General Counsel (Priority Deadline: 12/1/2020)

Company: Democracy Prep Public Schools
Location: New York
Posted on: January 15, 2021

Job Description:

General Counsel (Priority Deadline: 12/1/2020) Democracy Prep is seeking an experienced, mission-aligned leader to join our Senior Leadership Team as the General Counsel of our growing organization. Priority will be given to applications submitted by --December 1st, 2020. Democracy Prep Public Schools Overview Democracy Prep Public Schools (DPPS) is a tuition-free, high-performing public charter school network operating in New York, NY, Camden, NJ, Baton Rouge, LA, San Antonio, TX, and Las Vegas, NV educating 7,200 students, K-12th grade, on 22 campuses. DPPS is in the process of rolling out a Strategic Plan to govern its growth, quality assurance, staffing, and sustainability over a five-year period. DPPS plans to build on past success and ensure strong academic outcomes at each of our 22 schools and a special education program, Pathways, as well as grow responsibly in existing regions. Our scholars are current advocates, future voters, and blossoming leaders in their communities. Democracy Prep is well-known as an organization that puts people first. We believe inspiring talent is at the core of our success. We also believe in equipping great talent with the tools they need and then stepping back to allow them to be creative on behalf of the organization, our mission, and the scholars we educate. In addition to our DREAM BIG values for adults, we also believe in transparency, collaboration, and excellence on behalf of our schools. General Counsel Role Overview The General Counsel is responsible for ensuring that the best interests of Democracy Prep are protected as it serves students in a public education setting and for supporting the network to run effectively with a focus on special education, school policies and procedures, employment law, contracts, transactions, governance, compliance, and related work. The General Counsel will report to the CEO and will work closely with school leaders. Responsibilities

