About Primer

Primer is a growing network of K–8 schools restoring the timeless foundations of American education. Inspired by the original teaching primers that shaped a nation of readers, thinkers, and builders, our schools begin with what has always worked, and build for what lies ahead. Close-knit learning environments. Skilled educators. A culture that takes kids seriously as learners and leaders.

Primers shaped the first 200 years of American children. Primer will ready them for the next.

 

About the Role

Every new Primer campus starts as an empty building in a city where we've never operated. Someone has to turn it into a school fast: pass code, fit the budget, and feel like Primer the moment a kid walks in. That's you. This isn't a support role bolted onto real estate. The pace we open campuses at depends on how fast and how well you can run this process, and the standards you set here get reused at every campus after it.

 

What you'll do

• Site feasibility and pre-construction

  • Before Primer signs a lease, you've already run the numbers. You'll lead code analysis and zoning review, coordinate traffic and parking studies, run test fits and space programming, and make the go/no-go call on new sites. You'll also build the diligence playbook, so the next site evaluation takes days, not weeks.

• Permitting and project management

  • You'll manage permitting across jurisdictions: building permits, fire life safety, ADA, zoning variances, change of use. You'll run the civil engineers, FLS specialists, and local architects of record on each project, and you'll know the code officials and inspectors in each city well enough that they pick up when you call. You'll juggle several projects at different stages without dropping a deadline.

• FF&E and product specification

  • You'll research and spec the furniture, equipment, and branded materials that go into every Primer campus. You'll build a vendor list and product catalog other teams can order from. And you'll find the value engineering wins that save money without cutting corners on the student experience.

 

What we're looking for

• 5+ years in architectural project management, interior design, or something close, with real ownership from design through construction

• Experience building design standards or prototypes for multi-location rollout (a big plus)

• Background in schools, retail, or hospitality, anywhere physical space matters to the people using it

• Deep knowledge of building codes, ADA, fire life safety, zoning, and permitting across multiple jurisdictions