"Growing up, I experienced the impact of mediocre schools that serve students of color. Over the course of my life, I've heard my former classmates say 'school just didn't work for me.' This deeply troubles me, and is also what brought me to PartnersSI. As a teacher, I got great results with the students in my class, and felt a need to impact educational outcomes for more than just my 20 children. I see our work at PartnersSI - working alongside school leaders to transform schools into systems that work for all students - as a way to achieve that broader impact."

-- Nefertiti Orrin, School Innovation Partner

Partners in School Innovation (or "PartnersSI") is a non-profit organization that partners with teachers and leaders of public elementary schools and districts in low-income urban communities to develop the capacity and expertise necessary to accelerate the literacy achievement of routinely underserved African American and Latino students and English Learners. PartnersSI is the only organization in the Bay Area that provides a combination of on-site strategy, coaching and side-by-side implementation. We build core knowledge and skills at multiple levels - district leaders, principals, mid-level leaders and classroom teachers - to ensure that improvement is aligned and sustained across the system. Working in teams, School Innovation Partners (or "SIPs"), collaborate with principals and teacher leaders to build a strong core instructional program at schools, create integrated school-level systems and structures that support professional learning and strengthen instructional leadership with the ultimate goal of dramatically increasing student achievement.

We are seeking full-time SIPs who are deeply committed to bringing about educational equity. SIPs are extraordinary urban teachers, principals or other school leaders who have gotten breakthrough results in their own classrooms and schools and know first-hand that all children can and will learn at high levels. Our SIPs embody the mindsets and practices we aim to engender in our partners - our SIPs represent the change we seek in our schools. We are currently accepting applications for the 2010-11 school year, to begin July, 2010.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

Our SIPs come to PartnersSI from a broad spectrum of backgrounds and bring with them varying levels of expertise in classroom instruction and/or leadership development. Recognizing this diversity, we seek individuals who are capable of assuming or demonstrate the potential to assume the following responsibilities:

1. Developing instructional leadership. SIPs work with principals and teacher leaders to implement the key actions needed to build and sustain the core instructional program and professional learning system. These actions include:

• Setting a clear and compelling vision and establishing school-wide goals for student achievement and school capacity
• Developing a theory of action for reaching goals, as well as an instructional action plan for putting that theory into action
• Implementing a system for monitoring implementation and outcomes and adjusting the school's approach to improvement

2. Creating integrated systems and structures that support professional learning, specifically:

• Building effective leadership teams that guide whole staff development, instructional coaching and grade-level collaboration and lead the effort to meet student learning goals across the school
• Designing and, in some cases, facilitating grade-level collaboration in which teachers plan standards-based instruction together, analyze their results and adjust practice using our Results-Oriented Cycle of Inquiry (ROCI) as described on our website (http://www.partnersinschools.org/program/theory.html#ROCI)
• Planning high-quality whole staff development on high-priority instructional strategies, attuned with the needs of English Learner, Latino and African American students
• Strengthening instructional coaching that provides teachers with differentiated support to improve instructional practice

3. Building a strong core instructional program. SIPs work with grade-level teams of teachers to build and integrate the individual pieces of a sound core instructional program that meets the needs of all students to ensure sustained student-achievement results. This includes:

• Establishing or strategically adjusting the scope and sequence of a rigorous standards-based curriculum in literacy and English Language Development (ELD)
• Using a comprehensive set of assessments and analyzing results to identify student needs and determine next steps for instruction and intervention
• Developing standards-based lessons that incorporate key pedagogical practices that scaffold learning for all students, particularly African American, Latino and English Learner students
• Building a system of strategic interventions for struggling learners
• Planning and refining weekly instruction through the results-oriented planning

4. Contributing to the PartnersSI program. In addition to their responsibilities at the school sites, SIPs actively contribute to the development and refinement of the overall PartnersSI's program. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to: internal professional development, program development, staff recruitment and fundraising and external relations.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required:

• Bachelor's degree
• Proven experience as a high-performing teacher (minimum two years in the classroom) in an urban school setting
• Demonstrated knowledge of and experience contributing to effective, systems-level reform, beyond the classroom
• Knowledge of and experience delivering standards-based instruction
• Aptitude for collecting, analyzing and using data to inform instructional planning and strategic intervention
• Knowledge of pedagogical strategies for accelerating student learning
• Passion for and commitment to achieving educational equity
• Racial and cultural competence - an understanding of the role of racism in the inequities of the public school system
• An orientation toward problem solving and value creation - can identify root causes of problems and develop results-oriented solutions
• High degree of initiative, independence and tenacity, particularly in complex situations
• Effective interpersonal communication skills w/diverse audiences
• Positive-mindedness, resiliency and ability to act in ambiguous circumstances

Preferred:

• Coaching or consulting skills and experience - specific experience coaching adults through a change process is highly desirable
• School administration experience
• Advanced degree in education or related field
• Fluency or high degree of proficiency in Spanish

COMPENSATION

Salary commensurate with experience. We also offer a generous benefits package that includes health/dental/vision insurance, vacation and sick leave as well as a 403(b) retirement plan.

Read about a typical day-in-the-life of a School Innovation Partner