The school Principal serves as the educational leader, responsible for managing the policies, regulations, and procedures to ensure that all students are supervised in a safe learning environment that meets the approved curricula and mission of the school. Achieving academic excellence requires that the school Principal work collaboratively to direct and nurture all members of the school staff hired by the Board of Directors and to communicate effectively with parents. Inherent in the position are the responsibilities for scheduling, curriculum development, extracurricular activities, personnel management, emergency procedures, and facility operations.

Duties & Responsibilities

• To give directions to the school to offer a suitable approved and diversified curriculum in accordance to circularized guidelines from the Ministry of Education and supporting organizations.
• To formulate overall aims and objectives for the school and policies for their implementation.
• To create an ethos and provide educational vision and direction which secures effective teaching, successful learning and achievement by students and sustained improvement in their spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development and prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.
• To secure the commitment of parents and the wider community to the vision and direction of the school, to create and implement a strategic plan, underpinned by sound financial planning which identifies priorities and targets for ensuring that students achieve high standards and make progress, increasing teacher’s effectiveness and securing school improvement.
• To ensure that all those involved in the school are committed to its aims, motivated to achieve them and involved in meeting long, medium and short term objectives and targets which secure the educational success of the school.
• To monitor, evaluate and review the effects of policies, priorities and targets of the school in practice and take action if necessary.
• To work with the management to secure and sustain effective teaching and learning throughout the school and to monitor and evaluate the quality of teaching standards of students ‘achievement using benchmarks and setting targets for improvement.
• To ensure that all students receive a good quality education through a programme designed to promote a stimulating style of learning in a safe and healthy school environment.
• To ensure a consistent and continuous school-wide focus on students’ achievement using data and benchmarks to monitor progress in every student’s learning.
• To establish creative, responsive and effective approaches to learning and teaching
• To demonstrate and articulate high expectations and set stretching targets for the whole community.
• To take a strategic role in the development of the new and emerging technologies to enhance and extend the learning experience of students.
• To Monitor, evaluate and review classroom practice, promote improvement strategies to ensure that underperformance is challenged at all levels, ensure effective corrective action and follow up is undertaken in line with every student matter.
• To Coordinate internal and external assessments and examinations in line with Makini standards and KNEC policy.
• To ensure that teachers prepare comprehensive schemes of work and teaching aids in line with Makini policies.
• To organize regular staff and management academic meetings to monitor performance after
• To maintain accurate and complete student performance records and share this with parents, guardians and management.
• To coordinate parents’ meetings, open days and other activities involving the participation of parents to enhance partnership.

Student learning & character formation

• To lead and supervise Makini high school students’ guidance and counselling programs that will enhance individual learning and positive character formation.
• To facilitate high level consultative communication flow with the students, parents, teaching and non-teaching staff and the wider community.
• To ensure sound spiritual beliefs and core values are integrated in the learning process and way of life in the school.
• To maintain a culture of high level of self-discipline and work ethics among students.
• To ensure students are properly guided and mentored to be able to objectively choose their future careers.
• To ensure students receive, understand and embrace school rules and regulations.
• To manage students’ behaviour in the classroom and within the school premises and apply appropriate and effective measures in cases of misbehaviour.

Administration

• To Oversee interviews and admissions of students to maintain optimum levels in accordance with set standards and guidelines that ensure quality and optimum enrolment.
• To Initiate, design and implement innovative programs to meet specific needs of the school in consultation with the Directors.
• To Maintain adequate inventory, security and accountability for school properties.
• To act as a liaison between the school, Ministry of Education and the school community.
• To ensure the school health, safety and occupational regulations are observed in order to make the school a safe learning environment.
• To prepare and approve the preparation of reports, records, lists and other paperwork appropriate for the effective administration of the school.
• To Liaise with the Transport Department and ensure that the school transport services are efficient and cost effective.
• Participation in budgetary formulation and cost management for the school.
• To ensure effective utilization of the company resources in line with set budget.
• To ensure that students’ medical cases are handled according to Makini policy and guideline.
• To liaise with the Senior Administrator to ensure the school amenities are maintained to Makini standards.
• To identify staffing needs and participate effectively in the recruitment and selection of the school’s professionals to maintain optimum staff utilization.
• To set targets and goals for the school’s professional staff through a participative process and develop strategies that will enable the school to achieve its objectives as agreed with the Directors.
• To ensure formalized documentations of all meetings with parents and teachers.
• To maintain the Head teacher’s log book to capture each day’s happening.
• To participate in measuring and assessing staff performance against agreed Makini standards and provide evidence of whether or not the intended result has been achieved and to what extent by conducting appraisals both formal and informal.
• To participate in carrying out performance appraisals for staff in the school as per the school’s appraisal report.
• To encourage positive reinforcement by emphasising what has been done well so that in future it is done better.

