Teacher High School English Teacher
Job Description
Intrepid College Prep is a growing network of public “no-excuses” college preparatory charter schools founded to address two interrelated achievement gaps – the academic achievement gap and intergenerational wealth gaps in the communities we serve.
Join the founding team of our flagship high school, Independence Academy, which educates students in grades 9-12 in the Antioch community. In the 2017-2018 school year, Independence Academy will educate 110 students in grade 9. Independence Academy will grow by one grade each year until we educate students in grades 9-12 in 2020.
The launch of our high school model draws upon the successes of our flagship middle school, Opportunity Academy. Intrepid College Prep was recently named a 2015 Tennessee Reward School for Progress and we have received local recognition from Metro Nashville Public Schools as an Excelling School in every year we’ve had the honor and responsibility to educate students.
We make three commitments to every student – admission to selective colleges, preparedness to engage the world as a financially literate young professional, and the cultivation of positive leadership skills.
The work is demanding – it is a tremendous investment of time, energy and smarts but the return on investment is extraordinarily high.
Teach English I at Independence Academy Independence Academy provides a liberal arts education, including the study of English literature and nonfiction,in a disciplined academic environment. Students apply critical reading, writing, and thinking skills to five fundamental genres: short stories, novels, nonfiction, poems, and plays. Students learn to identify characteristics of these genres and identify elements of fiction and literature including setting, theme, plot, symbolism, point of view, foreshadowing and irony. Students develop both their creative and expository writing skills through a variety of writing assignments, both formal and informal, including a major research paper. Students also practice and master editing techniques and apply them to their writing. Students develop public speaking skills through recitations and presentations. Finally, students develop reading comprehension, vocabulary and grammar skills and apply these skills to their assignments.
Eligibility Requirements
• Tennessee Certification in the appropriate content area, with track record of data-driven achievement.
English I Teacher Duties and Responsibilities
• Lay the foundation for the development of our English curriculum through the study of both classic and contemporary texts
• Facilitate classroom discussion so that students will be able to make connections between their own lives and the lives of others as they examine each author’s literary merit
• Collaborate with leaders and teachers over expanded summer professional development to create rigorous, standards-aligned curriculum including scope and sequence, long-term plan, unit plans.
• Collaborate weekly with leaders and teachers to develop interim, midterm, and final assessments
• Share teaching strategies, visit peer classrooms and analyze academic achievement data on a daily basis to develop best practice pedagogy
• Demonstrated experience or willingness to engage in a community where teaching is public (i.e. engaging in classroom visits, publication and critique of curriculum, observation and feedback cycles).
• Work with our ELL and Reading Specialists to support tremendous academic growth for ELL students and readers.
• Collaborate with Prepster Support Team weekly to develop a plan to meet the needs of all learners
• Serve as a House Advisor for 10-12 students, including developing relationships with families, monitoring each student’s academic progress and fulfillment of requirements in the Pre-Collegiate Training program
• Availability to participate in after school and Saturday tutoring programs.
• Availability and willingness to engage in a limited number of evening/weekend student recruitment and parent outreach events
• Have structured planning time (minimum of 100 minutes) built into the school day to plan the highest quality lessons
Successful English I teacher candidates possess the following characteristics:
• Intelligent, committed, gritty educators ready for challenge and the dogged pursuit of academic excellence.
• Dedication to educational success for students of color and low-income youth
• Demonstrated evidence of the ability to reflect and articulate the lessons learned from past experience
• Demonstrated evidence of strong content knowledge in English literature, language arts, and writing and ability to articulate the importance of English in a well-rounded high school education
• Experience with or demonstrated desire in leading Socratic Seminars and utilizing the Harkness Method
• Demonstrated ability to formulate higher-order, open-ended questions to lead students in scholarly conversation
• Demonstrated ability to articulate the criteria for exemplary student work
• Demonstrated ability to help students overcome conceptual difficulties in a specific content area
• Demonstrated evidence of excellent classroom management skills and ability to cultivate a rigorous classroom climate
• Minimum of two years teaching experience in an urban public school or charter school setting preferred, but not required.
• Highest commitment to improving curriculum and instruction through collaboration, best practices, regular assessment and data analysis
• Effective communication skills with students, parents, and colleagues
• Holds a B.A./B.S. degree with a minimum G.P.A. of 3.0
• Degree in subject area intended to teach (preferred)
• Speaks Spanish or has experience working with bilingual students (preferred)
• Belief in and alignment with Intrepid College Prep’s core beliefs and educational philosophy are nonnegotiable.
The position will begin in July 2017.
Compensation
We offer a generous compensation package. All staff members are equipped with the tools needed to succeed, including a dedicated work space, laptop computer, email, high-speed internet access, and all necessary supplies. Compensation is highly competitive; teachers are eligible to participate in the MNPS Retirement
System.
Commitment to Diversity
Intrepid College Prep is an equal opportunity employer. As an equal opportunity employer, we hire without consideration to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status or disability.
