Director of Legal Operations (26-27)

Director of Legal Operations

 This is a vacancy for the 26-27 school year with a target start date of July 1, 2026

Mission:

The Director of Operations, Legal Projects serves as the operational lead for the Legal Department, driving data-informed processes, analysis, and feedback systems. This role translates legal strategy into actionable systems, ensures disciplined execution of legal work, and strengthens organizational capacity to manage legal risk at both campus and regional levels. The Director oversees legal operations, supervises legal staff, manages engagement with external counsel, and develops clear, scalable processes that empower school leaders to operate confidently within legal requirements. Additionally, the Director ensures IDEA’s compliance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Public Information Act. 

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Direct management of two paralegals 

Location:

This is a full-time remote position based in Texas, with preference given to candidates who live in Austin, El Paso, Houston, Permian Basin (Midland/Odessa), Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, and Tarrant County (Fort Worth), or who are willing to relocate.

Travel Expectations:    

Minimal travel required. 

What You’ll Do – Accountabilities

Essential Duties:

• Serve as primary architect of legal department workflows, SOPs, and field facing guidance: create, manage, and cascade standard operating procedures for legal department to build efficiency and clarity for operational execution
• Serve as Data-Guru and Analyst: Influence, design, and analyze data related to legal operations to inform processes, trainings, and recommendations for management 
• Transform Technical to Practical: translate complex matters, processes, and guidance into manageable tasks and projects for end-users through stakeholder engagement, cross-functional meetings, and careful design 
• Ensure IDEA meets all requirements for public information/freedom of information act, subpoena, discovery, and other related matters through direct management of paralegals 

Additional Duties and Responsibilities:

• Design and enforce standard operating procedures for engaging outside counsel, including intake, approval, scope definition, and billing review.
• Oversee legal billing and invoice review to ensure fiscal discipline and alignment with approved scopes of work.
• Monitor trends in legal and settlement spend and recommend strategies to improve cost efficiency.
• Serve as the operational counterpart to the General Counsel, managing execution so legal leadership can focus on strategy and high-risk matters
• Manage team to create systems to receive, respond, and archive information requests, subpoenas, custody order reviews, no trespass orders, and other routine school support requests
• Set clear performance expectations, manage workload distribution, and drive continuous improvement in service delivery.
• Build internal capacity to reduce dependency on outside counsel for routine matters.
• Create system for legal intake and triage, ensuring legal is spending time on most critical matters and meeting all internal and external deadlines
• Identify systemic risk patterns through data analysis of legal requests, public information matters, subpoenas, and campus inquiries
• Design legal trainings and corresponding documents and partner with IDEA’s training team on design and review of trainings on behalf of legal team, as necessary
• Prepare concise updates and recommendations for the General Counsel and senior leadership.

Knowledge and Skills – Competencies

• Make Strategic Decisions: This team member fosters an inclusive decision-making environment by encouraging diverse perspectives, managing disagreements constructively, and creating space for all voices to be heard. They clearly communicate final decisions, providing context and anticipated impact—even when choices are difficult or unpopular.

• Manage Work and Teams: This team member builds and maintains systems to track progress toward team goals, ensuring clarity through defined roles and responsibilities. They implement structured processes that support smooth team operations and strategically allocate time and resources to drive goal achievement. 

• Grow Self and Others: This team member uses data to assess development needs and designs learning opportunities that align with team goals and individual career growth. They model a growth mindset by being open about their own development and ensure that both personal and team-led learning initiatives are impactful and well-aligned with organizational priorities. 

• Build a Culture of Trust:  This team member fosters a team culture where individuals genuinely care for one another both personally and professionally. They lead with transparency, encourage open communication, including healthy conflict—and promote reliability and consistency, while regularly seeking and responding to team feedback to enhance the collective experience. 

• Communicate Deliberately: This team member leads inclusive discussions that surface obstacles and drive actionable solutions, ensuring all voices are heard. They communicate key information clearly across multiple channels and establish feedback loops that promote open dialogue, collaboration, and continuous improvement. 

Additional Skills: None

Required experience:

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree or Juris Doctor preferred.
• 6–10+ years of progressively responsible experience in legal operations, compliance, project management, or a similarly complex operational environment. 
• Demonstrated people management experience.
• Proven ability to design systems, manage risk, and drive execution across multiple stakeholders.
• Strong written language skills, including the ability to edit drafts for clarity, grammar, and conciseness. 

Preferred Education and Experience:

• Strong understanding of public information requests, subpoenas, records management, and education or public-sector legal frameworks. 
• Experience in K-12 school district strongly preferred.

Physical Requirements: 

• This is a sedentary position 

What We Offer:

Compensation & Benefits:

Salaries for people entering this role typically fall between $98,200 and $115,900, commensurate with relevant experience and qualifications and in alignment with internal equity. This role is also eligible for performance pay based on organizational performance and goal attainment.

Additionally, we offer medical, dental, and vision plans, disability, life insurance, parenting benefits, flexible spending account options, generous vacation time, referral bonuses, professional development, and a 403(b) plan. You can find more information about our benefits at https://ideapublicschools.org/careers/benefits/.

* IDEA may offer a relocation stipend to defray the cost of moving for this role, if applicable.

Application process:

Submit your application online through Jobvite. Please note that applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis until the position is filled. Applicants are encouraged to apply as early as possible.

Learn more about IDEA 

At IDEA the Staff Experience Team uses our Core Values to promote human connection and a culture of integrity, respect, and belonging for all Team and Family members.  Learn more about our Commitment to Core Values here: https://ideapublicschools.org/our-story/#core-values