Director of Upper School Literacy, Curriculum Team
About Ascend Learning
Ascend Learning is paving a new path to college for students in Brooklyn. Founded in 2008, our high performing charter network will in 2015-16 serve more than 3,000 students at our five lower and three middle schools, and the founding Brooklyn Ascend High School. The mission of our schools is to equip every student with the knowledge, confidence, and character to succeed in college and beyond. With Ascend’s liberal arts, college-preparatory curriculum, vibrant school culture, and custom designed facilities, talented teachers are supported to fuel exceptional academic outcomes. We are looking for engaging and deeply committed educators to join us in our mission to close the achievement gap in Brooklyn.
Overview
The Director of Upper School Literacy is responsible for overseeing the development and network-wide implementation of Ascend’s Common Core-aligned upper school Humanities Program, which incorporates both explicit teaching and inquiry learning in grades 5-10. He or she oversees the upper school literacy curriculum team who write, adapt, curate, and pace research-based curricula materials and assessments. He or she will develop and deliver professional development in these curricula to school leaders and teachers; coordinate the work, when relevant, of third-party expert trainers and coaches; guide content study groups at every school; work closely with school leaders to ensure the highest fidelity implementations of these curricula; and, in collaboration with Ascend’s director of data and analytics, use academic data to adjust and focus instruction. To learn more about the Ascend model and leading at Ascend, visit www.ascendlearning.org/careers.
Responsibilities
Responsibilities of the Director of Upper School Literacy will include but are not limited to:
• Management Responsibilities:
Manage literacy assistant and associate directors, specialists, and consultants by providing formal and informal feedback on their work products, specifically, pacing charts, unit plans and assessments, and in some cases, specialized lesson plans.
• Oversee the Development of Pacing Charts and Assessments:
Write, adapt, curate, and revise pace original “Ascend-developed” humanities curricula aligned to Common Core standards for grades 5-10. S/he will oversee and write all assessments that result in a grade for scholars, in particular, all benchmarks, unit tests, and smaller assessment tasks, using free and commercially-available Common Core-style, Regents-style, and AP-style assessment items.
• Oversee the Development of Curriculum/Unit plans:
Develop exemplary curriculum materials that are aligned to the Common Core State Standards. This includes writing unit plans for both commercially-available literary programs and all elements of Ascend’s own Humanities Program for grades 5-10. Develop and train on the new upper school Humanities Program writing element.
• Facilitate Professional Development:
Design and deliver a range of ongoing professional development sessions (actual and virtual) that support the vision for the Humanities Program, implementation of the curriculum and growth of core literacy skills and knowledge. S/he will aid relevant school leaders in planning for or delivering Humanities Program content for teacher planning and development meetings to ensure that teachers deeply understand the content they teach. Lead, monitor and support “content study groups” of deans of instruction, grade team leaders, and Humanities teachers at every school to ensure that teachers deeply understand the content they will teach. Continuously research and study developments in English Language Arts instruction and best practices being implemented in excellent schools. On occasion, identify, qualify, and secure expert third-party curriculum coaches for certain programs to ensure that these programs are implemented with the highest fidelity; coordinate the work of these coaches in the schools.
• Monitor Program implementation:
Conduct monthly site visits focused on implementation at each school to push content-specific instructional practices, gather information on best practices and improve program fidelity and ELA instruction across all Humanities Program elements. Collect and analyze videos of exemplary teaching practices around strong implementation of literacy components and curate an initial body of annotated student work for each lower school literacy component. Conduct instructional rounds in schools with school leaders using Humanities Implementation checklists.
• Analyze Data:
Analyze student data using periodic reports and data meetings to determine how to better develop curriculum elements, incorporating initial implementation and feedback as part of the process. In collaboration with Ascend’s director of data and analytics, use academic data to adjust and focus instruction, using periodic reports and data meetings
• Collegiality:
Build positive and efficient working relations with the Ascend central Academic Team and with the Leadership Teams of each school.
Staff and Reporting Relationships
The Director of Upper School Literacy shall report to Ascend’s chief curriculum officer and collaborate closely with other members of the literacy team, the curriculum team, and Ascend’s academic team.
Skills and Traits
The Director of Upper School Literacy must demonstrate:
• A deep understanding of the Common Core ELA standards and New York’s Common Core-aligned state ELA assessments, and the NY Standards and Regents themes in English and history.
• A broad familiarity with ELA pedagogies and programs and effective practices
• Intimate knowledge of the Core Knowledge History and Geography scope and sequence and other leading, Common Core and Regents-aligned social studies and history sequences
• Exemplary curriculum and assessment writing skills
• Expertise in middle and high school literacy and research findings
• Superb organizational, project management, self-management skills, and problem-solving skills
• Strong management skills, including the ability to motivate and lead teams in fast-paced, high stakes projects
• Excellent presentation skills and the ability to train and coach educators
• Passion and commitment to urban education and our ultimate goal of closing the achievement gap
• Passion for reading literature and historical texts in a range of genres and forms and an appreciation for great writing in all genres.
• Insistence on academic excellence and rigor
• Excellent communication skills (written and oral)
• A hunger for feedback and an openness to engage in a process of self-improvement
• Alignment with the educational philosophy and core beliefs of Ascend Learning
• Maturity, humility, strong work ethic, and “roll-up-my-sleeves” attitude
Qualifications
• A sustained record of outstanding academic results as a literacy specialist in grades 5-10
• Four or more years teaching experience with exceptional results in literacy instruction
• Two or more years of experience hiring, managing and developing instructional staff and delivering outstanding professional development
• Bachelor’s degree, with an advanced degree strongly preferred
Compensation
Ascend Learning offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.
To learn more and apply, visit www.ascendlearning.org/careers.