Chief Operating Officer (COO)

About the role

Annapolis Area Christian School (AACS) is a Christ‑centered educational community committed to engaging students in an education of excellence that prepares them to serve God in all areas of life. The school seeks an experienced, mission‑driven leader to serve as its Chief Operating Officer (COO). The COO will partner with the Head of School, accounting and business functions, and the senior leadership team to translate strategic priorities into effective, sustainable operations, providing financial stewardship, operational leadership, and people development while modeling Christ‑centered service.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the Head of School, business office team, and senior leadership team to advance AACS's mission, strategic plan, and institutional priorities.
• Translate strategic objectives into actionable operational and financial plans.
• Develop systems, processes, and accountability structures that enable the school to operate effectively and sustainably.
• Identify organizational risks and opportunities and provide thoughtful recommendations to school leadership.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, excellence, stewardship, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Lead AACS's financial planning and analysis function, ensuring that financial information is used proactively to inform strategic, operational, and capital decisions.
• Develop and maintain multi‑year financial models that integrate enrollment, tuition and financial aid, compensation and benefits, staffing, facilities, debt, capital investment, and other key drivers of the school's financial model.
• Build annual and long‑range financial forecasts and regularly update projections based on actual performance, enrollment trends, and changing organizational assumptions.
• Conduct budget‑to‑actual and forecast‑to‑actual variance analysis, identifying significant trends and providing leadership with clear explanations and recommended actions.
• Develop scenario and sensitivity analyses to evaluate significant strategic decisions, including enrollment changes, tuition strategies, staffing models, compensation investments, capital projects, debt management, and program expansion or contraction.
• Partner with academic and operational leaders to understand the financial implications of their programs, staffing decisions, and strategic priorities.
• Develop meaningful financial and operational KPIs and dashboards that provide the Head of School and senior leadership with timely insight into organizational performance.
• Evaluate the financial sustainability and return on investment of existing and proposed programs and initiatives while recognizing that mission impact, rather than financial return alone, is central to decision‑making in a Christian school.
• Provide forward‑looking analysis of cash flow, liquidity, reserves, debt capacity, and capital requirements to support responsible long‑term financial stewardship.
• Identify emerging financial risks and opportunities early and develop actionable recommendations for the Head of School and senior leadership.
• Translate complex financial data into clear, actionable information for leaders who may not have financial backgrounds.
• Strengthen a culture in which financial planning is integrated with strategic planning rather than functioning primarily as an annual budget