Early Literacy Achievement Director

KIPP New Jersey • Newark, NJ

9h • Hybrid

About The Position

The Early Literacy Achievement Director serves as a key member of the Teaching & Learning TEAM at KIPP New Jersey. This role will be largely Newark and Paterson based, with expectations to be on site in Newark/Paterson schools most days each week.

Requirements

• Kid- and teacher-focused: makes recommendations and plans based on what is best for kids and teachers ; exhibits a front-line obsession.
• Leadership experience -- must have served as a School Leader, Assistant Principal, or network leader for two years or more. As a coach and leader for other leaders in our organization, the person in this role needs to have walked the walk.
• Exceptional content knowledge and alignment to our instructional vision -- knows the ins and outs of everything related to standards, assessments, and best practices within the discipline.
• Strong data analysis skills: can look at an assessment and data set (including sets of student work), diagnose challenges, and immediately recommend clear next steps for instructional leaders and/or teachers.
• Presence and gravitas: can command the attention of a room when delivering feedback, explaining data, or leading professional development.
• Responsiveness, service orientation, and ability to invest and inspire others -- the T&L TEAM exists to support and serve our schools, and so a top-down mentality will not work well.
• Big picture thinking -- can develop and drive a vision that will serve schools across multiple cities. Does not get bogged down by logistics or uncertainty.
• Detail-orientation -- while keeping an eye trained on the big picture, simultaneously does not let important details slip through the cracks.
• Excellent communication skills -- can speak and write compellingly about the discipline and all the nitty gritty details stakeholders will need to know in order to achieve results.
• Proactiveness – does not wait for explicit direction but rather asks the appropriate questions and self-directs; takes on additional projects without compromising the integrity of existing ones.
• Flexibility -- sees unforeseen obstacles and challenges as an opportunity to design a better solution.

Nice To Haves

• An advanced degree in Literacy, or extensive study in the science of reading.

Responsibilities

• Design and Deliver Responsive Curriculum & Assessments in Early Literacy: Develop an early literacy program (curriculum, assessment, implementation support) that upholds our vision for literacy instruction and long-term learning at KIPP New Jersey centered around the science of reading and DIBELS progress monitoring. Work from the curriculum resources our schools have already adopted, and continue to iterate on and modify these materials based on data and needs. Develop rigorous assessments that align to the grade level expectations for each grade, and progress developmentally as our students advance in reading level proficiency centered around the science of reading and DIBELS progress monitoring. Develop (and modify as needed) the scope and sequence of lessons across elementary grades. Prepare module overviews and guidance for internalization for each unit of study. Monitor the implementation of the curriculum, and make and communicate changes and improvements to content as needed. Review and respond to assessment data by making adjustments and modifications to the literacy curriculum and/or by deploying coaching support to places most in need. Develop expectations and protocols for superior intellectual prep for all aspects of our literacy program and approach.
• Coach and Support the Implementation of the Academic Program: Support our schools to get extraordinary results in reading level proficiency, focusing on the primary grades, by engaging in coaching & strategy sessions with each elementary school in our Newark and Paterson regions. By working with instructional leaders in each school, build our school-based leaders’ content knowledge and instructional leadership capacity -- this may include engaging in walk-throughs, student work analysis protocols, coaching O3s, leading and monitoring content meetings, supporting PD implementation, and more. Analyze data and student work from major assessments with instructional leaders at each school and make recommendations about responding to misconceptions and implementing instructional next steps. Serve as a point person for all things programmatic, operational, data-related, and logistical – from assessment questions to materials management – related to elementary literacy curriculum.
• Lead and Engage in Professional Development: As a resident content expert, lead professional development for leaders and teachers in accordance with the T&L team’s annual professional development strategy, including AP Cohort Meetings, One TEAM, One Sound, Leading For Learning, Heartbeat Summit, etc. Note that, depending on the PD strategy, group sizes for professional development sessions may exceed 100 depending on the PD venue. Support content TEAM meetings in elementary literacy, on an as-needed basis. Engage in research and professional development opportunities within and outside of the T&L team, to continuously grow and develop our team’s knowledge based, spread best practices, and improve on our collective coaching and leadership skills.
• Serve as an Outstanding TEAMmate on the Teaching & Learning TEAM: Collaborate with the Elementary School Achievement Director(s) in KIPP Miami and KIPP Camden, serving as a thought partner for how to modify curriculum and program to fit the Miami context. Participate in the EKG Walk-Through process, to objectively score schools on instructional practice and to generate feedback designed to move schools forward. Participate in teacher rubric scoring and rating, to help schools norm their scoring and calibrate the rubric scores for all teachers in a building. Participate in routine meetings with the T&L team, to solve tactical matters, engage in strategic work together, build vertical content knowledge and program, etc. Participate in routine meetings with Heads of Schools, School Leaders, and APs, to solve tactical matters, engage in strategic work together, and respond to the most pressing needs our schools have.

Benefits

• Robust benefits that include medical, dental, and vision
• Participation in the New Jersey Teachers Pension and Annuity Fund, provided appropriate teacher certification and role classification
• Optional participation in the KIPP NJ 403b retirement plan, including matching contributions
• A school-issued laptop
• Transportation benefits for TEAMmates commuting into Newark from the New York City area
• Generous Time-Off including 3.5-4 school vacation weeks (depending on the year), allocated sick and personal days, and an extended summer break
• Up to 12 weeks 100% parental leave for primary caregivers
• Employer paid life insurance
• Extensive optional ancillary benefits including, short term and long term disability and accident and hospital indemnity

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager