Location: Chicago (Hybrid)

Employment Type: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: 80 - 90K USD

Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Benefits: Comprehensive benefits package included

Zen Educate is a technology company that matches schools with temporary educator staff. Our mission is to change the world of education recruitment. Schools spend over $9bn a year on temporary educators, with over $2bn per year of that spent on fees that take money out of the education system. By leveraging the latest technology, we purpose built a platform that helps schools to pay less while educators earn more.

We want students to have access to the best education possible, and we go the extra mile to find, onboard, match, and coach incredible educators that deeply care about their students. We wake up every day on a mission to care more. We care more about our schools. And we care more about our educators.

This is your chance to make a difference and join a high growth tech startup on the ground floor. We are a collaborative company, and the career growth opportunities are endless if you are someone willing to dive in, be entrepreneurial, and do whatever is needed to get the job done. We are passionate about learning and development, and will invest in both your personal and professional growth.

We have recently raised our Series B funding of $37mil, the largest round in European EdTech this year. This is an exciting opportunity to make a difference and be part of a high growth start-up that is expanding rapidly in the UK and US markets!

At Zen Educate, we're revolutionizing school staffing. Our flexible platform empowers educators to pick up work, solving a critical crisis at scale. Many educators rely on Zen as their primary income, while others use it to supplement their lives. Regardless, every educator is an hourly W2 employee of Zen, and we're dedicated to making Zen an exceptional place for them to grow their careers. To achieve this, we're searching for an experienced, passionate, and creative education leader to become our Head of Educator HR.

If you're as passionate about championing educators as we are, and you're energized by the thought of building innovative solutions in a rapidly growing company, this could be your next big move. We're not afraid to do things differently, so we need a leader who can craft creative HR strategies that truly serve both our educators and the schools we support, all within our unique operational model.

You'll lead a small, dedicated team, overseeing every facet of HR for thousands of educators.

As the Head of Educator HR you will lead and be responsible for:

Design professional development and retention strategies specifically for our educators, aiming to cultivate highly engaged, long-term professionals with satisfaction rates unheard of in education staffing.

Building scalable HR infrastructure and systems, including policies, employee handbooks, and comprehensive onboarding programs.

Handling complex employee relations issues, such as discrimination claims, workplace injuries, and internal disputes.

Developing robust protocols for managing classroom incidents, ensuring safeguarding measures are in place, and overseeing mandated reporting.

Creating effective educator safety and support systems including hotlines, case management systems, and incident response protocols.

Managing unemployment claims, workers' compensation programs, and other employer obligations across various states.

Ensuring full legal compliance with all state and federal employment laws, with a particular focus on regulations applicable to education settings.

7+ years of HR experience, with a strong preference for backgrounds in education. 

Demonstrated experience in Human Resources within an educational setting (e.g., school, district, charter network, or education staffing firm).

Deep expertise in employee relations, risk mitigation, and employment law compliance.

Proven ability to build HR systems from the ground up and lead HR digital transformation initiatives.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Title IX.

Education-specific laws and regulations.

Workers' compensation and unemployment insurance processes.

Various HRIS and case management systems.

SHRM-CP/SCP certification is preferred.

HR Business Partner or Employee Relations Specialist at a charter network or school district.

HR Manager at an education staffing firm, childcare agency, or school services provider.

People Operations or Compliance Lead at an ed-tech or education nonprofit.

Former school-based HR point person (e.g., in a principal support team or operations manager role).