Assistant Superintendent
Position Description
Location
Al Khobar, Eastern, Saudi Arabia
School / Site
Division / Department
Superintendent's Office
Position Type
Administrator
Works days / Hours
Works days
220
days
@ Works hours
8
hours per day
Position status
Full time
Salary code
Administrator
Eligible Applicants
International
Saudi National
Position start date
Application deadline
Reports To
Rhonda Norris, ISG Superintendent
Requisition Number
08-2627-001
Summary
The International Schools Group (ISG) is a not-for-profit, future-focused school district in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Our five schools, located on four sites, are co-educational day schools delivering Kindergarten 1 to Grade 12 in the American program and Foundation Stage 1 through Year 13 in the British programme to expatriate students as well as some students from the host country. Students enroll in either an American or British curriculum education which encompasses the following school-specific higher-level programs: Advanced Placement (AP) Capstone Diploma, International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB), (I)GCSE and A levels.
History
Founded in 1962, ISG was originally established to serve the needs of expatriate families working for the U.S. Consulate.
From its initial enrollment of six students to its present status as a district of five schools with approximately 3,200 students, ISG has earned a reputation for providing the highest quality American and British curriculum education. Today, over 50 nationalities make up the ISG community.
Governance
The district is governed by a Board of Trustees, supported by school councils and partnership with the U.S. Consulate, and is licensed by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education.
Accreditation
Our schools are accredited by some of the top institutions in the world: the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA-CESS), British Schools of the Middle East (BSME), British Schools Overseas (BSO) and the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO).
Our Mission, Core Values, and Strategic Goals
Mission: We inspire innovation and compassionate action.
Core Values: Respect, acceptance, integrity, responsibility … with a commitment to act.
Our Vision: ISG’s world-class education empowers our diverse youth to excel academically, lead and learn, exercise compassion and kindness, and nourish their intellectual curiosity as they strive for a future of success, innovation, and personal fulfillment.
ISG is committed to four strategic, school improvement goals. Three of these are student-centered: 1) learner agency, 2) compassionate action and 3) growing literacy. The fourth goal is an organizational capacity goal striving for system coherence. These goals will evolve through our current accreditation self-study and we are looking forward to our new pillars of strategic priorities.
ISG Learns
Our schools are guided by our district mission, vision, learning principles and assessment beliefs. Our shared focus is further complemented by the diversity of our community and core divisional curricula as we work in partnership with the community to educate tomorrow's future leaders. ISG maintains an emphasis on progressive teaching and learning. Curriculum and learning programs at ISG are evaluated and reviewed consistently, through the lens of current research and are reflective of this research and best practices. This ensures that our programs support high-quality learning and are implemented in the most effective way in the classroom in order to support student learning, enhance program outcomes and learning targets in our unique learning environment.
The 2023-2024 ISG Learning Report showcases academic success, college acceptances and professional development at ISG.
ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT
FOR 2026-27 SCHOOL YEAR
ISG Superintendent, Rhonda Norris, seeks a dynamic candidate with years of proven educational and district leadership experience to join her on August 1, 2026 to serve as the ISG Assistant Superintendent.
ISG Assistant Superintendent at a glance
The ISG Assistant Superintendent is an integral part of the Senior Leadership team working closely with the Superintendent who acts on behalf of the Superintendent in the absence of the Superintendent and as needed to support the Superintendent.
This position reports to the ISG Superintendent and is responsible for ISG leadership at community events and in support of district office operational functions including Admissions & Enrollment, Human Resources, Teaching & Learning, Athletics & Activities, Marketing & Communications and Student Support Services. The Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent collaborate closely on supporting and mentoring Directors and Principals. Key functions performed in this role include leadership, mentoring, communicating, and directing multiple district office operational functions.
ISG is committed to the collaborative support of all learners and the safety and protection of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
For more information on ISG, please visit our website: http://www.isg.edu.sa
Position Duties
The ideal candidate is a highly-experienced educational professional with proven experience at leading and directing district office learning and operational functions as well as mentoring leaders at varying levels.
General
- Member of Senior Leadership, Schoolwide Leadership, Operational Leadership, and Instructional Leadership teams.
- Collaborate with Superintendent and leadership teams on schoolwide strategy and practical implementation to support ISG learning and operations.
- Collaborate with and proactively update the ISG Superintendent in all areas of responsibility as well as other areas that impact the schoolwide operations and learning environment.
- Collaborate and engage in Board and Board Committee meetings, presentations, and discussions.
- Maintain an excellent working knowledge of ISG’s organisational policies and regulations.
- Perform research, as needed, on areas for potential revision or update to support the ongoing learning and operations as well as evolution of the ISG environment.
- Recommend and implement amendments to policies and regulations, where and when appropriate.
