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Join a professional community that is celebrated for its transformational pedagogy and that fosters curiosity. Here, our faculty thrives within a dynamic culture driven by an unwavering dedication to the greatest growth possible, a spirit of innovation and progress, and a core of care and support for each member of this community.
For over a century, Cate School has been blending together the tradition of the East Coast with the innovation of the West Coast in the service of a dynamic, diverse, and close-knit community. A four-year college preparatory school with a low student-to-faculty ratio, small class sizes, and inviting residential spaces, Cate’s inquiry-based program is designed to challenge, inspire, and support boarding and day students whose interests, abilities, characters, and aspirations make them individually and collectively exceptional.
Perched on a hill overlooking the Southern California coast, Cate School’s setting is one of unparalleled beauty and natural inspiration. “The Mesa,” as we call it – with its juxtaposition of close spaces and vast vistas, its blending of human architecture and natural splendor, history, and potential – is itself a critical touchstone for this community.
Please see our available opportunities below:
Position: Director of Schedules and Calendars
Reports to: Annalee Salcedo (Dean of Academics) and Erin Hansen (Dean of Campus Life)
Status: Exempt (Salaried), 11-Month Administrator
Pay Scale: $80,000 – $100,000 base salary determined by the teaching salary schedule plus Director Stipend
Housing: This role does not come with housing
To Apply: Please submit your cover letter, resume, and a list of all previous school or educational institution employers, including city and state, in accordance with CA SB 848 to the hiring team at hiring@cate.org.
The Role
Job Description:
The Director of Schedules and Calendars develops and maintains the daily academic schedule for each student and teacher, coordinates and communicates the campus life calendar, and oversees the management of databases of student information and faculty assignments. They also chair the C.O.L.E (Calendar, Operations, Logistics, and Events) Committee, and sit on the Academic Leadership Team, Campus Life Team, and Steering Committee.
All Cate Employees live up to the following Essential Expectations:
As Director of Schedules and Calendars, these essential expectations manifest in the following job responsibilities:
The Candidate
Successful candidates will demonstrate their ability to meet these expectations through the following
Core Competencies
Background Skills
Analytical Skills
Organizational Skills
Interpersonal Skills
Minimum Qualifications and Experience:
Job Benefits
This position comes with full benefits that include robust Health/Dental/Life insurance, Retirement and PTO.
Commitment to Supporting Diverse and Qualified Candidates
Cate School seeks educators who want to live and work in a small, diverse, mission-driven boarding community on California’s Central Coast. We welcome applicants whose priorities align with our pillars of commitment, scholarship, companionship, and service, and we are steadfast in our commitment to Equal Opportunity Employment. Research shows that women and BIPOC candidates may hesitate to apply if they don’t meet every listed qualification, so we encourage all who believe they have the skills and potential to thrive to submit an application. Our hiring process is designed to minimize bias by focusing on core competencies and the experiences that best demonstrate them.
Physical Requirements
Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
Cate School is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition including genetic characteristics, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender, gender identity, genetic information or any other category protected under federal or local law.
Position: Accountant/Accounts Receivable
Department: Business Office
Status: Exempt (Salary), Full-time
Reports To: Director of Finance and Operations
Pay Scale: $68,000 to $72,000 depending on experience
To Apply: Please submit your cover letter, resume, and a list of all previous school or educational institution employers, including city and state, in accordance with CA SB 848 with your application here.
Job Summary
This position is chiefly responsible for all Accounts Receivable functions and support for general accounting needs. This includes managing the student and employee account database, payments and charges, student enrollment plan setup, bank deposits and appropriate allocation of all monies received for the school, and for customer service in addressing walk-in needs identified by employees, parents, students & vendors. In addition, position assists with general accounting needs that include monthly reconciliations, posting journal entries to the general ledger and collaboration with the Controller to support the year end audit. A high degree of attention to detail, ability to communicate in an effective and supportive manner and, given the sensitivity to the individual personal financial information this position encompasses, a high degree of confidentiality and professionalism is required.
