Expert Teacher - Spanish Language Arts (Anticipated)

DISTRICT OVERVIEW

Holyoke Public Schools is a PreK-12 public school district serving nearly 4,800 students, of whom 80 percent are Latino/Latina, in 11 schools. We employ nearly 1,300 people who together educate and support a richly diverse community of learners. We are committed to recruiting and retaining top-quality educators who believe all children can and will learn and who strive daily to make school a joyful place of discovery, support, and belonging.

Holyoke Public Schools’ strategic plan, “Moving Forward Together,” builds on the strengths of our past while serving as a call to action to accelerate student learning by thinking differently about how we teach, how we work together, and how we support students’ well-being. 

Many successes contributed to Holyoke’s return to local governance after 10 years in state receivership. These include:

• The highest graduation rate on record of 77.1 percent, an increase of more than 15-points over 10 years
• Meaningful, applied learning opportunities for high school students, including theme-based academies, career vocational technical education programming, work-based learning, and advanced coursework
• A comprehensive approach to early literacy that includes strong core instruction and one-on-one tutoring, contributing to more students reading at grade level
• A thriving dual language English/Spanish program, where nearly 900 students are on their path to becoming bilingual, biliterate, and bicultural

• More than one-third of Holyoke teachers identify as people of color, a 19-point increase over 10 years. Many partnership programs support staff to earn licensure or additional certification.

Please visit the Holyoke Public Schools website to learn more about us, our recent accomplishments, and our commitment to equity. 

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PERSPECTIVA GENERAL DEL DISTRITO

Las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke son un distrito escolar público que cuenta con 11 escuelas de prekínder a 12.° grado y acoge a casi 4 800 estudiantes, de los cuales el 80 % se identifica como latino o latina. Empleamos a casi 1 300 personas que, en conjunto, educan y apoyan a una comunidad de estudiantes altamente diversa. Estamos comprometidos a contratar y retener educadores de alta calidad que creen firmemente que todos los niños pueden aprender y aprenderán, y que se esfuerzan diariamente por hacer de la escuela un lugar alegre de descubrimiento, apoyo y pertenencia.

El plan estratégico de las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke , “Avanzando Juntos”, se basa en nuestras fortalezas previas y, al mismo tiempo, sirve como un llamado a la acción para acelerar el aprendizaje estudiantil a través de una nueva perspectiva sobre cómo enseñamos, cómo trabajamos en colaboración y cómo apoyamos el bienestar de los estudiantes. 

Existen numerosos logros que permitieron a Holyoke recuperar el control local después de 10 años de administración judicial.  Entre estos logros se encuentran:

• La tasa de graduación más alta registrada, del 77.1 %, lo que representa un aumento de más de 15 puntos porcentuales en 10 años
• Oportunidades significativas de aprendizaje práctico para estudiantes de secundaria, que incluyen academias temáticas, programas de educación técnica y vocacional, aprendizaje basado en el trabajo y cursos avanzados
• Un enfoque integral de la alfabetización temprana que combina una sólida instrucción básica con tutorías individuales, lo cual ha contribuido a que más estudiantes lean a nivel de grado
• Un próspero programa bilingüe de inglés/español, en el que casi 900 estudiantes avanzan hacia el bilingüismo, la biliteracidad, y la biculturalidad.

• Más de un tercio de los maestros de Holyoke se identifican como personas de etnicidad diversa, lo que representa un aumento de 19 puntos porcentuales en 10 años. Diversas colaboraciones con programas que han contribuido a que miembros del personal obtengan sus certificaciones o credenciales adicionales.

Visite el sitio web de las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke para obtener más información sobre nuestra comunidad, nuestros logros recientes y  nuestro compromiso con la equidad. 

Instructional Coach/ Expert Teacher (IC/ET) are exceptional educators who are recognized as models of excellence. IC/ET have at least five years of relevant experience, possess deep expertise in their craft as an outstanding educator, and are able to support the continual development of all teachers. The IC/ET will collaborate/assist the District Academic Department and schools to support the district’s improvement, including but not limited to curriculum resource development, professional development facilitation, coaching staff, leading teacher collaboration, and participation in focus groups/additional training, etc. 