Leadership

• To provide effective leadership that will create a learning environment at Makini that will enable each learner to realize their maximum potential.
• To participate in processing and resolving issues pertaining to parents, students and staff.
• To ensure the school maintains a cordial working relationship with other Makini schools and departments in pursuit of Makini mission and vision.
• To Internalize, own and implement established school policies.
• To be a role model to the students and staff in every aspect of personal life physically, socially, emotionally and spiritually.
• To contribute to team work and co-operation among staff.

Marketing

• To participate effectively in activities geared towards marketing the school to ensure optimum enrolment and a data base for potential students.
• To contribute in the preparation of informational materials that reflect the desired image of the school.
• To sensitize staff on Makini mission, vision and core values to ensure that they embrace the MAKINI brand.

HR

• To lead, motivate, support, challenge and develop staff to secure improvement.
• To maximise the contribution of staff to improve the quality of education provided and standards achieved and ensure that constructive working relationships are formed between staff and students.
• To plan, allocate, support and evaluate work undertaken by groups, teams and individuals ensuring clear delegation of tasks and devolution of responsibilities in a manner consistent with their terms of service ensuring a reasonable balance for teachers and other members of staff in work carried out in school and work carried out elsewhere.
• To implement and sustain effective systems for the management of staff performance, incorporating appraisal and targets for teachers, including targets relating to students’ achievement.
• To coordinate the provision of the necessary tools and materials required by staff for efficient performance of their duties.
• To supervise the master roll and ensure all employees in the school sign IN and OUT daily.
• To co-ordinate the preparation of leave and off duty schedules for staff in the school. Coordinate the same in respect of the staff with dual reporting relationship with other Heads of departments.
• To create a favourable work environment that fosters teamwork and best practise.
• To drive performance and encourage growth in talent and capability amongst staff.

Teaching guide

• To initiate teacher’s preparations of Schemes of Work and development of appropriate instructional materials especially teaching aids such as charts, maps, graphs and real objects. Have them displayed in the classroom to facilitate learning.
• To Check periodically pupils’ exercise books, projects, and practical work, assignments and continuous assessment scripts to ensure regular marking and systematic use in guiding learning.
• To Prepare yearly Schemes of Work in accordance with the syllabus and make lesson plans for all subjects.
• To Plan, prepare and deliver lessons to a range of classes including putting up displays in the classroom.
• To Select and use a range of different learning resources and equipment and essentially teach lessons on the school time table to get to know what goes on in the classroom.
• To Research new topic areas maintaining up-to-date subject knowledge, devise and write new curriculum materials.
• To undertake pastoral duties such as taking the role of Form tutor and supporting students on an individual basis through academic or personal difficulties.
• To ensure that students are adequately prepared, registered and presented for school-based continuous assessments and for National Examinations in accordance with the Kenya National Examinations Council regulations and syllabus.
• To prepare a schedule for meeting remedial demands for all the students who would need special academic attention and make weekly reports on the progress. Students with other special needs should be referred to people who can assist them.
• Quality marking of class work and giving immediate feedback to students.
• To ensure teaching and learning process is taking place in a clean and well-organized environment.
• To liaise with the teachers in planning and carrying out learning activities outside the classrooms.
• To liaise with parents and teachers in addressing the identified academic, social and emotional needs of the students you teach.

Accountability

• Be accountable for the effective and efficient running of the school to the Directors and other stakeholders (students, parents, staff, and the community):
• To Provide information, objective advice and support to the Directors so that effective learning and teaching standards are upheld.
• To Create and develop a school where all stakeholders are accountable for the success of the school.
• To Present a coherent and accurate account of the school’s performance in a form appropriate to stakeholders.
• To ensure parents and students are well informed about the curriculum, attainment and progress of academic issues and contribution stakeholders make to achieve the school’s target for improvement.
• To provide information about the work and performance of staff relevant to their job functions.

Minimum requirements

Education & Work Experience

• A Minimum of a Bachelor of Education degree or its equivalent from a recognised University
• At least 10 years teaching experience 3 of which must be at management level, in a recognised school

Skills, knowledge, abilities & values

• Knowledge of the role of the governing body
• Knowledge of what constitutes quality in educational provision, the characteristics of effective schools
• Strong leadership and interpersonal skills
• A team player
• Proficiency in MS Office suite of packages
• Abilities to handle pressure
• Self-driven
• Empathy with children
• Good communication skills