Instructional Support Illinois Education Leadership Coach
Job Description
Our Why
Teach Plus is a national nonprofit whose mission is to empower excellent, experienced, and diverse teachers to take leadership over key policy and practice issues that advance equity, opportunity, and student access. The Teach Plus team exists to breathe life into the Student Opportunity Mandate: All students should have the opportunity to achieve their potential in an education system defined by its commitment to equity, its responsiveness to individual needs, and its ability to prepare students for postsecondary success. At the heart of our work is advocacy for collective impact, beginning with classroom teachers.
What We Do
At Teach Plus, we believe in equity-driven teacher leadership. When we invest in developing our most talented teachers into teacher leaders who are well-informed, persuasive, and prepared to lead, they have deep leverage in advancing equity for students, especially for students of color, low-income students, and those from underserved communities. To close the opportunity gap and to ensure equitable access to a world-class education for all students in the schools and communities we serve, we ignite systems change at multiple levels through our Policy Fellowship and Instructional Leadership programs designed to inspire and equip teachers. We are committed to lead change in our Equity Focus Areas.
Teach Plus’ Teacher-Led Practice Initiatives are innovative programs that engage, develop, and support teacher leaders to generate, implement and manage change in district and school practices and policies that impact teaching and learning, school culture and climate, and teaching practice. Teach Plus Illinois will be leading a new initiative to support teachers who have expressed interest in eventually becoming school administrators in a three-tiered learning fellowship for approximately 60 teacher leaders.
What You’ll Do
The Education Leadership Coach will develop, coach, and support teacher leaders from Tier 3 (11-12 teacher leaders), the most intensive tier of work. The coach will also design and facilitate monthly learning sessions for an additional 35-45 teacher leaders in Tiers 1 & 2. Working in partnership with the Illinois Senior Director of Instructional Programs and with support from the National Program Team, the Coach will support Tier 3 participants as they identify opportunities for equity-based change in their schools, make a case for change with their school leaders and colleagues, create and implement plans for creating change, and monitor the results. The Education Leadership Coach is a critical leadership opportunity for a skilled coach who is looking to support school change driven by teacher leaders.
Specifically, the Education Leadership Coach will be responsible for three pieces of work:
Teacher Leader Support and Development (80%)
- Plan and facilitate monthly learning sessions for teacher leaders in Tiers 1, 2, and 3 — approximately 20 sessions over the course of the school year. These learning sessions take place from 4:30-6:30pm. Half will take place in person, and the other half will be virtual.
- Provide one-on-one support to 11-12 Tier 3 teacher leaders as they:
- Plan and implement their individual change projects to advance the determined project goals;
- Plan for and deliver relevant school meetings as they implement their change projects;
- Build their capacity as leaders to advance their professional growth and leadership attribute-aligned growth goals.
- Create and foster the development of a Professional Learning Community and affinity space for teacher leaders as they lead individual change efforts focused on equity in their buildings to be able to reflect collectively, identify challenges, and share best practices across their schools.
- Facilitate quarterly progress check-ins with Tier 3 teacher leaders and their principals about their change project and leadership development.
- Monitor the progress of participants’ professional growth and adjust programming to best meet their needs.
- Build capacity to support teacher leadership, and share best practices, which include:
- Participating in any learning opportunities Teach Plus provides around coaching and distributed leadership. There is currently a professional learning community for leadership coaches in Teach Plus.
- Meet with the Evaluation Team to review data and discuss priorities.
- Identify opportunities for collaboration and best practice sharing with other regional and national coaches and regional directors.
- Foster Growth of Participants across the Leadership Attribute Continuum
- Ensure that the work of the teacher leaders involved is based on evidence and collaboratively achieves desired impact on teacher practice and student learning.
- Ensure that the primary work of Tier 3 participants is focused on improving teacher practice and, therefore, learning for all students through the use of change management and continuous improvement.
- Observe and strategically contribute to periodic Teacher Leader-led team meetings and professional development. Program Management Support (10%)
- Liaise with our district partner, including co-creating the curricula for the program and working with them on any program modifications for future years.
- Manage the initial phases of this initiative and monitor progress over the course of the year.
- Maintain accurate and timely data and enter the appropriate information into the Salesforce database for ongoing accountability reports.
- Works with the Illinois Senior Executive Director and the National Program Team to develop systems that allow teacher leadership to be implemented more efficiently and effectively and to communicate critical support, outcomes, metrics, and resource needs.
Other projects as assigned and as time permits (10%), which may include
- Shared School Leadership Learning Collaborative. Join in the planning sessions for the forthcoming CPS Shared School Leadership Learning Collaborative. The goal of this collaborative is to identify best practices in teacher leadership for Chicago’s schools and to create a framework for both teacher leadership and the skills that principals need to support teacher leadership. This learning collaborative will engage in a year-long research project, and the Coach can help develop research questions, analyze data, and collaborate on a final report.
- City Forward Training. As time permits, plan and facilitate five virtual learning sessions for City Forward’s teacher leadership and mentoring program. City Forward has created a peer-to-peer mentoring program for Milwaukee public school teachers, and the coach will present five learning sessions drawn from the pre-existing curricula.
What You’ll Need to be Successful
- 8+ years in the education field, with preference given to candidates who have a teaching background and experience as an assistant principal, Instructional Support Leader, or other school leadership experience in diverse school environments
- Experience in Chicago Public Schools a plus
- Experience in leadership development with teachers or school leaders, specifically around academic instruction, social-emotional learning, and/or culturally responsive pedagogy, is preferred
- Experience creating and building professional development materials and training
- A relentless focus on data, including analysis and using it to inform instruction and make continuous improvement decisions, and the ability to conduct difficult conversations around systemic barriers and disparate outcomes.
- Strong organizational and communications skills required; experience managing complex projects or initiatives preferred
- Commitment to and previous experience with educational equity and a belief in the power of teachers to bring about positive change for all students
Location
This role is a full-time position. This position is remote with the expectation of regular school-based coaching sessions, school visits, and in-person cohort meetings.
While this position is remote, candidates must be within reasonable driving distance from Chicago.
What We Offer
The salary band for this position is $80,000-$100,000. Teach Plus offers a benefits package including medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 3% matching 401k plan, disability, and life insurance, and Flexible Spending Accounts for medical and childcare expenses. Teach Plus offers generous time off benefits, including 15 vacation days, 3 personal days, 5 sick days, 11 holidays, and winter break. Teach Plus offers paid parental leave and a 4-week paid sabbatical for every five years of service.
Teach Plus is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from diverse candidates. Teach Plus does not discriminate in any aspect of employment based on race, color, ancestry or national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or age.
How to Apply
To apply, please complete an online application found here. Teach Plus will receive applications until the position is filled.
Application Link: https://teachplus.tfaforms.net/328207
