Maple Bear Global Schools is a global education network specializing in Canadian bilingual education. Our schools bring the best of Canadian education practices to the world, and our Canadian team provides services to our regional partners to ensure that every Maple Bear school delivers a high-quality student experience. For more about our organization check out www.maplebear.ca.
Role Summary
Location: Remote/Hybrid
Reports To: Chief Academic Officer
Position Summary
The Director of Professional Development provides strategic leadership for the design, delivery, evaluation, and continuous improvement of professional learning across the global Maple Bear network. This role is responsible for developing high-quality professional development programs for coordinators, teachers, school leaders, owners, and trainers while ensuring excellence and innovation within Maple Bear Global Academy.
The Director of Professional Development collaborates closely with academic leaders, trainers, and regional teams to strengthen instructional practices, leadership capacity, and program implementation. The role also leads key initiatives related to educational research, program effectiveness, and continuous improvement.
Key Responsibilities
Professional Development Strategy and Leadership
- Develop and implement a global professional development strategy aligned with organizational priorities and academic goals.
- Design and oversee professional learning pathways for teachers, coordinators, academic directors, school leaders, and school owners.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of professional development programs using evidence-based measures and participant feedback.
- Ensure professional learning initiatives reflect current educational research, best practices, and Maple Bear's educational philosophy.
Maple Bear Global Academy
- Lead the management, development, and innovation of Maple Bear Global Academy.
- Ensure online learning content remains current, engaging, and aligned with organizational standards.
- Oversee the creation of new courses, certifications, micro-credentials, and learning resources.
- Collaborate with subject matter experts and academic teams to expand and enhance learning offerings.
Trainer Development and Support
- Design and facilitate professional development for trainers and coaches.
- Build trainer capacity through mentoring, coaching, and ongoing learning opportunities.
- Establish quality assurance processes to ensure consistency and excellence in training delivery.
- Support the recruitment, onboarding, and development of trainers globally.
Academic Leadership Support
- Provide professional development and leadership support for coordinators and academic directors.
- Develop resources and training programs that strengthen instructional leadership and school improvement initiatives.
- Support regional academic teams in implementing professional learning priorities.
Conferences and Global Learning Events
- Lead the development of themes, content, and learning experiences for academic conferences and global training events.
- Coordinate speakers, workshops, learning materials, and participant engagement strategies.
- Foster collaboration and knowledge sharing across the global network.
New School Academic Readiness
- Ensure the academic preparedness of new schools by designing and overseeing initial training programs.
- Develop onboarding resources and implementation supports for new leadership teams and educators.
- Collaborate with school development teams to support successful school openings.
Research and Innovation Leadership
University Partnership Research Project
- Lead a pilot educational research project in collaboration with a partner university.
- Develop research objectives aligned with strategic organizational goals and educational priorities.
- Coordinate project planning, implementation, data collection, and evaluation processes.
- Ensure ethical research practices and compliance with applicable privacy and research standards.
- Analyze research findings and translate results into actionable recommendations for program improvement.
- Share research outcomes through reports, presentations, conference sessions, and professional publications where appropriate.
- Identify opportunities to expand successful pilot initiatives into larger-scale research and innovation projects across the global network.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with university faculty, researchers, and external research partners.
Operations and Resource Management
- Develop and manage annual professional development budgets.
- Monitor expenditures and ensure effective allocation of resources.
- Maintain and update training manuals, facilitator guides, professional learning resources, and related documentation.
- Establish processes and systems that support efficient and scalable professional learning delivery.
Hiring and Staffing
- Participate in workforce planning and recruitment for professional development roles.
- Support hiring, onboarding, mentoring, and performance development of trainers and learning specialists.
- Contribute to succession planning and talent development initiatives.
Qualifications
Education
- Master's degree in Education, Educational Leadership, Curriculum and Instruction, Adult Learning, or a related field required.
- Doctoral degree (EdD or PhD) is considered an asset.
Experience
- Minimum 7-10 years of leadership experience in professional development, teacher training, educational leadership, or curriculum implementation.
- Experience designing and facilitating large-scale professional learning programs.
- Experience managing online learning platforms and digital professional development resources.
- Experience working in international or multicultural educational environments preferred.
- Experience leading or participating in educational research projects considered a strong asset.
Skills and Competencies
- Strategic thinking and organizational leadership.
- Expertise in adult learning and professional development design.
- Strong facilitation, presentation, and coaching skills.
- Project management and organizational effectiveness.
- Data-informed decision-making and program evaluation.
- Research design, analysis, and knowledge mobilization.
- Budget management and resource planning.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder relationship-building skills.
- Ability to work collaboratively across diverse cultures and global contexts.
Success Indicators
The successful candidate will:
- Strengthen the quality and consistency of professional development across the global network.
- Expand and enhance Maple Bear Global Academy offerings and engagement.
- Build trainer and leadership capacity throughout the organization.
- Deliver impactful global conferences and learning events.
- Ensure effective onboarding and academic readiness of new schools.
- Successfully implement and evaluate a university-partnered research pilot that generates actionable insights and advances educational excellence across the Maple Bear system.
Join us in shaping the future of global education through professional learning, innovation, and research-driven excellence.
Other information
Maple Bear Global Schools is committed to providing accessible employment practices in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). If you require accommodations at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $100,000.00-$110,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Extended health care
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Toronto, ON M5J 1T1
