2019-2020: Teaching Resident

About Caliber Schools Our mission at Caliber Schools is to shift the experiences, expectations, and outcomes for students in historically underserved communities. We provide students with a challenging and engaging education that equips them with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in college, career, and community. 
Caliber's four graduate pillars--Heart, Smart, Think, Act--guide our work. Caliber graduates will be academically college ready; have emotional intelligence or 'EQ'; be critical thinkers, and have the skills and desire to be changemakers in their communities and the world. We are a community-based organization and celebrate the diversity of the communities we serve. Our parents are active partners; frequently engaging through school events, restorative practices, and academic support.
We are looking for educators and leaders who want to join a small but growing team of diverse community schools. Our first school, Beta Academy in Richmond, CA, opened in 2014 and is now a fully grown K-8 serving 800 students. ChangeMakers Academy in Vallejo, CA opened in fall 2016 and serves 700 students, TK-8th grade. Our long-term vision is to serve students K-12 in our immediate and surrounding communities.
 
Position Summary Caliber Schools is excited to launch the search for our second cohort of Caliber Teaching Residents. In partnership with the Alder Graduate School of Education and the University of Pacific, our Teacher Residents will participate in a rigorous and supportive teacher preparation program. Modeled after medical school residency, Teaching Residents will work as a co-teacher alongside a Master Teacher for 1 year while simultaneously completing coursework towards a Masters of Education and CA Teaching Credential from the University of Pacific.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities

1. Organize classroom systems/procedures and manage student behavior to ensure all students are fully engaged in learning
2. Arrive on time and attend all expected seminar days with the Residency Program
3. Establish a culture of high expectations that includes academically rigorous instruction for all students
4. Develop and implement lesson plans and classroom activities consistent with Common Core State Standards and Caliber Instructional Methods (initially with support from your mentor teacher and coaches)
5. Facilitate restorative practices including Morning Circle, Toolbox curriculum, and mindfulness.
6. Assess students regularly in accordance with Caliber frameworks, examine student assessment data, and refine classroom activities to differentiate instruction for each student
7. Collaborate closely with Caliber team members (both grade-level and school-wide) to align curriculum across subjects, improve own and others' instructional practices and share best practices
8. Actively participate in professional development activities, including: training sessions and working with lead teachers, Principal, and Instructional Coach(es)
9. Provide students and their families with regular and timely information on classroom activities and student progress; finds ways to involve parents/guardians in their students' education
10. Track critical student information and maintain accurate student records, including attendance, in accordance with Caliber procedures
11. Identify unique student needs and collaborate with other team members and outside service providers; diagnose and address learning challenges
12. Demonstrate knowledge and support of Caliber Schools' mission, vision, value statements, standards, policies and procedures, operating instructions, confidentiality standards, and the code of ethical behavior.
13. Perform other related duties as required and assigned

Organizational Relationship
Residents report to the Alder Teaching Residency Director, as well as the Caliber Site Principal, and Mentor Teacher. Each resident works closely with other site-specific and Caliber-wide staff.
Number of days of co-teaching and full-time teaching
Candidates are in the classroom with their Mentor doing co-teaching four days per week for 37 weeks of the school year. When calculating holidays/etc, it can be safely estimated that during our 188-day school year Caliber Teacher Residents spend:

• 141 days co-teaching with a Master Mentor teacher
• 24 days teaching solo (15 days during 3 take-over weeks and 9 days while Mentors attend full-day training)
• 24 days in full-day seminar classes

Qualifications
Skills:

• Purposefulness: Understands, embraces and consistently takes deliberate action to achieve Aspire University's and Caliber's visions and missions; including long term goal setting, backwards mapping from the goal(s) and taking steps along the path toward the goal(s).
• Ownership: Consistently holds self and others accountable for results, actions and decisions
• Collaboration: Develops strong relationships with colleagues, works from a "one for all, all for one" premise in order to accomplish more together than is possible alone
• Customer Service: Empathetically understands the needs and desires of the students and families we serve
• Quality: Demonstrates a commitment to excellence and the discipline to continually improve; including the habit of reflection and analysis of what worked and what did not work and best next steps
• Perseverance: Remains committed and actively engaged even when faced with difficult challenges
• Communication: Demonstrates capacity to speak and write clearly
• Commitment to Teaching as a Lifelong Profession: Believes that learning to teach is a lifelong endeavor worthy of the pursuit

Experience:

• Preferably 1-2+ years of experience working with youth in a high-needs community
• 1-2 years of leadership experience in an academic, athletic, musical, extracurricular or community setting.

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree by June 2019
• Have maintained a GPA of 3.0 or higher on the last 60 semester of 90 quarter units earned*
• (*Individuals with a GPA below 3.0 may apply, but must include a written explanation of the circumstances that contributed to a lower GPA in order to be considered.)

 
Caliber Schools provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws.