Dir. of Information Science (11-month position for 2025-2026)

Overview of School:

Sonoma Academy is an independent high school located in Santa Rosa, CA on a 34-acre campus, surrounded by 1,000 acres of protected open space, at the base of Taylor Mountain. Founded in 2001, it provides an engaging, challenging, and innovative college preparatory education and a supportive community for motivated learners from Sonoma, Napa, Marin, Lake, and Mendocino counties. Of our 330 students, over 30% self-identify as students of color, and our students come from 80+ middle schools, ensuring a broad mixture of students from all over the greater North Bay Area.

Our Mission: Sonoma Academy calls its students to be creative, ethical, and committed to learning. The school nurtures inspiring teachers and engages with the surrounding community, and its students communicate across cultures as they prepare to become leaders in a dynamic world.

Sonoma Academy’s Commitment to Diversity: We believe that learning occurs best in a connected community. Diversity, equity, and inclusivity are essential to an education in which all members of our community thrive. We are committed to cultivating a diverse community that is conscious and welcoming of difference, dedicated to investigating and advancing equity, and engages with our local and global community. If you would like to join us in our work, we would welcome your application. As we are deeply committed to having a staffulty (staff and faculty) and student body which reflects the rich diversity within the North Bay, we strongly encourage candidates from BIPOC and/or educators from communities that are historically underrepresented to apply.

For more information on programs and philosophy, please visit our website: www.sonomaacademy.org.

Key Responsibilities:

Reporting to the Director of Teaching and Learning, the Director of Information Science manages the library and all its functions, including selection, acquisition, evaluation, and organization of information resources and technologies in all formats; models the ethical use of information; collaborates across disciplines to ensure curricular integration; and partners with faculty and other educators to build and strengthen connections between student information and research needs, curricular content, learning outcomes, and information resources.

This role stewards the library, reimagined as a vibrant learning hub for discovery, while providing responsive, partnership-driven support for teaching and learning across all disciplines—including guiding the ethical and effective integration of emerging tools such as artificial intelligence.

Why This Role Matters

Libraries are no longer just about books—they’re about empowering learners. This role exists to make students’ experience richer, and the school’s intellectual life more connected. By working alongside staffulty, the Director helps amplify the great work already happening while ensuring equitable access to the tools and skills a 21st-century education requires.

Job Goals

• To ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and information

• To empower students to be critical thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers, and ethical users of information

• To instill a love of learning in all students and ensure equitable access to information

• To collaborate with faculty to supplement lessons and units of instruction through research, citation instruction and design support

• To provide the leadership and expertise necessary to ensure that the library program is aligned with the mission, goals, and objectives of the school and is an integral component of the learning/instructional program

Roles and Responsibilities

• Orders, receives, catalogs, and displays new materials that are responsive to student and faculty needs, reflect diverse viewpoints, and support both curricular and leisure reading goals

• Prepares, justifies, and administers the library program budget

• Trains and supports faculty and students on the use of the library, including print and digital resources

• Develops research project guides and other teaching tools to help students become more efficient in finding timely, relevant, and credible sources

• Maintains the Faculty Professional Development/Resources Board, ensuring timely updates and inclusive materials that support professional learning across departments

• Partners with the Director of Technology, Director of Teaching & Learning, and Director of Student Experience and Belonging to align on key initiatives including AI utilization, academic integrity, digital citizenship, information literacy, and inclusive representation in collections, resources, and databases

• Maintains an archival record of the school’s history and culture through the preservation and organization of physical and digital artifacts

• Demonstrates role as a visible and active leader within the school community and advocate for the library program

• Leads or supports co-curricular activities including student advisory, Intersession, and Passport programming as part of the school’s holistic learning model

• Potentially teaches a course of their own design

• Explores and develops additional programming such as community book clubs, student/faculty reading circles, and literacy-focused events

• Instills enthusiasm and trust in students by making them feel that they are important members of a community

• Creates and maintains in the school library a teaching and learning environment that is inviting, safe, flexible, and conducive to student learning

• Remains current in professional practices and developments, information technologies, and educational research applicable to the school library program

Required Skills and Experiences:

• Advanced degree (MA, PhD, or equivalent) in a relevant field, with teaching/curriculum experience

• Clear understanding of best practices in student-centered teaching

• Strength in listening and adapting support to departmental cultures and needs

• Proficiency with educational technology—as a tool for others, not an end in itself

• Humility, humor, and a commitment to serving faculty and students

• Works collaboratively as a member of a connected community to deliver a range of programs, including Intersession, Advisory, Exploratory, DEI, retreats and more.

• Committed to working in a community of diverse students and learners; actively supports adolescent growth and well-being

• Practices cultural competency in all aspects of school life

• Flexibility and resilience

Compensation:

• The salary range for this position is $110,000–$125,000 (based on experience) and is competitive with independent schools throughout the Bay Area.

Benefits of working at SA:

• Comprehensive benefits package, including 100% paid health, dental, and vision insurance for employees with several plan options to meet individuals’ specific needs

• Generous retirement plan contribution of 7% of base salary. Please note that this does not require an employee’s matching contribution.

• Commitment to professional development, including generously-funded training opportunities and a dedicated “exploratory fund” of $450 annually for learning opportunities unrelated to work.

• Healthy and nutritious lunch service offered at no cost to employees during the school year (when on campus and our kitchen operational)

• A professional work environment defined by teamwork, collegiality, trust, agility, and altruism.

Work Environment:

• This position operates in a professional office environment at a private, independent high school.

• This is a full-time position with occasional evening and weekend work.

• Tasks may involve the ability to lift, carry, push and/or pull objects weighing up to 20 pounds.

To Apply:

• Interested candidates should complete the application and submit the materials below to this website (https://careers.jobscore.com/careers/sonomaacademy) by May 21, 2025:

  • a cover letter expressing particular interest in this position at Sonoma Academy;

  • a current resume;

  • a statement of Educational Philosophy; and

  • a list of three professional references with name, relationship, phone number, and email address (references will not be contacted without the applicant’s permission).

Sonoma Academy is an equal opportunity employer. Sonoma Academy does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.