What are the responsibilities and job description for the Instructional Support Leader- Literacy position at Chicago Public Schools?
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is a district on the rise, serving over 320,000 students in 500 schools and employing over 44,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life. In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families, and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability, and integrity. Six core values are embedded within these commitments – student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.
Network One is located on the Northwest side of Chicago. The Network serves 24,000 students, families and community members across 38 elementary schools. In addition to our strong neighborhood and specialty programs, Network One supports Early Childhood and Regional Gifted Centers, Dual Language and International Baccalaureate, World Language, STEM and Fine and Performing Arts Programs.
Job Summary:
Under the direction of the Chief and Deputy Chief of Schools (Network 1), the Instructional Support Leader (ISL) supports instructional development and school-level improvement to drive academic achievement for elementary schools. Specific content expertise and requirements for the ISL will vary based upon the needs of the schools in the network but it is expected that all ISLs will be instructional experts with proven content expertise in at least one core subject (i.e., Literacy, Mathematics, Science) and/or with priority student groups (i.e. Diverse Learners and English Language Learners).
The preferred area of content expertise for this position is Literacy. This is a full-time, exempt position that will be paid for time worked on a salary basis.
The Instructional Support Leader- Primary Literacy will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:
- Under direction and guidance of the Chief and or Deputy Chief, implement a network strategic plan and continuous improvement strategies to drive academic improvement in a portfolio of schools by working with classroom teachers, school-based Instructional Leadership Teams, and school administrators.
- Build day to day instructional capacity of classroom teachers and school administrators in a portfolio of schools to deliver core district and network priorities. These priorities currently include (but are not limited to): implementation of Common Core State Standards,Foundational Skills, Overview of High-Quality Curriculum and Resources, including Skyline, implementation of Multi-Tiered System of Supports, implementation of the Framework for Teaching and College and Career Readiness.
- Provide differentiated instructional support by working directly with administrators, teacher leaders and teachers in the classroom, as appropriate, to model effective, research-based instructional practices, by working collaboratively with teacher teams to drive data-informed instructional planning, and by working with school-based leadership teams to actualize CCSS implementation at the classroom level.
- Consult and collaborate with Principals, Assistant Principals, school-based Instructional Leadership Teams, and fellow Network staff as needed to develop data-informed strategies to support development and implementation of the Network Strategic Plan and individual school CIWP. These strategies include (but are not limited to): curriculum development, professional development, direct support to classroom teachers, student outcome progress monitoring, and support of assessment plans and use of student level data.
- Design and lead professional development around Common Core implementation of Literacy content area for network teacher leaders and network administrators.
- Organize and communicate Network initiatives and/or District initiatives to support the improvement of instruction and academic achievement.
In order to be successful and achieve the above responsibilities, the Instructional Support Leader, Literacy must possess the following qualifications:
- High school diploma or GED equivalent
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
- Valid teaching certificate/Professional Educator’s License (PEL) issued by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) with appropriate content and/or grade level endorsement(s) is required. (Candidates with a valid out-of-state, reciprocal license will be considered but must obtain ISBE licensure within 6 months of hire.)
- Master’s degree preferred
Experience Required:
- A minimum of 5 years of classroom teaching experience coaching, designing, and facilitating professional development to classroom teachers and school leaders
- Ability to use multiple data sources to set measurable goals and strategically plan to complete the goals
- Ability to define problems, analyze data and develop action plans as part of a continuous improvement cycle
- Excellent communication skills: writing, speaking and listening, strong technology skills
- Endorsement in literacy and special education, strongly preferred
- Experience with curriculum mapping, unit planning, and formative progress monitoring
- Knowledge of research-based school improvement models and strategies
- Evidence of teacher leadership and collaboration
- Ability to articulate a vision, set high standards, and effectively guide schools and principals in the realization of expectations set
- Expertise in leadership development and instructional leadership. Ability to coach directors and managers toward excellence, build capacity of content area teams and develop meaningful and high impact professional communities for teachers and school leaders
- Strong verbal and written communication skills, including including presentations, listening, and writing
- High levels of instructional expertise, integrity, honesty, credibility, and the courage to make difficult yet necessary decisions
- Effective strategic planning capabilities, including the ability to establish long-term vision and goals, and align/manage activities toward goal fulfillment
- Strong leadership and team building skills, e.g. ability to develop high-performing teams united around a clear vision for serving schools and achieving student success
- Knowledge of operations, budget/finance, management and organizational development
- Ability to build collaborative relationships with a variety of constituent groups, including external partners, to ensure the entire system operates in the most effective manner possible to support schools and principals
- Ability to define problems, analyze data, and outline valid conclusions and action steps
Conditions of Employment:
As a condition of employment with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), employees are required to:
- Establish/Maintain Chicago Residency - Employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of their CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district. The Chicago residency requirement does not apply to temporary/part-time positions, however, all CPS employees must be residents of Illinois.
