Database Services Manager (IT Director I) - 60025271

About the Department

The mission of the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is to serve students, support teachers, empower parents, and engage the community so that every student graduates prepared to reach their full potential.

Job Purpose:

The Database Services Manager serves as the agency's senior director of data platform strategy, enterprise reporting governance, and data engineering operations within the Office of Information Technology (OIT). This position holds Director-level accountability for the full lifecycle of SCDE's data assets — from statutory federal and state reporting obligations through modern data platform delivery — and leads a team of data engineers and reporting analysts.

The Database Services Manager sets the strategic direction for database and data engineering platforms across the agency and leads the multi-year Database Modernization Program to migrate SCDE’s database and data platform footprint to Microsoft Azure. This includes retiring legacy on-premises SQL Server and SAS-based systems, standing up an Azure-native database architecture, and delivering the platform capabilities required to support both statutory reporting and modern data engineering workloads. The role ensures uninterrupted delivery of mission-critical federal obligations (EdFacts, SC Report Card, PowerSchool) throughout the transition and serves as the primary accountability point to agency leadership and external regulators for all database reporting, quality, and governance matters.

This role operates with significant autonomy, represents SCDE in cross-agency data governance forums, and is responsible for building a high-performing, future-ready data team capable of sustaining both compliance operations and modern analytics delivery.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership and Program Direction (25%)

• Define and own the agency-wide data platform strategy, including database architecture standards, data engineering tooling, and the multi-year roadmap for modernizing reporting infrastructure.
• Set direction for how SCDE collects, stores, governs, and delivers data across all program areas — aligning platform decisions with agency strategic priorities and federal compliance requirements.
• Serve as the primary OIT voice on data strategy to the Chief Information Officer (CIO), agency leadership, and external partners including National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), United States Department of Education (USED), and SC state oversight bodies.
• Evaluate and recommend technology investments in data platforms, BI tools, and cloud data services; develop business cases and present to leadership for approval.
• Establish and enforce data governance policies, standards, and architecture review processes across the agency.
• Monitor industry trends and emerging technologies; translate relevant developments into strategic recommendations for the agency.

Statutory Reporting and Federal Compliance (25%)

• Participates in and shares responsibility for the timely and accurate delivery of federal and state statutory reporting obligations, including EdFacts submissions, the SC Report Card, PowerSchool integrations, Military Recruitment lists, and public records responses (GovQA).
• Establish and maintain compliance frameworks for Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), state data privacy requirements, and agency reporting policies; serve as the primary point of escalation for reporting compliance issues.
• Direct the team's response to federal format changes, new reporting mandates, and submission deadline requirements — coordinating across program offices, IT, and external agencies.
• Lead preparation and support for internal and external audits related to statutory data, including responding to federal data quality reviews and corrective action plans.
• Represent SCDE in federal and state data governance working groups; negotiate reporting requirements and advocate for agency positions with oversight bodies.

Database Modernization and Azure Migration (25%)

• Lead the agency’s database modernization program, directing the migration of on-premises database platforms to Microsoft Azure. Define the target-state architecture, migration sequencing, cutover planning, and rollback strategy for a multi-year Azure transition.
• Own the target-state Azure database architecture, including Azure SQL Managed Instance, Azure SQL Database, Azure Data Factory, Synapse Analytics, and Microsoft Fabric. Establish agency standards for Azure database provisioning, security, cost governance, and performance tuning.
• Establish DevOps, Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform/Bicep), and CI/CD practices for Azure database provisioning and deployment; set standards for code review, testing, security scanning, and change control.
• Drive cloud-first database strategy across SCDE, retiring legacy on-premises SQL Server and SAS-based platforms in favor of Azure-native services while maintaining zero-disruption continuity for statutory reporting workloads.
• Oversee vendor relationships for data platform tools and services; manage contracts, renewals, and license rationalization to optimize cost and capability.
• Oversee the Database Engineering team as they execute the Azure migration, directing shared infrastructure dependencies, migration sequencing, and platform governance standards.

