Description

To apply, please e-mail careers@jazzschool.org and attach the following materials in PDF format:

• Resume
• A thoughtful (human-written!) cover letter tailored to this position, addressing your relevant experience, commitment to community music and/or jazz education, and three ideas of how you would increase the diversity and reach/relevance of our program through educational programming

The Jazzschool Community Music School is hiring for the position of Director of Education at its Downtown Berkeley location. Reporting to and collaborating closely with the Executive Director, the Director of Education visions and manages the programs at the core of the Jazzschool’s mission, serving more than 1200 students annually, employing 40+ instructors each year in 300+ classes and workshops. The Director of Education is responsible for the development, implementation, administration, and evaluation of Jazzschool educational offerings, providing leadership and vision through curriculum design and faculty recruitment, and ensuring that the program meets budget goals and is managed efficiently for the best possible student experience.

This is an opportunity to join a beloved community music school in a leadership role that will be well supported at many levels of the organization. Are you passionate about teaching, but want to have more impact beyond an individual classroom or private teaching studio? Are you supremely organized, great with people, have demonstrated follow-through, and excited by the prospect of representing our school in the broader jazz community? Do you have a strong business sense around budgeting, the magical powers of spreadsheets, and creating systems to keep projects organized? Interested in the ways that music can build and sustain community? Have opinions about how jazz education can be improved to be more impactful, more equitable, more accessible? 

This position is supported by the Program Administrator, who maintains educational offerings within registration and database systems, facilitates student payments and scholarships, and assists with faculty and student communication. 

It is essential that the person in this position shares and furthers the Jazzschool’s values of reflecting and serving the full diversity of Bay Area residents and honors jazz as a Black American cultural practice through program content, community partnerships, and faculty representation. 

Key Responsibilities

The ideal candidate is an energetic and pragmatic administrator, communicator, and multitasker; knows jazz and jazz education from the inside as a musician and educator; is immersed in the Bay Area music community; and is motivated to be part of a dynamic artist-driven organization on the upswing — piloting new initiatives, connecting with new partners, and visioning new paths forward for the program. 

Educational Vision and Leadership: Curriculum Development, Class Scheduling and Program Budgeting 50%

• Design curriculum of classes, ensembles, workshops, clinics, summer camps, and intensives in our Adult and Young Musicians programs, working closely with instructors on course offerings and scheduling
• Manage and maintain departmental budget (40% of our total operating budget) and quarterly projections, balancing course revenue against instructor wages, accompanist fees, and other costs
• Ensure that educational offerings, faculty hires, and student and faculty support systems align with school mission and values
• Identify income-generating and community-building opportunities through new programs
• Supervise the Director of Ensembles, who coordinates auditions and matches students to ensembles; schedules student concerts; assist with student recruitment; and organizes student performance opportunities in the community

Recruiting, Hiring and Managing Instructors 30%

• Identify and recruit faculty for Adult and Young Musicians programs, and directors for summer camps and intensives
• Evaluate faculty performance through student evaluations and direct observation
• In collaboration with the Director of Administration, handle hiring and payroll procedures for faculty, accompanists, camp directors, and other program staff

Student Liaison and Program Ambassador 10%

• Actively recruit new students in collaboration with faculty, marketing, and program staff
• Serve as first point of contact for new students; monitor and be responsive to student experience through evaluations and informal feedback
• Attend student performances

Community Outreach and Educational Initiatives 10%

• Collaborate with Director of Marketing on communications, language, and messaging to engage new communities through our programs
• Work with the Executive Director to design strategic initiatives and partnerships that bring the Jazzschool’s educational offerings to new populations
• Be informed about and responsive to the music education landscape in area schools and at local music nonprofits; act as a liaison to local jazz, middle school, and high school band teachers and school district administrators

Culture and  Benefits

This is very much an “on the ground” position, with a majority of the work on-site at the school (1 ½ blocks from Downtown Berkeley BART) but with flexible hours, and ample opportunities to adjust your work schedule around school concerts, offsite performances, and meetings. Our school is most activated/busy on weeknights and weekends, so some amount of evening and weekend work is part of the job. We are very interested in hiring musicians and artists for positions at all levels of the organization, and would consider and support a practicing musician in this role who has proven they can expertly juggle competing schedules and responsibilities.

The Salary Range for this role is $90,000–$115,000,  based on experience.

The Jazzschool offers a comprehensive benefits package including…

• Medical insurance (Kaiser or equivalent)
• 403(b) retirement plan
• Two weeks paid vacation, 10 paid holidays, paid sick leave
• Free classes and concerts
• Free rehearsal/practice/teaching space 

About the Jazzschool

For 29 years, the Jazzschool Community Music School in Downtown Berkeley has built community and connection through teaching, learning, practicing, and performing jazz and global music of the African diaspora. The school’s adult and youth community education programs include classes and ensembles, workshops, summer camps, in-school clinics, free public programs, and concerts. We offer a robust scholarship program, and no student is turned away who expresses need.

Serving middle school students through to senior citizens, the Jazzschool community ensembles are a place of sustained mentorship, profound social connection, and personal artistic growth. They are led by an international cohort of professional musicians and committed educators with expertise in a wide range of musical practices, including contemporary and traditional approaches to jazz, Brazilian, Afro-Cuban, Caribbean, New Orleans, funk, blues, and Afropop. Each quarter culminates in a weeklong marathon student performance festival offered free of charge.

Under new leadership since the start of 2026, the Jazzschool has entered an exciting new chapter — recommitting to its values as a vital community hub that prioritizes access, belonging, mentorship, and cultural relevance. We believe jazz music (broadly defined) offers a profound way to connect to both global cultures and civic concerns, to our history and our future — and that learning to play this music is an opportunity to reflect on and celebrate our humanity. The new Director of Education will work closely with the Executive Director to reimagine what a community music school can be in our era, who it can and should serve, and demonstrate the outsize impact that playing music together — and improvising! — can have on individuals and communities.

As we approach our 30th anniversary next year, we build on significant organizational momentum:

• Participation in our program has increased steadily each quarter over the past year, both in number of new students and number of enrollments
• Our community is responding enthusiastically to new faculty hires, new course offerings, and new learning formats
• Increases in donations, media coverage, and attendance at concerts and public programs demonstrate strong constituent support for the school’s next chapter
• A committed staff and board with long institutional memory offer stability as we build capacity to sustain new initiatives and grow the organization

The California Jazz Conservatory, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  We consider qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, medical condition, disability, marital status or protected veteran status.

Requirements

Required

• Degree in jazz studies, music performance, and/or music education; or equivalent experience as a performer/educator
• Experience developing music curriculum for youth and/or adults
• Knowledge of and connections in the Bay Area jazz community
• Excellent and responsive communicator both verbally and in writing
• Experienced manager in an office and/or music performance setting
• Detail-oriented administrator and project manager; able to conceive and lead long-term projects and meet overlapping deadlines
• Experience creating and managing budgets, and projecting income and expense
• Proficient in Google Office, including spreadsheets, word processing, calendar; and an ability/willingness to identify and learn new software applications to serve the program
• Commitment to expanding access and equity in education, and to the values of community music education

Preferred

• Experience with Bay Area K-12 school districts and systems
• Familiarity with Bay Area music education organizations
• History as a performer of jazz or other music of the African diaspora
• Curiosity about innovations in learning and teaching, as well as digital and online platforms
• Enthusiastic about being on the scene as an ambassador for the school, and an active presence and leader in the local jazz education community