- Leveraging Principal and District leadership experience:
- Leading and directing project research, exploration and implementation for needs across the district.
- Collaborate with the Superintendent in supporting and mentoring campus leadership and District in best leadership practices.
- Leadership, Supervision, and Collaboration in direct report areas:
- Meet regularly with central office leaders responsible for day-to-day operations to:
- Collaborate on and support department operational needs.
- Assess areas for growth and collaboration between departments and campuses.
- Empower leaders, provide growth and development, and set goals.
- Ensure collaborative proposals for improvement are communicated, as appropriate, and successfully implemented.
- Assess requests and feedback for decision making.
- Identify challenges and areas requiring problem solving and/or conflict resolution.
- Ensure timely responsiveness and resolution to issues affecting day-to-day operations of core business functions.
- Admissions & Enrollment
- Recruitment and retention strategy for students
- Community information sessions
- Application and decision timelines
- Approaches to supporting processes and procedures
- Collaboration between departments to support student enrollment
- Human Resources
- Legal & Compliance and Government Relations
- Staff recruiting
- Leadership recruitment
- Employee retention strategy
- Compensation and benefits
- Employee wellness
- Marketing & Communications
- ISG brand management
- Website management
- Multimedia communications (digital, print, audio, video)
- Social media management
- Alumni relations
- Direct marketing
- Teaching & Learning
- Curriculum and Instruction
- Professional development
- Strategic priorities
- Accreditation
- Athletics & Activities
- Program development, enhancement, and support to enrich student experiences
- Procedure development with documentation for safety, consistency, and clarity
- Extra and co-curricular event development, implementation, and coordination
- Student travel hosting and management
- Student Support Services
- Program development, management and reporting
- Education and professional development
- Child protection
- Meet regularly with central office leaders responsible for day-to-day operations to:
Other
- Perform other duties as assigned by the ISG Superintendent
Qualifications and Knowledge
The ideal candidate will have:
- Master’s degree.
- Awareness for, familiarity with, and knowledge to support ISG’s adopted standards, beliefs, graduate profile, learning principles, assessment beliefs, and school improvement goals.
- Knowledge of current research and best practices in international school operations and management.
Experience and Skills
The ideal candidate will have:
Experience
- Previous school leadership experience in an international school learning environment.
- Previous district office operations experience in an international setting.
- Previous experience in implementing programs, monitoring and reporting on progress, and designing benchmarking and analysis and assessment tools to support school decision making.
- Previous experience with leading change initiatives collaboratively for successful, timely, and effective implementation of programs delivering best outcomes within budget for the best interest of the district.
Skills
- Values and builds relationships across the district to support a positive school culture.
- A strong awareness of child protection best practices and a commitment to ensure the safety of students.
- Committed to best practices and best decision making in school operations and management.
- Disposition for equity and fairness in supporting all school campuses.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, including written and presentation.
- Ability to build and deepen positive stakeholder relationships through transparent engagement.
- Ability to communicate tactfully, constructively, and appropriately with audiences and stakeholders.
- Strong analytical and synthesis skills in problem solving and designing new approaches and strategies.
- Ability to demonstrate effective time management to prioritize workload, lead under deadlines, deliver quality work and meet deadlines.
- Positive attitude and engagement towards continuous self-improvement and school improvement.
- Highly-developed communication, creative problem-solving, conflict resolution, and organisational skills with attention to detail while maintaining the bigger picture.
- Ability to demonstrate sensitivity to and cultural awareness of community members adapting as required.
- Ability to demonstrate professional maturity and discretion to handle a range of situations while maintaining the highest level of confidentiality.
- Ability to commit to and model ISG’s guiding principles.
- Ability to lead by example with high professional standards.
- Ability to be self-directed and proactive ensuring collaboration to support school needs and goals.
- Ability to collaborate in a focused team environment to collaborate on plans for implementation, assess progress, and meet common goals.
- Proven ability to use a range of technology for organization, development, planning, and implementation.
- Ability to work in a focused team environment to meet common goals.
- Ability to use initiative and sound judgement in leadership and support of the district.
- Proven track record in collaboratively leading change and school improvement initiatives.
- Knowledge of current trends and educational resources available in technology.
- Ability to gather feedback on stakeholder needs and demonstrate responsiveness in a self-directed way.
- Ability to maintain professional composure in challenging situations or in facing unfavourable information.
- Ability to deliver unfavourable information while maintaining compassion and healthy relationships.
- Ability to resolve conflict constructively and collaboratively.
- Ability to demonstrate active listening skills.
- Ability to demonstrate effective decision-making through data analysis and gathering feedback.
- Ability to deliver proactive progress updates, anticipate next steps, and take action in a self-directed way.
- Ability to proactively take ownership and find solutions for challenging situations, including corrections.
- Ability to work with teams, proactively sharing information and collaborating for the best solutions.