Team Leadership and Organizational Development (15%)

• Lead, mentor, and develop the team of data engineers and reporting analysts; build a high-performing team culture grounded in accountability, continuous improvement, and mission focus.
• Own workforce planning for the data team: define staffing models, write position descriptions, lead recruitment, and make hiring decisions in coordination with Human Resources (HR) and OIT leadership.
• Conduct performance management including goal-setting, evaluations, coaching, and progressive discipline in accordance with state HR policy.
• Identify skill gaps and design professional development plans to build team capacity in Python, Power BI, Azure data services, and modern data engineering practices.
• Foster cross-functional collaboration between the data team, program offices, and technology partners; serve as an escalation point for inter-team conflicts and resource prioritization.

Data Request Management and Stakeholder Support (10%)

• Manage the internal data request pipeline (GovQA and ad hoc requests); establish Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and quality standards for timely delivery.
• Serve as a data advisor to program directors and agency leadership on data availability, reporting requirements, and compliance considerations.
• Prioritize and triage incoming data requests based on statutory deadlines, agency priorities, and team capacity.

Supervisory Responsibility

• This position carries full supervisory authority over the Database Services team, including Data Engineers and Reporting Analysts (direct and indirect reports). Supervisory responsibilities include hiring, performance management, professional development, workload prioritization, and if necessary, progressive discipline up to and including separation, in accordance with South Carolina state HR policy.

Budget and Vendor Accountability

• The Database Services Manager holds Director-level responsibility for the OIT data platform budget, including software licensing, cloud data services, and professional services contracts supporting the data engineering function. This position evaluates, recommends, and oversees contracts and vendor relationships in coordination with the CIO and agency procurement, and is accountable for cost optimization within the data platform portfolio.

This position is located in the Office of Information Technology.

Position Duties

A bachelor's degree in communications, business administration, information technology, mathematics, statistics, management information science or a related field and experience in telecommunications, data processing and/or information technology.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Information Systems, Statistics, or a related field; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Master's degree in a relevant field or equivalent advanced professional credentials.
• Ten (10) years of progressive experience in data engineering, database management, analytics, or enterprise reporting, with at least five (5) years in a leadership or management capacity.
• Demonstrated experience leading the modernization of regulated reporting environments from legacy platforms (SAS, SPSS, or similar) to modern data engineering stacks (Python, SQL, Azure, modern BI).
• Experience with statutory or regulatory data reporting in a government, education, or healthcare environment.
• Proven ability to manage and develop technical teams of five or more staff.
• Experience managing vendor relationships, software contracts, or technology budget accountability.
• Experience with K–12 education data standards and systems (Ed-Fi, CEDS, student information systems, longitudinal data systems).
• Direct experience with federal education reporting frameworks (EdFacts, NCES, USED data submissions).
• Experience with Azure data platform services (Azure SQL, Azure Data Factory, Synapse Analytics, Microsoft Fabric, Power BI).
• Experience leading cloud-first database migrations in production environments (Azure, AWS, or GCP).
• Experience managing teams of 8+ in a government, regulated, or public sector environment.
• Relevant certifications: PMP, ITIL, cloud data platform credentials (Azure Data Engineer, Google Cloud), or equivalent.
• Strong executive communication skills — able to translate technical data concepts for non-technical agency leadership, board members, and external regulators.

Other Qualifications

On-call availability required for mission-critical system incidents affecting federal reporting submissions or agency operations.

Occasional travel may be required for federal partner meetings, state data governance forums, or professional conferences.

As a part of a generous compensation package, we offer comprehensive benefits that include generous paid time off, preeminent health care benefits, professional development opportunities, pension, and a 401(k). 

The South Carolina Department of Education offers an exceptional benefits package that includes: 

• Health, Dental, Vision, Long Term Disability, and Life Insurance for Employee, Spouse, and Children. 
• 15 days annual (vacation) leave per year. 
• 15 days sick leave per year. 
• 13 paid holidays. 
• State Retirement Plan and Deferred Compensation Programs.

ONLY THOSE APPLICANTS CHOSEN FOR AN INTERVIEW WILL BE NOTIFIED BY LETTER THAT THE POSITION HAS BEEN FILLED.

http://www.ed.sc.gov/jobs/human-resources/title-ix-nondiscrimination/

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Agency Information

EmployerState of South CarolinaAgency Department of Education Address 849 Learning Lane

West Columbia, South Carolina, 29172 Phone803-734-8505