Full-Time Director of Curriculum and Instruction (Cambridge)
Job Description
ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW
About Us and Our Philosophy
Breakthrough Greater Boston (BTGB) is a transformative college access and teacher training program. BTGB offers six years of academic enrichment and college preparation to middle school and high school students with high potential but limited opportunities. Simultaneously, BTGB recruits, trains and inspires a diverse cohort of high achieving college students to become the next generation of urban teachers. Leveraging a Students Teaching Students model, BTGB provides engaging, tuition-free academic programming during the summer and after school. Our students gain the skills and motivation to succeed in rigorous high school courses and, ultimately, in college. Meanwhile, our teachers gain hands-on experience, research-based training and coaching from professional educators.
Over the past eight years, 97% of our graduating students have matriculated to college, and 82% of them have persisted through their undergraduate years. On average, more than 70% of our graduating teachers have gone on to pursue careers in education. After two decades of success at our original Cambridge site, BTGB embarked upon a significant program expansion and opened a second site in Boston in the summer of 2013 and a third site in Somerville in 2018. As an independent 501c3 nonprofit, Breakthrough Greater Boston is part of The Breakthrough Collaborative, a national educational movement working to improve educational outcomes for youth across 25 U.S. cities.
With a deep commitment to our mission, BTGB operates with the highest standards of integrity and best practices, while also enjoying the ability to be innovative and flexible to meet the evolving needs of our students, families and teachers. Our team is diverse, high-performing and dedicated. We continue to build an organizational culture that emphasizes our core values for every member of our community:
- Spirit: We cherish and embody the youthful energy and spirit of our students and teachers
- Continual Learning: Everyone in our community has something to learn and something to teach
- Team Together: We all chip in to accomplish whatever is needed for our teammates and the broader organization
- Student Centered: Our students are our first priorityand our decisions center around what benefits our students
- Equity and Opportunity: We value diversity of identity, background and thought. We treat everyone with dignity and respect
- Excellence in Everything: We maintain high expectations for ourselves
Breakthrough Greater Boston encourages individuals of all backgrounds to apply for this position, and we do not discriminate on any basis prohibited by applicable law. We celebrate the diversity of our world and our community, and we seek to build a team that reflects that diversity in every way. We welcome and encourage all qualified applicants who share that same vision, as we wish to engage all those who can contribute to our work and this mission.
THE OPPORTUNITY
Breakthrough Greater Boston is currently seeking a highly motivated and talented Director of Curriculum and Instruction (DCI) to oversee all aspects of teaching and learning for our middle school summer and school-year programs at the Cambridge Campus. The DCI will be responsible for hiring, training and supervising Teaching Fellows and Instructional Coaches; ensuring high-quality classroom instruction; and evaluating student learning and teacher performance. In addition, the DCI will provide ongoing support with student recruitment, admissions, placement and support for our middle school students. The DCI works closely with other members of a dynamic nine-person Program Team and reports directly to the Senior Director of Middle School Programs.
POSITION OUTCOMES
A successful Director of Curriculum and Instruction will:
- Plan and lead safe and engaging programming during the summer and school year for middle school students and Teaching Fellows
- Hire, train and supervise a high performing and diverse team of Teaching Fellows and Instructional Coaches
- Develop hands on, culturally responsive and rigorous curriculum that aligns with both district and state standards
- Oversee assessment efforts to ensure students and Teaching Fellows make gains; use data to inform program and curriculum decisions
- Work closely with the Director of Student Services to ensure all middle school students are well supported in their academic and social emotional learning
YOUR CONTRIBUTION
In this exciting role you will be responsible for leading the Teacher Training Program, curriculum development and student evaluation at our Cambridge campus. Specifically, you will:
Program Management
- Work in collaboration with the rest of BTGB’s full-time program team to:
- Plan and implement summer and school-year programs
- Oversee the day-to-day operations of year-round academic programming
Teacher Hiring, Training and Support
- Lead Teaching Fellow recruitment and admissions, selecting 100 outstanding candidates from a pool of several hundred
- Conduct Instructional Coach recruitment and admissions, yielding a team of highly capable, seasoned classroom teachers from a diverse set of local schools
- Plan and lead teacher training and professional development, including a two week pre-summer teacher orientation and weekly professional development events, with the support of Instructional Coaches
- With the support of Instructional Coaches, oversee and conduct Teaching Fellow evaluation, gauging teachers’ progress toward agreed upon standards of performance
- Train, supervise and support Teaching Fellows and Instructional Coaches, ensuring that all achieve mastery of the instructional and classroom management strategies utilized by BTGB
- Drive summer career exploration activities, such as educator panels, connect Teaching Fellow alumni to post-BTGB career opportunities, write recommendations for Teaching Fellows and Instructional Coaches and participate in instructional workgroups and special projects
Curriculum and Assessment
- Oversee the design and implementation of engaging and rigorous year-round academic programming with the support of Instructional Coaches and other professional educators (In particular, provide structure for aligning course skill objectives with material taught in the most rigorous college-preparatory high school classes)
- Develop and oversee student evaluation and assessment, including pre- and post-testing, as well as a wide range of formative and summative assessments
- Track progress toward and report on annual goals for student and Teaching Fellow achievement
- Maintain a resource library to ensure that Teaching Fellows have access to relevant, high-quality teaching materials
Student Support
- Assist with student recruitment and admissions
- Assist with student advocacy work, maintaining positive relationships and frequent communications with families and school personnel
YOUR BACKGROUND AND QUALIFICATIONS
- Passion for the mission of BTGB, closing opportunity gaps and training the next generation of urban teachers
- At least three years of professional teaching experience with underserved students, preferably in grades 6-9
- Significant experience with curriculum development and implementation
- Experience mentoring and training pre-service or new teachers; ability to hold others to high standards while also offering support and maintaining positive relationships
- Superior organization and project management skills
- Ability to work on multiple projects, adjust quickly to shifting priorities, meet deadlines, exercise good judgment and handle high-pressure situations
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to interact effectively with a variety of audiences
- Team player who demonstrates a positive attitude, sense of humor, energy, entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to collaboration
- Prior experience with Breakthrough model highly desirable; familiarity with Cambridge Public Schools a plus
- Flexibility that allows for periodic work on Saturdays and evenings
- Candidates of color and those from low-income backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply as are those with fluency in Spanish, Haitian Creole, Amharic, Somali, Arabic, Bengali, Hindi, Tigrinya or Urdu
- Bachelor’s degree
How to Apply
HOW TO JOIN OUR TEAM If you are interested in learning more about how your passion and experience can help Breakthrough meet its mission and grow its impact, please submit your resume and a thoughtful and targeted cover letter outlining how your skills and experience meet the qualifications of the position and stating how you heard about this opportunity. Applications can be submitted to Paulina Murton, Senior Director of Middle School Programs, at jobs@btgbmail.org. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Learn more about Breakthrough Greater Boston at www.breakthroughgreaterboston.org.389 total views, 0 today