Major Accountabilities are:
Accounts Receivable Specialist Skills and Qualification Standards:
Job Benefits:
This position comes with full benefits that include robust Health/Dental/Life insurance, Retirement and PTO plans.
All Cate Employees live up to the following Essential Expectations:
At Cate, we often talk about the deep sense of community that attends the “spirit of this place.” While the “spirit” manifests in many ways, it is rooted in the full recognition of the dignity of each person. We encourage all members of the Cate community to share their background, interests, identities, and beliefs so that we can collectively work to broaden our perspectives, deepen our capacity for empathy, and strengthen our resilience. In doing so, we can continue the daily work of creating and building community
Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
Cate School is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition including genetic characteristics, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender, gender identity, genetic information or any other category protected under federal or local law.
Position: Theater Instructor
Reports to: John Knecht, Performing Arts Chair
Status: Exempt (Salaried) ¾ to Full Time*
Pay Scale: $51,000-$109,000 base salary determined by years of experience and full-time fraction
Housing: This role comes with campus housing and associated responsibilities
Contact: hiring@cate.org
To Apply: Please submit your cover letter, resume, and a list of all previous school or educational institution employers, including city and state, in accordance with CA SB 848 to the hiring team at hiring@cate.org.
Job Description for Theater Instructor
Cate School is currently seeking highly qualified theater instructor candidates. The position will include close collaboration with performing arts colleagues while teaching and leading theater performance classes levels 1, 2, and 3, which may be co-enrolled. The position also includes a section of ninth-grade Foundation Arts, which meets 2-3 times per week. Co-curricular theatrical productions include the Fall Play, which meets during sports block daily and the Spring Musical, which meets daily during the spring sports block and three evening nights from 6:15-7:45 pm from January through April. The Theater Instructor also supports performing arts at Cate broadly, including helping organize and direct occasional smaller performances as part of both the curricular and cocurricular life of the school.
In addition to classroom instruction, teachers participate in department meetings and faculty meetings, as well as all-school events such as move-in weekend, family weekends, and commencement. Teachers motivate the greatest growth possible for all students by planning and running engaging classes, by assigning meaningful homework, and by offering office hours both during the academic day and during the evening.
In order to foster deep and multifaceted relationships with students, all Cate faculty members are involved in programming outside of the classroom, such as coaching or serving as a dorm parent and advisor. This residential role will include dorm parent responsibilities (or similar), serving as an advisor to 4-6 students yearly, participation in seated meals and convocations, and distributed and occasional responsibilities for supervising weekend events with students. Coaching responsibilities for this role are covered by the Fall and Spring Theater productions.
¾ vs. Full Time
The current teaching responsibilities for the theater instructor account for ¾ of a full teaching load. Cate uses a preset salary scale for teachers, with pay increases or decreases for taking on extra teaching or reduced teaching respectively. There are often additional teaching needs in other departments, and we will seek opportunities for the Theater Instructor to fill their teaching load when the needs of the school and the instructor’s skill set align. These opportunities will be continually reevaluated on an annual basis.
In the role of Theater Instructor, these essential expectations manifest as:
Collaborate
Teach
Continue to Learn
Demonstrate Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
Successful candidates will demonstrate their ability to meet these expectations through the following core competencies:
In terms of education and experience, applicants for this position will have:
Job Benefits:
This position comes with full benefits that include robust Health/Dental/Life insurance, Retirement and PTO plans.
All Cate Employees live up to the following Essential Expectations:
Commitment to Supporting Diverse and Qualified Candidates
Cate School seeks educators who want to live and work in a small, diverse, mission-driven boarding community on California’s Central Coast. We welcome applicants whose priorities align with our pillars of commitment, scholarship, companionship, and service, and we are steadfast in our commitment to Equal Opportunity Employment. Research shows that women and BIPOC candidates may hesitate to apply if they don’t meet every listed qualification, so we encourage all who believe they have the skills and potential to thrive to submit an application. Our hiring process is designed to minimize bias by focusing on core competencies and the experiences that best demonstrate them.
Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
Cate School is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition including genetic characteristics, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender, gender identity, genetic information or any other category protected under federal or local law.
To Apply: Please submit your cover letter, resume, and a list of all previous school or educational institution employers, including city and state, in accordance with CA SB 848 to the hiring team at hiring@cate.org.
Job Summary
Cate School seeks an experienced college counselor to serve as a one-year sabbatical replacement for the Senior Associate Director of College Counseling. This interim role encompasses all aspects of the college counseling and academic advising process while a permanent staff member is on sabbatical. The successful candidate will work closely with students, families, faculty, and administration to maintain continuity in college counseling programs and school leadership. Reports directly to the Head of Admissions and College Counseling.
Primary Responsibilities:
The responsibilities of this position will include, but not be limited to the following:
Appointment Details:
All Cate Employees live up to the following Essential Expectations:
At Cate, we often talk about the deep sense of community that attends the “spirit of this place.” While the “spirit” manifests in many ways, it is rooted in the full recognition of the dignity of each person. We encourage all members of the Cate community to share their background, interests, identities, and beliefs so that we can collectively work to broaden our perspectives, deepen our capacity for empathy, and strengthen our resilience. In doing so, we can continue the daily work of creating and building community.
Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
Cate School is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition including genetic characteristics, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender, gender identity, genetic information or any other category protected under federal or local law.
Position: Interim Senior Communications Officer
Reports to: Director of Communications
Status: Exempt (Salary), Full Time, Temporary, In-Person, March – December 2026 ( leave coverage)
Contact: Director of Communications
Pay Scale: $85,000 – $95,000/annualized, Commensurate with Experience
To Apply: Please submit your cover letter, resume, and a list of all previous school or educational institution employers, including city and state, in accordance with CA SB 848 to the hiring team at hiring@cate.org.
Job Summary
Cate School seeks a seasoned Interim Senior Communications Officer to lead the School’s communications function on a temporary basis from March through December 2026. This temporary role will involve project management experience, strong editorial judgment, and an ability to operate independently within a dynamic school environment. The Interim Senior Communications Officer will serve as the lead Communications staff member during the Director’s parental leave period (May- October) and will oversee the day-to-day communications needs of the School before and after the leave (March-December).
Essential Job Functions
This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. An employee may also perform other reasonably related business duties as assigned.
Job Benefits
This position comes with full benefits that include robust Health/Dental/Life insurance, Retirement, and PTO.
All Cate Employees live up to the following Essential Expectations:
At Cate, we often talk about the deep sense of community that attends the “spirit of this place.” While the “spirit” manifests in many ways, it is rooted in the full recognition of the dignity of each person. We encourage all members of the Cate community to share their background, interests, identities, and beliefs so that we can collectively work to broaden our perspectives, deepen our capacity for empathy, and strengthen our resilience. In doing so, we can continue the daily work of creating and building community
Physical Requirements
Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
Cate School is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition including genetic characteristics, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender, gender identity, genetic information or any other category protected under federal or local law.
A Cate education uniquely leverages strong academic and residential curricula to transform students’ lives by preparing them as independent thinkers, informing their societal roles as global citizens of influence, and encouraging them to build authentic and meaningful relationships. Cate students engage enthusiastically in myriad non-academic pursuits and traditions which, complemented by academic rigor, constitute the foundation of a truly whole education.
Cate School is committed to a policy of Equal Opportunity Employment and nondiscrimination in the treatment of employees or applicants for employment without consideration of race, color, ethnicity, religion, age, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, gender or gender identity.
Cate School offers competitive compensation. In setting compensation ranges, Cate School reviews numerous factors including industry data from NAIS, CAIS, NBOA, and other market data. Final Salary is based on experience relevant to the role and internal equity.