Crane Country Day School is a co-educational Kindergarten-8th grade independent day school located on a beautiful 12-acre campus in Santa Barbara, CA. Crane is dedicated to providing an experiential education characterized by a thoughtful balance of academic challenge and creative expression. We thrive as a community that builds character and confidence, while celebrating the joy in learning. At Crane, we understand that how we teach is just as important as what we teach. It is a welcoming and supportive place to work—a rich environment where you will find enthusiastic cooperation, healthy relationships with colleagues, and active professional development.

Thanks to a transformative philanthropic gift, Crane is launching an ambitious new Social Entrepreneurial Lab—a program designed to inspire Upper School (6th–8th grade) students to think boldly, act creatively, examine the world closely, engage meaningfully with their communities, and design real solutions that create change. The Social Entrepreneurial Lab will serve as a signature program for Crane Upper School, acting as a hub for innovation, service learning, and real-world problem solving that connects classrooms, families, and the wider Santa Barbara community.

The founding Director of the Social Entrepreneurial Lab at Crane will be a visionary, highly collaborative, and creative leader who can usher this new initiative from concept to reality. They will spend the Summer and Fall 2026 imagining, designing, and creating the program with educators both on and off campus. This design-and-build phase will set the stage for a strong kick-off in Spring 2027. Once the Lab is launched, the Director will provide direct instruction to Upper School students, coordinate experiential programming, build community partnerships, and collaborate with colleagues to create impact-focused education throughout the school. 

This is a rare opportunity to establish a new, deeply meaningful program from the ground up. The ideal candidate will bring a passion for middle-school education and social entrepreneurial principles, experience within social entrepreneurship (nonprofits, innovation for the greater good), program management, and strong collaboration skills to bring diverse constituent groups together. This program aims to inspire the next generation of changemakers–students who see challenges as opportunities and are empowered to make a difference.

Core Responsibilities:

Year One (2026-2027) – Design, Develop, and Pilot

• Lead the design and vision of the Social Entrepreneurial Lab, establishing its purpose, learning outcomes, and long-term structure.
• Visit leading Entrepreneurial Labs across the United States to research models, observe programming, and gather high-impact ideas to adapt for Crane.
• Build partnerships with local organizations to extend entrepreneurial thinking toward service learning, helping students design and implement community impact projects.
• Collaborate closely with Upper School leadership to translate big ideas into practical, sustainable structures—including scheduling, curriculum frameworks, project cycles, assessment models, and partnerships.
• Design a 3-year plan and program for the Social Entrepreneurial Lab, with defined learning objectives, project cycles, and assessment methods, ensuring students can clearly articulate the problem they are addressing, their proposed solutions, and what they learned through the process.
• Create clear documentation so the program and its objectives are easily communicated to students, parents, Staffulty, and future instructors.
• Implement curriculum and begin teaching 8th grade students in the Second Semester.
• Design curriculum for 7th grade students for the 2027-2028 year. (6th grade will follow in the 2028-2029 school year.)
• Meet regularly with the Social Entrepreneurial Lab Cabinet—a small advisory committee composed of interested parents, trustees, administrators, and Staffulty—to refine the Lab’s vision, scope, and guiding principles.
• Provide written updates for the program’s lead donor to share progress.

Year Two (2027–2028 School Year) and Beyond – Teach, Refine, and Iterate for Long-Term Success

• Implement the designed curriculum for 7th and 8th grades for the 2027-2028 school year, including direct instruction to students.
• Design and implement curriculum for 6th grade for the 2028-2029 school year (or sooner), including direct instruction to students.
• Host at least one showcase or exhibition that highlights student work to families and the broader community.
• Develop and host 1-2 evening events for Upper School students and their families (e.g. speaker series, startup showcases, innovation panels (e.g. AI trends), or founder conversations).
• Mentor and advise Upper School students in the development and execution of their ideas.
• Model entrepreneurial thinking for students through continual refinement, reflection, collaboration, and feedback collection from students, families, and colleagues.
• Support the ongoing growth of DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging) work across the Upper School, ensuring the intersection of joy, challenge, and advocacy.   

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in relevant subject matter or related field; advanced degree preferred
• Have the mind of a teacher; the ability to design, implement and evaluate student work.
• Demonstrated experience in social entrepreneurship, design thinking, experiential learning, innovation education, or related fields
• A passion for middle school education and a commitment to nurturing curiosity, creativity, and belonging
• Commitment to fostering Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
• Commitment to helping middle school students grapple with real-world problems and see themselves as change-makers in a complex and evolving world
• Strong project-management skills
• Demonstrated ability to build a new program from the ground up
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills
• Comfort working with students, Staffulty, parents, and external partners
• Ability to think strategically while also executing detailed implementation work
• Experience engaging with community partners, startups, or nonprofit organizations is a plus

About Crane Country Day School

Crane Country Day School, ideally located in the small seaside village of Montecito, is just 90 minutes north of Los Angeles and 5 minutes south of Santa Barbara. Crane is the oldest independent school in the area, having just launched its 85th anniversary celebration. It is a co-educational day school serving 250 children. The Lower School (grades K-5) and the Upper School (grades 6-8) are both located on the same sprawling yet cozy 11-acre campus that is one of the school's best-known attributes. Honoring its founder's vision, Crane School is dedicated to providing an experiential education characterized by a thoughtful balance of academic challenge and creative expression. We thrive as a community that builds character and confidence, while celebrating the joy in learning.

Connections working at Crane Country Day School