program, rather than as an exhaustive list.
Alongside a co-teacher, the Director/Teacher will work with students one-on-one or in small groups
supported by Singapore math, Montessori sensorial math materials for younger students, and the
balanced literacy approaches of Fountas & Pinnell and Lucy Calkins. Teachers will also be responsible for
tracking student progress with minimal testing. We expect to use the Common Core standards as a
guide and not a mandate, keeping children’s personal and developmental needs in mind. Specific jobs
may be included or re-assigned as dictated by circumstances. The general goal, however, is for teachers
to do whatever it takes to create an excellent and engaging program, supported by a positive and
collaborative community.
Hudson Lab School is a new school. While it is our hope that it will always be dynamic, given our
educational philosophy, our current situation requires individuals who take great initiative and are self-
starters. This role is challenging and not your run-of-the-mill job. It is not for everyone. On the other
hand, for the right person, working at Hudson Lab School provides great opportunity for creativity,
personal initiative, and being a founding team member.
The School Director/Teacher will work with the founder as an educational spokesperson for the School’s
mission and will provide educational and some administrative leadership within the school. We are
seeking someone with senior administrative and early childhood experience who supports the mission of
the school. If you are passionate about education and interested in building a different type of school
from the ground up, we would love to meet you. With “School Director/Teacher” in the subject line,
please email your CV and a personal statement of educational philosophy and why you’d like to be part
of the founding team at Hudson Lab School to Cate Han at hello@hudsonlabschool.com.
HUDSON LAB SCHOOL
School Director / Teacher
185 Old Broadway, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY ★ hello@hudsonlabschool.com 2
Duties & Responsibilities
A Hudson Lab School Lab School Director/Teacher will work as part of the founding team to…
• Define and structure the school
• Market the school and recruit families
• Create and/or implement emergent and academically rigorous curriculum and project-based
learning activities for a mixed age classroom
• Curate individual learning activities for personalized learning time based on each student’s abilities,
needs, and learning style
• Determine students’ academic and social emotional learning objectives and ensure that they’re met
• Communicate learning targets and outcomes to colleagues, parents, and students on a regular basis
• Help hire and lead a select team of teachers
• Fulfill both hands-on teaching and certain administration roles
• Build and maintain positive, inclusive and transparent relationships with parents
• Support students in their whole-child, personalized learning experience throughout the year
General Philosophy
A Hudson Lab School Director/Teacher…
• Is familiar with and advocates the progressive tradition in education, which defines the child as the
protagonist in his/her own learning, with teachers who serve as organizers, guides and sources of
inspiration.
• Is committed to teaching the whole child – intellectual, social/emotional, and physical – and to
creating a balanced program, which develops balanced modalities in children.
• Understands the importance of balancing creative and critical thinking, and of encouraging
persistence and intellectual rigor.
• Is well versed in and honors child development as a major factor in creating appropriate teaching
approaches for an individual child.
• Is familiar with and/or committed to exploring Project-Based, Montessori, Reggio-Emilia inspired
approaches to education.
• Is familiar with and supports a holistic view of education, in which core subjects are integrated with
each other and with the arts through inquiry, creative work, and real-world applications and/or
service projects.
• Celebrates a diverse community, culturally, racially, economically, and in terms of styles and abilities.
• Embraces an exploratory approach to preparing students for the twenty-first century. This challenge
includes a constant redefinition of community, of possibilities for work and play, and of increased but
critically evaluated uses of technology/media.
HUDSON LAB SCHOOL
School Director / Teacher
185 Old Broadway, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY ★ hello@hudsonlabschool.com 3
Methodology & Assessment
A Hudson Lab School Director/Teacher…
• Relishes creating original curricula for and with students, and collaborating with others about
curriculum development, testing, and assessment. Can develop thematic units, which integrate many
subjects meaningfully.
• Relishes inquiry about how students learn, and embraces teaching for understanding rather than rote
learning.
• Participates enthusiastically in encouraging and documenting children’s inquiry, and in sharing
results with peers, colleagues, and parents.
• Is familiar with and committed to child-centered approaches to teaching language arts and math,
which flex to meet individual children’s needs.
• Is familiar with the Common Core Curriculum in Language Arts and Math (Singapore Math), the Next
Generation Science Standards, National History/Social Studies standards. Uses standards as a guide
but not a mandate, keeping children’s personal and developmental needs in mind.
• Is familiar with strategies for differentiating curricula to meet the needs of students with different
abilities and at different developmental stages.
• Is familiar with and open to collaborating with others about how to work effectively with various
populations, including gifted and talented students and students who have special needs and/or
learning disabilities.
• Embraces the notion of multiple assessments and works to provide in depth and accurate
assessments of student learning which can be shared with parents and professional peers.
• Documents student progress in multiple ways, including observation, photography/video, and
documentation done by students themselves.
• Supports arts education, as well as gardening, yoga, and other enriching activities. Varies activities
to create interest.
• Encourages health, good nutrition, and mindfulness.
• Is familiar with positive discipline techniques, and is willing to embrace the character and community
building programs adopted at Hudson Lab School.
• Is informed about and promotes appropriate applications of technology as part of the educational
program, while also modeling a critical and reflective stance toward technology.
• Attempts to empower students in any way possible, by turning over tasks to students as they gain
the maturity to manage them. At the same time, provides appropriate levels of structure to match
students’ maturity level so that students are successful.
HUDSON LAB SCHOOL
School Director / Teacher
185 Old Broadway, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY ★ hello@hudsonlabschool.com 4
Qualifications
There is no one formula that defines an excellent School Director/Teacher for the Hudson Lab School.
Some of the qualifications we seek include (but are not limited to):
• A passion for innovation in education and an entrepreneurial mindset
• 5+ years of school management experience
• Advanced degree in education preferred
• Experience in whole-child development and curriculum development for grades K-3
• Experience supervising and mentoring teachers
• A passion for working in an inquiry setting, where projects and problems are used to motivate
students to research, solve, and explore solutions and creations
• Commitment to working collaboratively with parents and colleagues in support of children
• Experience starting a school (successfully or not) is a plus
• A commitment to empowering children as the main protagonists in their own educational
experiences.
• Good organization and management skills
• A high level of responsibility and punctuality/reliability
• A strong work ethic
• A lifelong learner
• Willingness and ability to create a positive, child-centered classroom community
• Current CPR and First Aid Certification, and security clearance (fingerprints)
• A commitment to helping all children to become successful
• Joyfulness
• Resilience
• A Sense of humor
