Finance Director

About the Brooklyn Waldorf School (BWS)

The Brooklyn Waldorf School is a vibrant and dynamic school nestled in the heart of Bedford-Stuyvesant. The Brooklyn Waldorf School provides an education that meets the needs of each student in a developmentally appropriate manner, integrating critical thinking, emotional intelligence and a deep connection to the arts through the curriculum founded by Rudolf Steiner. Through leading a balanced and well-rounded school life, students are expected to understand themselves as agents of change in an ever-evolving world.  Our faculty hails from all over the world and includes both seasoned Waldorf teachers and those new to Waldorf education. Serving over 160 students from pre-K to grade 8, teachers typically remain with a class through multiple grades, forming deep relationships over time. BWS teachers care for their students as whole individuals and provide not only for their academic development, but also for their emotional intelligence, artistic capacities, and physical knowledge of their surrounding environment. Teachers develop their own classroom content through active engagement with curricular resources prepared by our Faculty Council and reflect our local urban environment and community values.  The Brooklyn Waldorf School was founded in 2005 by a body of parents and Waldorf graduates who sought a nurturing space within the city where their children could discover and explore their inner potential. As the school community grew, classes expanded to include Parent-Child, Early Childhood, Elementary and Middle School. 

Job Summary

The Finance Director is an integral part of the School’s senior leadership team and is responsible for both the financial operations and financial resources of the school. This position works closely with school leadership and reports to the Head of School.  

  • Reports to Head of School
  • Full-Time Staff, yearly position (12 months)
  • Salary commensurate with experience, range: $110K to $130K
  • Benefits include medical and dental health insurance coverage, retirement, flexible spending, and transit benefits, where applicable.

Job Description

Primary duties and responsibilities of the position include: 

  • Directing the School’s financial operations, including 
    • supervision of all Business Office staff, 
    • ensuring appropriate internal controls for the safeguarding of assets, 
    • protecting confidential information, and
    • ensuring accurate and timely financial reporting.
  • Overseeing school business functions, including: 
    • tuition billing and collection, 
    • accounts payable, 
    • contracting, 
    • payroll, human resources, 
    • accounting and reporting, 
    • regulatory reporting and compliance, and
    • other business administration activities.
  • Developing the School’s annual operating budget, adhering to parameters specified by the Finance Committee and Board and working with faculty and administrative leadership to create a mission-driven financial plan. 
  • Work with the Finance Committee and Board of Trustees to achieve the School’s strategic objectives by:
    • Meeting regularly with the  the Finance Committee,
    • Attending Board of Trustee meetings,
    • Producing regular operating forecast updates for the Finance Committee and Board, to include analysis of actual operating results versus budget, with appropriate variance analysis,
    •  Establishing financial and capital strategies that are consistent with the strategic priorities of the school,
    • Serving as the staff person for the Board Finance Committee, Board Audit Committee, and Board Investment Committee,
    • Overseeing the administration of the school’s financial assets; executing investment policies; implementing decisions of the Investment Committee; and coordinating with the investment manager to ensure  allocations are executed properly, and reporting on performance to the Investment Committee and Board of Trustees
    • Managing the school’s insurance and overseeing risk management, including cyber-security, and
    • Participating in independent school association events and regular professional development opportunities to stay abreast of best practices.  
  • Serving on the Financial Aid Committee, and the AC Leadership Teams, Directing relationships with outside financial service providers to: 
    • manage banking and investment, 
    • complete the renewal of annual employee benefits, including medical insurance, life insurance, and retirement plans including benchmarking against other similar employers, and
    • complete the renewal of external resources to research alternatives and manage the renewal of the annual school insurance package. 
  • Ensuring that human resources policies and practices are clearly articulated, consistently applied, and conform to legal requirements by providing guidance to  all levels of management. 
  • Overseeing all activities required as part of the School’s annual audit, including providing the independent accountant’s with appropriate schedules, analyses, and documents, as requested, and communicating with the Board  Audit Committee regarding the status of the annual audit and the management letter. 
  • Overseeing the process for annual reporting of operating information in DASL, for NYSAIS and AWSNA,as well as annual BEDS reporting and related grant funding, for NYSED. 
  • Ensuring that the School maintains compliance with all state and local requirements  within the purview of the Business Office functions.

Required Skills & Capacities

The successful candidate will possess the following background, skills and capacities:

  • A combination of education and professional experience equivalent to a master’s degree in accounting, business, finance, or a related field.
  • Experience should include a solid grounding in fundamental finance and accounting systems and procedures; expertise in forecasting and financial modeling; along with significant depth of experience in financial analysis and reporting.
  • At least 5 years of experience in a CFO, Controller or Business Manager role preferred.
  • Demonstrated leadership qualities, with a capacity to organize and motivate people.
  • High ethical standards, keen analytical skills and a detail-oriented work style.
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills.
  • Experience working with external auditors, implementing internal controls, and managing compliance-related issues.
  • Advanced Excel skills, prior experience working in a Google environment, and a strong working knowledge of business accounting policies, procedures, practices, and financial software programs.
  • Demonstrated ability to manage and work collaboratively with faculty, and staff colleagues, as well as the parent community with diverse backgrounds and execute all duties with demonstrated sensitivity, and an understanding of the diverse Brooklyn Waldorf School community.

Brooklyn Waldorf School is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for its students, visitors, faculty, and staff, and to ensuring that educational and employment decisions are based on an individual’s abilities and qualifications. BWS does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, gender (which includes a person’s actual or perceived sex, as well as gender identity and expression), age, marital status, disability, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, familial status, predisposing genetic characteristics, actual or perceived domestic violence victim status, unemployment status, caregiver status or any other category protected by applicable federal, state or local law, in carrying on its educational activities or in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, employment policies, financial aid programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs. People of color and other historically underrepresented groups are encouraged to apply.