CLASSROOM TEACHER

Educational Requirements: Bachelor’s Degree or Higher; Colorado Licensure strongly preferred, Gifted Education Endorsement and/or Coursework preferred

All teachers must meet the "highly qualified teacher" requirement as mandated by Colorado law. Requirements are as follows:

• Must have obtained a Bachelor's degree or higher;
• Must have demonstrated competency in the core academic subject area(s) that he/she teaches by passing a content area test or enough hours to be equivalent to a major (24 semester hours). The core academic areas are English; Reading or Language Arts; Mathematics; Science; Foreign Languages; Social Studies (Civics, Government, Economics, History, Geography); and the Arts (visual arts, Drama, Music).
• Must be “highly qualified” under an elementary model to teach all core subjects, including those at the 6th-8th grade levels.
• May have licensure/endorsement: The 3rd requirement, as mandated for public school employees, is Colorado teaching license/certification. As a charter school, AcademyACL has waived the requirement for state certification in order to provide its students with access to excellent teachers who are otherwise highly qualified. AcademyACL holds strong preference for teachers who hold Colorado licensure and gifted education endorsements and/or coursework in gifted education.

Candidate should have concentrations, research, and/or experience, and be prepared to continue to develop skills and expertise, in the following areas:

• Curriculum & Instruction for K8 Elementary Model Expectations
• Gifted Education

Candidate should be prepared to renew or achieve initial Colorado teaching licensure status continually, and to pursue Gifted Education Endorsement and/or coursework, and professional development if hired.

Position Start Date:  Typically, August 1 Pay Periods: monthly Curriculum Training Dates: Varies year to year

Reports To: Academy Director, Lead Teacher

Required Skills:

• Professional written and oral communication skills

• Excellent people-skills that include advocacy, co-teaching, and conflict-resolution skills, demonstrated partnership skills with parents, stakeholders, and community members
• Consistent implementation of high standards for educational ethics and best practices
• High capacity in all academic content areas for the expected level of the position
• Understanding and willingness to support learners with a variety of gifted educational needs and intensities, including twice-exceptional students, typical learning needs, and special education needs
• Personal Growth Mindset that welcomes and applies coaching feedback and celebrates goal achievement
• Effective teamwork with special education and the work of school psychologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech/language pathologists, school nurses, and other such specialists

Direct Reports: none

General Expectations: 

The Classroom Teacher is expected to provide a highly challenging, highly supportive gifted education program that meets the vision and the mission of AcademyACL under the guidance of the Academy Director and

• is expected to consider every student in the building as “my student,” and to build relationships with other students in the teaching team and within the school as appropriate.
• expected to instruct and support a wide range of developmental needs in multi-age classrooms and co-teach with encore teachers, specialists, and colleagues to provide robust learning experiences for students. 
• is expected to support all other teachers and staff members in the mission of AcademyACL. 
• is expected to contribute to a highly challenging and supportive school climate aligned with best practices in gifted education. 
• is expected to consistently use Capturing Kids’ Hearts strategies for a school-wide positive approach to working with students, parents, and colleagues.

Curriculum Development & Planning:

Classroom teachers are expected to use and contribute to the ongoing development of units of instruction that align with the Integrated Curriculum Model of Advanced Content, Big Ideas, and Differentiated Process & Products within AcademyACL’s Curriculum Guide.

• plan regularly with division and subject area teammates, attending planning and MTSS meetings during the school day during common planning times and before/after school as needed.
• AcademyACL’s Lifeskills curriculum is expected to be taught daily and integrated into lessons and units of instruction throughout the day.  Because the social-emotional needs of our students vary from year to year, our Lifeskills curriculum is reviewed and refined often, which requires flexibility and creativity from our classroom teachers in both the implementation of our curriculum and the communication around it.  

AcademyACL believes curriculum development is a collaborative process, and classroom teachers are expected to participate in frequent vertical alignment conversations to refine and streamline essential skills for each level.

Communication:

Classroom teachers are expected to communicate with families, stakeholders, and other school community members regularly to share celebrations of learning, plans for upcoming units of instruction and Lifeskills areas of focus, and important events. 

• Timely communication regarding testing data, behavior, or social situations, and individual family communication is also expected by phone, email, and in-person meetings, whether initiated by the classroom teacher or family. 
• Learning reports are completed each trimester and involve both standards-based scores and a full narrative of student progress for each student in a class, highlighting overall areas of study, strengths, and areas of growth for individual students. 
• Family conferences are held several times per year to allow for goal-setting conversations to take place, and additional conferences may be scheduled at the request of the family or teacher as needed throughout the school year.