The Instructional Coach/Expert Teacher will focus on enhancing student learning and 

achievement leading to improved school performance. In order to accomplish these goals, the Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) will work with teachers and school administrators to enhance teachers’ ability to provide instruction that is engaging, academically rigorous, culturally responsive, builds off students' funds of knowledge, and aligned to the district adopted curriculum. The Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) will focus his/her work on the implementation of school and district priorities and adopted curricula, using student performance data and classroom observations to guide his/her work. Using the structures of department/grade level team meetings, professional development time, and classroom based coaching, the Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) will work with teachers in small groups and individually to support their improved practice. The School-based Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) will also be responsible for providing at least one cohort of students with explicit intervention to accelerate their learning and achievement. The Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) will complete 10 extra work days beyond the teacher’s contract in order to support the district (5 days determined by the District CIO- to occur primarily over the summer or DW PD days) and school-based planning (5 days determined by the principal).

Responsibilities 

Under the direction of the Associate Director of Multilingual Education: 

1. Thoughtfully and deliberately cultivate collaborative relationships with Spanish language arts teachers, Dual Language administrators and fellow Instructional Coaches (Expert Teachers) in order to effectively influence strong culturally responsive classroom practice. 

1. Work with the Academic Department and School leadership to ensure cohesive, districtwide use of best practices in coaching, develop/coordinate vertically aligned curriculum, and support consistent instructional practices. 

1. Work with teachers to ensure their instruction is aligned to the appropriate standards, curriculum, and assessments, as well as to help teachers enhance themselves as learners. This will include, but is not limited to: 
• Reviewing and analyzing curriculum resources to ensure teachers have all of the resources they need to address standards. 
• Reviewing and analyzing district assessments including ensuring appropriate biliteracy data tracking 
• Understanding the district scope and sequence (across all grade levels) 
• Maintain a confidential relationship with teachers in order to observe classroom instruction and offer comprehensive analysis and feedback 
• Conducting demonstrations and modeling lessons for classroom teachers 
• Lead Dual Language Teacher Leadership Committee and/or PLCs to increase content and pedagogical of content instruction 
• Attending professional development and sharing new learning with staff 

1. Plan and deliver professional development around strategies and supports specific to best practices in Dual Language Education
2. Cultivate a standards-based, data and results-oriented culture
3. Lead and participate in ongoing and job-embedded professional development for the purpose of conveying and/or gathering information related to content knowledge, pedagogy and coaching 
4. Collaborate with teachers, principals, and academic directors in determining appropriate resources and materials for future purchases. Review and revise current curriculum materials to ensure that all resources represent diverse cultural experiences and support anti-racist goals of the district.
5. Serve as a resource in identifying appropriate research-based instructional strategies and interventions to improve student learning and achievement
6. Serve as content experts/consultants on school-based or district learning walks
7. Support Associate Director with efforts to standardize policies and procedures across the program (such as: dl expansion plans, scope-and-sequence for the partner language, policies regarding referrals and retention for language learners, student recruitment and lottery procedures) and monitor their implementation.
8. Participate in writing grant applications for additional funding for materials, teacher professional development, evaluation, assessment, and so forth.

Eligibility and Qualifications

Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher) Eligibility

To qualify as an Instructional Coach (Expert Teacher), you must:

• Demonstrate that you are culturally competent in your teaching, teamwork, and leadership practices
• Commitment to support the implementation of culturally responsive and anti-racist teaching practices to promote equity for all students
• Experience and skill to lead adults on the implementation of effective anti-racist, high-quality teaching practices
• Ability to build strong, supportive relationships with students, teachers, and families
• Experience as a teacher leader or Instructional Coach preferred
• Bilingual (Spanish/English), preferably Spanish dominant 
• Meet the criteria to be an Advanced Teacher
• Completed at least five years of full-time K-12 relevant teaching in Spanish in a dual language program, successful urban experience preferred
• Possess or able to obtain a Professional Massachusetts teaching license in the content area assigned (Math, ELA/Reading, ESL)
• Possess or eligibility to earn the MA Bilingual Endorsement 
• A Master’s degree from an accredited college or university preferred

Additional Qualifications

• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Strong interpersonal skills
• High expectations for self and others, and the ability to help others meet those high expectations
• Proven leadership and exceptional ability to lead people
• Ability to organize workload independently and set priorities; to adapt quickly to changing priorities; and perform multiple interrelated tasks under deadline pressures
• Experience with dual language curriculums and assessment platforms
• Proven track record of strong strategic planning and problem solving
• Understanding of student-centered coaching models
• Strong understanding of the principles of dual language education

Compensation

The annual base salary of Instructional Coaches (Expert Teacher) will be $85,000. Instructional Coaches (Expert Teacher) will be reviewed and re-appointed every two years based on effectiveness in the role.

Salary : $51,000 - $73,000