Overview

School Designer Jobs in Warrenville, IL at Orion STEM Schools

Title: School Designer

Company: Orion STEM Schools

Location: Warrenville, IL

Middle School Designer & Upper School Designer

Principal-Level Leadership · Orion STEM Schools · Warrenville, Illinois

Locations: Orion STEM Schools, 4520 Weaver Parkway, Warrenville, IL Start: Founding leadership cohort for our 2027–28 launch (onboarding ahead of opening) Reports to: CEO & Founder Type: Full-time

Come Light the World with us.

Orion STEM Schools is a K–12 competency-based STEM and Entrepreneurship school opening in Warrenville in 2027–28. A school where learning is designed with intention and care. Where students advance the moment, they've shown true mastery. Where a Mastery Transcript celebrates the full story of what a young person can do. And where every Thursday, students step out into the community to do real work on real problems alongside real partners.

We call our educators Designers, because the work is to craft experiences worthy of a child's curiosity. We're looking for two inspiring leaders to carry that vision for our Middle and Upper divisions.

These are principal-level roles, and in Orion's language we call them School Designers: the leading designer, builder, and champion for a division — equivalent to School Principal, reimagined the Orion way.

We're delighted to be hiring two:

  • Middle School Designer (School Principal) — Grades 6–8
  • Upper School Designer (School Principal) — Grades 9–12

The opportunity

This is a founding role, and that's the gift of it. You'll have the joy of designing a division from the ground up – shaping its culture, building its team of Designers, and bringing Orion's Purpose · Imagination · Mastery framework to life for your grade band, then leading it once students arrive.

If you've ever dreamed of running a school the way you know it can be – competency-based, evidence-rich, genuinely centered on each learner, this is your moment to build it, and to build it well.

What you'll get to do

  • Shape the learning architecture of your division. Bring Orion's Portrait of the Learner to life for your grade band, with every course, cycle, and assessment thoughtfully aligned to it.
  • Build and grow a team of Designers. Recruit, coach, and develop wonderful educators, cultivating a culture rooted in our six values : Empathy, Evidence, Ingenuity, Impact, Leadership, and Gratitude.
  • Champion mastery and the cycle. Guide the nine-week quarterly cycle, uphold our mastery guardrails, and celebrate the many ways students demonstrate and grow through competency.
  • Tell the story of real learning. Own how your division captures and shares evidence of growth through the Mastery Transcript,  for students, families, and the wider world.
  • Anchor PBEL Thursdays. Lead our project- and community-based learning days, and nurture the partnerships that make them sparkle.
  • Personalize learning at scale. Make sure every student has a path that fits them beautifully, and that mastery means something rich and rigorous for all.
  • Lead your division with care. Scheduling, family connection, day-to-day leadership, and all the thoughtful decisions that help a school flourish.
  • Spark the Spark Mindset. Model it, name it, and grow it joyfully,  in your Designers and your students alike.

Who you are

  • An experienced and inspiring school or instructional leader — principal, assistant principal, head or dean of division, or similar — excited to build something new.
  • Energized by competency-based and mastery learning, and a believer that time should flex so that real learning can stay constant.
  • A generous coach of adults as well as a leader of students.
  • Evidence-minded and optimistic, making thoughtful decisions based on what students can truly demonstrate.
  • Warmly aligned with our values and our mission to Light the World.

Why you'll love Orion

  • You get to design, from the very first page. Founding leadership, real authority, and a true blank canvas.
  • A model made for this. Competency-based, mastery-driven, Mastery Transcript, PBEL Thursdays, Personalized Learning — all built in from the start.
  • A brand-new building in Warrenville, purpose-built for the way we love to learn.
  • A team of Designers to build alongside you — and the joy of choosing every one of them.

How to apply

We'd love to hear from you. Apply: https://portal.orionstem.com/candidate-application

Orion STEM Schools is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome and celebrate applicants of every background.

  • #LightTheWorld

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