Data Analysis, Differentiation, and Learning Plans:

Classroom teachers at all levels and all subject areas are required to collect, document, and analyze data using multiple evaluation methods, including formative and summative assessments, to inform instructional planning and differentiation for both remedial and advanced learning needs.  

• AcademyACL uses Branching Minds to capture standardized testing data from NWEA MAP, Acadiance/DIBELs, Aimsweb, and DESSA screeners several times throughout the school year, and teachers are required to use that data, along with their own in-classroom assessments to determine tier placement and interventions within the MTSS framework.  
• Standards-based grading is used to track progress for student achievement, documented in Alma, which is also used to communicate that progress to families and students.  
• Use of these systems is required on a regular basis to ensure that information about student progress is available to families at regular intervals throughout the school year.

Classroom teachers are responsible for developing students' Advanced Learning Plans in collaboration with the Gifted Coordinator, students, and families. Section 504 accommodation plans, Individualized Education Plans, and READ Plans are developed in collaboration with plan coordinators, interventionists, special education teachers, and specialists, and specific accommodations and plan components are implemented by classroom teachers.

Field Trips & Expeditionary Learning Experiences:

Classroom teachers and colleagues are expected to design field trips and offsite expeditions that enhance learning for AcademyACL students, such as performances, museum tours, hands-on learning experiences, or work with community organizations.  These learning experiences are required to correlate to current standards-based units of instruction and may include overnight experiences, service learning opportunities, and/or non-local travel.  

Leadership:

Classroom teachers are expected to model positive collaboration and effective teaching strategies and actively enable teammates, students, families, and others to act in ways that exemplify AcademyACL’s mission and vision.  This includes supporting positive relationships with PAACL, and accurately and effectively representing AcademyACL in community partnerships with local universities, organizations, and events.  Classroom teachers are expected to be present at several after-school or evening community events throughout the school year, either as a division representative, support or chaperone for the event or as a participant in the event itself.  

Further, classroom teachers are expected to contribute to the development of AcademyACL’s Unified Improvement Plan annually and its implementation and review the following year. They may be asked to serve on committees specific to their areas of expertise or interest on an ad hoc or ongoing basis. 

AcademyACL actively supports the growth of classroom teachers in their professional development. Classroom teachers may be invited, as they grow in their professional skills, to develop staff workshop sessions for their colleagues that align with specific areas of expertise, submit session proposals to local and state educator conferences with Academy Director approval, and lead professional development opportunities for staff members and other educators as part of their own professional growth plans.  

Physical Requirements: 

This job requires a high activity level that includes movement throughout the building, active involvement with student activities, including jogging, dancing and jumping, support for janitorial tasks as needed (including things such as cleaning tables, vacuuming, and light lifting of boxes with classroom materials), and personal contact with children who may be seated on the floor or at low tables. This job also requires emotional stamina and personal stress management to maintain a positive approach with students, parents, and colleagues throughout the entire school day, including students with very high energy and some with low impulse control, and students, parents, and colleagues who demonstrate intensities that typically accompany gifted behaviors.

Other Position Requirements:

This is a ten-month position, paid in a twelve-month cycle, which requires more than 40 hours per week, on at-will employment basis [see below]. Full-time teachers are required to be on-campus from 7:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with the addition of staff meetings, family-teacher conferences, and any applicable off-campus meetings or training during or beyond the regular school day. No extended travel will be required; however, attendance at state (Beyond Giftedness, CAGT) and national (NAGC) conferences on gifted education may be required. Local travel may be required to attend additional training.

Compensation and Benefits Available:

Starting, entry-level salary for this Full-Time position begins at $48,900, with additional consideration depending on qualifications, experience, and availability of funds. Benefits include dental insurance, health insurance, Public Employees Retirement Association membership (PERA), professional development opportunities, holidays, sick leave, and vacation time. Opportunities for flex time (outside contact hours with students) may be available at the discretion of the Academy Director. Depending on qualifications, a stipend may be available for additional responsibilities such as: Lead Teacher, Gifted/Talented Facilitator, and English Language Learner Facilitator. In coordination with the Business Manager, the Academy Director will allocate any available bonus monies for teachers as described in the Employee Handbook.

As members of the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA), AcademyACL employees do not contribute to or receive Social Security benefits.

At-Will Employment

All employment in every position at AcademyACL is under “At-Will Employment” status. Colorado follows the legal doctrine of "employment-at-will," which provides that in the absence of a contract to the contrary, neither an employer nor an employee is required to give notice or advance notice of termination or resignation. Additionally, neither an employer nor an employee is required to give a reason for the separation from employment. The AcademyACL Board of Directors shall authorize no AcademyACL employee to provide or convey any employment agreement that does not follow expectations for at-will employment.

Academy for Advanced and Creative Learning complies with all state and federal statutes, rules, and regulations and is an equal opportunity employer.