Kodaikanal International School is a 125-year-old dynamic international school with a rich history of holistic education, offering the IB continuum of the Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP) and the Diploma Programme (DP) to our learners. Our beautiful school and community are nestled in the Palani Hills of Tamil Nadu, South India.
At KIS, we empower our students to navigate through life’s challenges to achieve their true potential. We follow an inquiry-based approach that promotes critical thinking, learner agency and a dedication to serving others. We recognize the importance of a meaningful, relevant and engaging curriculum that connects students to real-world contexts for their learning. We are keenly aware of the need to adapt our teaching and learning model to respond to the needs of our students in a world of fast-paced change.
KIS Vision Statement: We strive to be a school the world needs: Our graduates will be transformative leaders, caring humans and thoughtful ambassadors for a just, sustainable and peaceful world.
KIS Mission Statement: Kodaikanal International School (KIS) is committed to empowering young people from diverse backgrounds with vision, knowledge, compassion and cross-cultural understanding. We are a community that welcomes everyone and seeks our purpose in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.
KIS Values: Accountability, Appreciation, Concern for Others, Consistency, Context, Cooperation, Integrity, Openness, Performance, and Reverence.
We are seeking colleagues who are driven by:
- A strong belief in KIS’s guiding principles;
- The IB philosophy;
- Service and action
- A focus on trust, relationships and community
KIS is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people in our care. We support the rights of the child and will act without hesitation to ensure a child-safe environment. We also support the rights and wellbeing of our staff and volunteers and encourage their active participation in building and maintaining a secure environment for all participants. Teachers at KIS must follow the guidelines of the school’s protective behavior policies and protocols, including reporting any situation that might constitute a health and/or safety hazard to students or school employees.
Required Qualifications:
- Graduate from a recognized university or college.
- Experience in a residential setting / Teaching / Training in an educational institute or public administration.
Preferred Qualifications:
- An advanced degree with a focus on Child Psychology.
- Training in child development or principles of learning is desired.
Preferred Experience:
- Possess a minimum of 3 years’ experience working in an academic environment.
- Specific knowledge and experience of the administration of an educational establishment, student support and management, welfare, and implementing policy in an educational community (such as an international boarding school)
Preferred Skills and Dispositions:
- Have effective oral and written communication skills with students of all ages, staff, and parents.
- Ability to coordinate effectively and organize a wide range of information and activities.
- Ability to liaise closely and work well with various individuals and groups.
- Ability and flair for team building.
- Ability to approach problems creatively.
- Intimately understand the intellectual, emotional, and social development of children at all stages and appreciate the pressures and problems of children and the range of student matters in a boarding school.
- Be able to use various techniques for counseling and guiding students appropriately to various situations.
- Have keen appreciation for the inter-dependence of staff, students and administration to successful school operations.
- Be IT literate.
- Ability to lead meetings and address groups effectively.
- Ability to connect with the younger generation and possess a personality that inspires trust , motivates and respect in students.
- Ability to maintain confidentiality in sensitive situations.
- Ability to build a rapport of trust with all stakeholders.
Specific Job Description
- Supervise residential parents and residential assistants, and see to it that these fulfil their duty of care to the students as per the residential life policy
- See to and follow up on the timetable of the dorms, including gadget timings, outings, etc.
- Give/withhold specific instructions/permissions to staff interacting with students in dorms for example, specific outings, visits, etc.
- Liaise with various departments in the school, like the academic, security, travel, finance, food services, admissions, counseling, dispensary etc.
- Hold and conduct meetings within the residential life department (Residential parents and residential assistants).
- Oversee the Residential Assistants duty roster together with the E.A to the Dean
- Approve leaves of residential assistants
- Regularly visit dorms in the evenings
- Conduct dorm busts if and when needed in consultation with the Dean.
- Conduct potential student interviews in liaison with the admissions department, gauge their fit for residential life at KIS, and provide valuable feedback to the admissions team.
- Coordinate various clubs and other activities
- Write and respond to emails from parents, students, staff and other stakeholders
- Be part of the DISCOM (disciplinary committee) of the school as and when co-opted.
Be available at any time (even at night or on weekends) to intervene in case of emergencies and special situations
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Reports to: Dean of Residential Life
Coordinates with: Executive Assistant to the Dean
Time Period: Initial 2-year contract, potential extensions after initial contract
Role Overview
The Assistant Dean of Student Services’ responsibility is to work with the Dean to administer the residential life of the school in the spirit of Design ’18 and the Mission of the school.
The Assistant Dean of Residential Life provides operational leadership to the KIS residential program. Reporting to the Dean of Residential Life, this role ensures a safe, inclusive, and restorative environment that promotes student agency, pastoral care, and overall success. The Assistant Dean is a key mentor to residential staff and a primary problem-solver for student-life concerns.
Key Performance Areas and Responsibilities
1. Support KIS guiding principles
2. Administration.
- To support the Dean in the administration of the residential life of the school
- To liaise closely with and support residential staff in dealing with student matters
- Serve as a point of contact for administrative staff and employees.
- Serve as a point of contact for students and parents (when the primary residential parent
- needs intervention).
