Director of Special Projects

GENERAL INTRODUCTION: The Archbishop is the visible principle and foundation of unity in the particular Church entrusted to him. In a unique and visible way, he makes Christ’s mission present and enduring as Shepherd of the Christian Community. In order to fulfill his mission, the Archbishop employs suitable, chosen collaborators (clerics, religious, or lay people). He shares with them the apostolic mission and entrusts various responsibilities to them. (Directory on the Pastoral Ministry of Bishops, 198) Each position employed in the Chancery helps to extend the ministry of the Archbishop in particular ways as outlined in the position description. General Purpose The Director of Special Projects serves as the primary Office for Catholic Schools (OCS) field representative for parish families with multiple schools navigating strategic school planning in the context of Partners in the Gospel. The Director functions as an embedded, accountable partner to principals, pastors, and school commissions, working with each school individually, with schools within a family together, and liaising between parish leadership and OCS. The core function of the role is implementation accountability: ensuring that the strategic work schools and parish families are responsible for completing is managed with discipline, moves forward on schedule, and results in concrete outcomes. The Director reports directly to the Superintendent of Schools and collaborates closely with Parish Family Liaisons and the Planning and Mission Effectiveness team. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Caseload Management and Implementation Accountability Serve as the primary OCS point of contact for parish families with multiple schools, maintaining active, working relationships with principals, pastors, and key school staff. Own overall progress tracking for each assigned parish school, monitoring task completion, milestone achievement, and adherence to planning timelines across individual schools and the family as a whole. Establish and maintain clear accountability structures for schools within each family, ensuring principals and their teams know what is expected of them, by when, and to what standard. Identify delays, gaps, or risks in implementation and develop corrective action plans in partnership with school and parish leaders; escalate to the Superintendent as appropriate. Produce and maintain a monthly status report for each assigned parish school, summarizing progress, decisions made, open issues, and upcoming milestones; review regularly with the Superintendent for Catholic Schools. Manage a caseload-level work plan that allows the Superintendent to see the status of all assigned families in a single view. School-Level and Family-Level Support Work directly with each assigned school to support implementation of its assigned strategic planning tasks, including financial analysis, staffing structure review, commission formation, governance clarification, and operational sustainability planning. Facilitate working sessions with families of schools to advance shared decision making, surface collaboration opportunities, and build alignment across principals and leadership teams within the same parish family. Provide intercultural and pastorally informed facilitation for meetings involving diverse parish and school stakeholders, ensuring all voices are engaged and decisions are well-grounded. Support principals and school commissions in understanding and applying Partners in the Gospel resources, tools, and frameworks relevant to school planning. Identify and communicate training needs for school leaders and commissions, coordinating with OCS personnel resources to address gaps. Pastor and Parish Family Liaison to the Office for Catholic Schools Serve as the consistent OCS liaison to pastors overseeing assigned parish families, communicating regularly on school planning progress, key decisions, and emerging concerns. Serve as a local expert on the Partners in the Gospel strategic pastoral planning initiative taking place in parishes, ensuring school leadership remains up to date on the work happening in parishes. Support pastors in understanding the scope of strategic planning work underway in their schools and the role expectations placed on principals and school commissions. Assist pastors and principals in designing effective communication strategies for engaging parishioners, school families, and consultative bodies throughout the planning process. Accompany pastors and their leadership teams in the discernment of creative approaches to school collaboration, resource sharing, and structural design. Prepare clear, well-organized agendas, decision memos, and follow-up documentation for key meetings with pastors and parish leadership; ensure timely follow-through on all action items. Collaboration with OCS Central Office Work in close coordination with Parish Family Liaisons, ensuring alignment between parish pastoral planning and school-specific planning within the same family. Collaborate with the Planning and Mission Effectiveness team to align school implementation work with Archdiocesan planning frameworks and goals. Participate in regular OCS team coordination meetings and contribute to systemwide learning about effective school planning practices. Serve as an informed resource to OCS leadership on the status, challenges, and emerging needs of assigned parish families and their schools.