The posting
Riverdale Country School, a Pre-K through Grade 12 independent all-gender school in New York City, is dedicated to inspiring students to live meaningful and purpose-driven lives. The school achieves this by fostering a culture of academic excellence, critical thinking, and curiosity, supported by a diverse and inclusive community. Riverdale emphasizes both high challenge and high support in its approach to education, encouraging students to engage deeply in interdisciplinary learning, research, and experiential education, both inside and outside the classroom and beyond our campuses. This holistic approach aims to develop well-rounded individuals who are prepared to make a positive impact on the world.
At Riverdale, we strive to reflect the diversity of the New York metropolitan area in our students, faculty, and staff. We believe that a diverse and inclusive community enriches the educational experience and is integral to our mission. With a student body of approximately 1,300 students from 117 different zip codes, Riverdale is a vibrant community where 48% of our students identify as students of color.
We seek to employ educators and leaders who bring a student-centered approach, passion for their work, a commitment to DEIB, and a desire to contribute to the growth and development of our entire school community.
Position Overview
Riverdale’s Middle and Upper School Science Department seeks a visionary, practicing scientist to serve as the Science Research Curriculum Integration Specialist. This is a newly created leadership role designed for a Ph.D.-level researcher who is passionate about translating professional scientific inquiry into the secondary school learning experience.
The Integration Specialist will support the Director of Science Research and the Science Department Chair to integrate research skills throughout the Grade 6-12 science curriculum, working to bridge the gap between classroom theory and real-world discovery through a cohesive progression of skills, concepts, and content acquisition. The Integration Specialist will assist in developing a Science curriculum that prepares students to critically evaluate scientific claims encountered in media, civic, and personal contexts, while cultivating transferable inquiry skills such as asking productive questions, interpreting ambiguous information, and revising thinking in response to new evidence.
Riverdale’s Commitment to Science Research
For over 25 years, Riverdale’s Lisman Laboratories Science Research Program has redefined what is possible in secondary science education by placing high school students at the center of authentic, college-level research. Through faculty mentorship and deep, sustained collaborations with university laboratories and professional scientists, students design experiments, generate and analyze large genomic datasets, apply for external research funding, and publish peer-reviewed articles. This innovative model bridges high school education and experiential, place-based learning with meaningful scientific research, cultivating a culture where ingenuity, collaboration, and the creation of new knowledge drive both teaching and learning. The Science Research Curriculum Integration Specialist will extend the model created by Lisman Laboratories to ensure that every student engages with scientific inquiry at each stage of their academic progression.
The Ideal Candidate
Our ideal candidate is a scientist who finds as much joy in a student’s "lightbulb moment" as they do in a published paper. They are capable of looking at a traditional syllabus and seeing hidden opportunities for discovery. They possess the disposition, empathy, and desire to mentor novice learners, and the interpersonal skills to collaborate productively with a large and diverse faculty.
Key Responsibilities
Curricular Innovation & Program Building
- Scaffold Research Integration: In collaboration with the Director of Science Research, audit the existing 6-12 science curriculum to identify and design "entry points" for authentic research, translating complex lab protocols into age-appropriate, modular learning experiences.
- Instruction: Teach one to two sections of science coursework, modeling inquiry-based pedagogy that prioritizes the process of discovery over rote memorization.
- Faculty Collaboration: Partner with teaching faculty to co-design and co-teach research units, providing the technical expertise needed to "level up" standard classroom experiments.
- Summer Research: Lead a signature summer research intensive that allows students to dive deep into longer-term projects.
- Facility Strategy: Facilitate communication to determine short-term equipment needs and long-term facility/space upgrades required to sustain a high-level research culture.
- Resource Curation: Maintain a centralized database of summer research and internship opportunities for the school community.
Strategic Partnerships & Mentorship
- External Network: Leverage professional connections to strengthen and expand student internships and collaborative opportunities with research institutions and consortiums.
- Grant Leadership: Mentor students in the technical art of grant writing, guiding them to apply for external funding.
- Symposium Oversight: Direct the annual Science Research Symposium, transforming it into a premier showcase of student intellectual contributions.
Requirements & Competencies
- Ph.D. in a scientific discipline (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Science, or related field).
- Demonstrated Research Track Record: Experience in grant-funded research and a history of peer-reviewed publications.
- Scientific Translation: The ability to simplify complex professional workflows without losing scientific integrity.
- Instructional Design: Interest in and aptitude for creating educational content and "scaffolding" technical tasks for non-experts.
- Influence & Diplomacy: Strong "influence-without-authority" skills; the ability to work collegially with faculty to implement change.
- Project Management: Highly organized with the ability to manage the logistics of a symposium, grant deadlines, and lab budgets.
- Commitment to Youth: A genuine excitement for working with Middle and Upper School students and an enduring belief in their capacity for high-level inquiry.
- Intellectual Agility: Demonstrates the flexibility to thrive in a new and evolving role, the curiosity to continually explore new pedagogical and scientific frontiers, and the inventiveness to meet challenges creatively and contextually.
- DEIB Leadership: A demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, ensuring that the path to scientific research is accessible to all students.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in mentorship (high school, undergraduate, or graduate level).
- Experience with interdisciplinary teaching/learning (e.g., connecting Environmental Science with Ethics or Data Science).
- Familiarity with lab safety management and research budgeting.
- Experience with molecular ecology, genomics, conservation biology, and field-based research (e.g., sample collection, field instrumentation and sensor deployment, and specimen handling).
Start date flexible with a preference for Spring 2027.
Please note that interested candidates must submit a cover letter with their application. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered.
To apply for this position, please click on the red “Apply for this Job” button. Please submit a resume and cover letter. If there are pronouns we should use in potential future communications, we invite you to share that information with us. For information about this position and all open positions, please visit the Careers page of Riverdale’s website.
Benefits of Full Time Work at Riverdale Country School
Working at Riverdale Country School is a purposeful and meaningful career choice that comes with many benefits including:
Transportation: Shuttle service is available to/from the 242nd St / Broadway subway station. Limited stops are also available near transit hubs in Manhattan including the Metro North Harlem Station and subway lines – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, N, Q, R, A, B, C, and D. If there is need in the community, we can also run a shuttle from the Henry Hudson Parkway / 246th St bus stop which connects to the #7, #10, and Express Buses to/from Manhattan.
Professional Development: A generous professional-development budget provides for conferences, skills training, and onsite training in areas such as mindfulness, coaching, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
Grants and Stipends: All employees are eligible for Frankel Fellow grants, known as “passion grants,” which pay for enrichment activities. More than 120 grants have been made to faculty and staff since the program started in 2014. Stipends are available for coaching, affinity group facilitation, advising clubs with significant out-of-school time, and chaperoning trips (including global trips!).
Sabbatical: Full time teaching faculty are eligible for a sabbatical after 10 years of employment.
Health Benefits: Riverdale offers and subsidizes health, dental, and vision insurance. In addition, the school offers a flexible spending account through which employees can use pre-tax dollars to pay for health-related expenses.
Retirement: Employees are eligible to join our Defined Contribution retirement plan through TIAA. The school contributes 7% of an employee's annual salary to their retirement account.
Vacation: Riverdale Country School has a generous time-off policy for staff in addition to vacations afforded by the school calendar.