- To support the Dean, to oversee the preparation of staff duty rosters for the dining hall ( when students have combined study) and other student supervision/chaperoning duties as required.
- Overseeing residential life related policy creation or review and communication of it to staff and students through a collaborative approach.
3. Holistic Development and Student Well Being.
- Behavioural Support. To support the Dean in behaviour management and well-being of students utilising restorative justice in line with school policies.
- To assist the Dean in overseeing the day-to-day behaviour support and management of students in accordance with the exiting policies Policy. In serious cases, consult and act with the Dean, the Principal and Academic Vice Principal as appropriate The Assistant Dean is a co-opted member of the Disciplinary Committee.
- Disciplinary facilitation in line with the schools’ policies.
- (Evening & Routine Management: Directly oversee the implementation of evening residential programs, ensuring that dorm routines (study hours, meals, and lights-out) are consistently maintained across the dorms.
- Enrichment & Clubs: Supervise the running of Residential Life Clubs and weekend activities, ensuring that duty allocations for staff are equitable and that student engagement is high.
4. Coordination with Health Services. To coordinate and liaise with and the School Dispensary staff relating to medical care provided for student and also to coordinate and liaise with the School Counsellors where appropriate.
5. Coordination with Student Council. To support and attend meetings of the Middle School Student Council (MIDCO) and Student Council
6. Coordination with Students’ Activities. To coordinate and/or supervise the work of the Activities Department, and the Residential Staff (Residential Parents and Residential Assistants). To liaise with Activities Coordinator to organise and supervise the weekend dorm activities.
7. Dorm Management
- To support the Dean and relevant residential parents, to plan, organize and coordinate the preparations for new dormitories.
- Lead the intervention process for residential challenges. Liaise with all stakeholders (Parents, Faculty, Counsellors, Other Staff members) to implement effective solutions that uphold KIS standards and enhance the student’s residential experience.
- Supervise the performance of dorm relief and dhobis (laundrymen)
- Maintain, oversee and assist in the preparation of dorm budgets
- Process leave application forms, Dorm vouchers including scheduling of mid term break leave for residential Parents.
8. Communication
- Maintain seamless communication to ensure multi-disciplinary support for students, ensuring that all pastoral, disciplinary and health-related interventions are documented and reported to correct stakeholders.
- Manage inter-department synergies with Finance, Estates, Maintenance, Travel, and Catering to ensure continuous improvement on the residential experience including infrastructure and student support services
- To maintain clear and open channels of communication with the Dean and the Principal, Vice Principal, Finance Director, Chaplain, Director (Campus Infrastructure and Operations) Admissions Officer, Alumni Coordinator, and other administrators and all staff on matters of concern to the school.
9. Human Resource Development and Training
- (In close coordination with the Dean of Residential Life, design and execute a comprehensive annual professional development calendar—including intensive mid-term break modules—focused on safeguarding (POCSO), restorative justice, mental health first aid, and operational excellence to ensure a high-performing and resilient residential team.
- Coordination of weekly dorm meetings / farewell meetings, etc.
- To attend team meetings and team training events.
- Take part in the interview and orientation of new Residential Parents.
- Interview, recruit, assign, and orient new Residential Assistants.
- Conduct weekly meetings for Residential Assistants.
- Maintain and update the Residential Handbook in conjunction with the Dean
- Participate with the Dean in periodic performance appraisals of Residential Parents / Assistants
- To carry out other duties as may be assigned from time to time by the Dean of Residential Life, Principal, and Council.
10. Working in close partnership with the Executive Assistant (EA) to the Dean, the Assistant Dean is responsible for the meticulous execution of all residential administrative cycles. This includes ensuring that all dorm-related maintenance, inventory, and preparation activities are fully completed during vacation periods to guarantee a seamless transition for student return. The Assistant Dean must ensure that all official communications—ranging from parental updates, DISCOM minutes to internal staff directives—are disseminated to the relevant stakeholders in a timely and professional manner. Furthermore, this role oversees the management of Residential Assistant rosters, the robust scheduling of Residential Life clubs, and the equitable allocation of duties among Residential Parents, ensuring that all staffing frameworks are finalized and communicated well in advance of the academic term.
School Organization
A KIS staff is expected to work in a positive, professional, supportive manner and develop a collaborative and team approach to enable the school to achieve its stated mission, vision, values, and strategic goals.
School Community
- A KIS staff is expected to:
- Supports, promotes and enforces the ethos of KIS as defined in the mission and vision statements, guiding principles and strategic plans;
- Promotes a positive attitude about the school with all members of the school community;
- Implement decisions made in department- and school-committee meetings, as relevant to the department;
- Follow the guidelines of the school’s protective behavior policies and protocols and personal data protection policies and procedures, including reporting any situation that might constitute a health and/or safety hazard to students or school employees, and reporting any personal data breach.
- To respect the confidential nature of discussions at staff meetings and other contexts in which sensitive information is likely to be communicated; particularly in terms of interaction with students;
- The staff is expected to perform other appropriate duties as assigned by the Dean of Residential life, or Principal.