• Provide legal advice and guidance to Democracy Prep on education law, including special education, charter law and authorization, employee relations, litigation, student privacy, student disciplinary matters, and emergency response.--
• Stay up-to-date on relevant laws and regulations and serve as a subject matter expert on education law, employment and labor law, public records and open meetings law, non-for-profit governance, state budgets, contracts, leasing, litigation, and other related areas across multiple states.
• Support the CEO and network in a variety of legal and non-legal work, including facilities acquisition, compliance and reporting, authorizer and governmental relations, and policy proposals.
• Serve as a representative on legal issues impacting the network to boards, government agencies, families, and authorizers.
• Review, draft, and propose policies, procedures, and other documents for internal and external use on education issues that are mission-aligned and legally sound.--
• Serve as liaison to representatives of outside agencies.
• Manage outside counsel.
• Build relationships with other education lawyers to understand best practices that will benefit Democracy Prep.
• Assist the network and schools as necessary on a variety of additional in-house legal issues.-- Qualifications
  • J.D. required.
  • Must be admitted to the New York bar and in good standing.--
  • Additional bar memberships in New Jersey, Louisiana, Nevada or Texas a plus.
  • 7+ years of relevant and/or transferable legal experience obtained at a law firm, government agency, or an educational institution.--
  • A specialist in any of the following areas highly desired: education law (particularly special education law), not-for-profit law, employment law, contracts, litigation, or compliance.
  • A problem solver with strong legal reasoning and analytical skills.
  • A skilled communicator with a high capacity to analyze and articulate legal concepts and other complex issues to a variety of stakeholders.
  • An advocate who can work in a fast-paced environment and balance working independently with taking direction as needed.
  • A detailed and highly-organized project manager.--
  • A strong team player who can work well with colleagues, outside counsel, network and school leaders, and opposing counsel.
  • A self-reflective and self-aware teammate who is committed to the creation of anti-racist schools and who is eager to use their skills to contribute to a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • A demonstrated passion for educational equity with an unwavering commitment to the Democracy Prep mission of college success and authentic civic engagement for our scholars. Compensation and Benefits Salary and benefits will be competitive and commensurate with experience. -- Democracy Prep is an Equal Opportunity Employer and will not discriminate against an applicant or employee on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, national origin, or ancestry, sex, age, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, veteran or military status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, familial status, domestic violence victim status, or any other legally recognized protected basis under federal, state or local laws, regulations or ordinances. Our mission is to educate responsible citizen-scholars who will change the world. We strongly believe that by building a DREAM team that represents numerous perspectives, backgrounds, and areas of expertise, we can achieve this goal together. This is a value we highly support and strongly encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply. How did you hear about this job? Please select: --*
    If you indicated personal connection, professional connection, or other, please provide the name or source below.
    Are you a current member or alumnus of any of the following programs?
    How many years of full-time teaching experience do you have? --*
    Are you authorized to work in the United States? --*
    If you answered "no" to the question above, please provide an explanation below:
    Will you now or in the future require sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g., H-1B or J-1 visa status) in order to work for Democracy Prep Public Schools? --*
    If you answered "Yes" to the question above, please provide an explanation below.
    Consistent with applicable law, Democracy Prep employees are subject to criminal background checks. To the best of your knowledge, do you have a pending criminal charge or a criminal conviction in any jurisdiction? --*
    If you answered "Yes" to the question above regarding criminal history, please provide each of the following: (1) a brief summary of the conduct that led to the criminal conviction(s) and/or pending criminal charge(s), (2) the current status of the criminal conviction(s) and/or pending criminal charge(s), and (3) any other relevant information, including an explanation of how Democracy Prep can feel confident that such conduct will not be repeated and will not affect your work with Democracy Prep. Please note that one or more pending criminal charges and/or criminal convictions will not necessarily bar you from working for Democracy Prep. However, we prefer to know about such issues in advance of your background check.
    I certify that all the information I have provided in order to apply for and secure work with this employer is true, complete, and correct. I expressly authorize, without reservation, the employer its representatives, employees or agents to contact and obtain information from all references (personal and professional), employers, public agencies, licensing authorities and education institutions and to otherwise verify the accuracy of all information provided by me in this application, resume or job interview. I also understand that if I am hired, I will be required to provide proof of identity and legal authorization to work in the United States and that federal immigration laws require me to complete an I-9 Form in this regard. The information that I am providing here in the application and in the hiring process, including but not limited to information from the phone screen, demo lesson, and interview, will be used for research purposes to improve DPPS's selection methods. I understand that all personally identifiable information will be kept confidential and will not be shared with non-research partners. Notice to applicants: An applicant who willfully provides false information or fails to disclose the information required is subject to criminal prosecution, as well as a civil penalty of up to five hundred dollars and may face discipline up to and including termination or denial of employment. --*
    U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Information (Completion is voluntary) Individuals seeking employment at Democracy Prep Public Schools are considered without regards to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, or sexual orientation. You are being given the opportunity to provide the following information in order to help us comply with federal and state Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action record keeping, reporting, and other legal requirements. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file. Gender Are you Hispanic/Latino? Race & Ethnicity Definitions If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows: A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability. A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service. An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense. An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985. Veteran Status Form CC-305 OMB Control Number 1250-0005 Expires 05/31/2023 Voluntary Self-Identification of DisabilityWhy are you being asked to complete this form? We are a federal contractor or subcontractor required by law to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We are also required to measure our progress toward having at least 7% of our workforce be individuals with disabilities. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had a disability. Because a person may become disabled at any time, we ask all of our employees to update their information at least every five years. Identifying yourself as an individual with a disability is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer will be maintained confidentially and not be seen by selecting officials or anyone else involved in making personnel decisions. Completing the form will not negatively impact you in any way, regardless of whether you have self-identified in the past. For more information about this form or the equal employment obligations of federal contractors under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, visit the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp . How do you know if you have a disability? You are considered to have a disability if you have a physical or mental impairment or medical condition that substantially limits a major life activity, or if you have a history or record of such an impairment or medical condition. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:
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Keywords: Democracy Prep Public Schools, New York , General Counsel (Priority Deadline: 12/1/2020), Legal , New York, New York