Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is one of the largest school districts in the United States, serving over 320,000 students in 600 schools and employing approximately 40,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life. In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families, and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability, and integrity. Six core values are embedded within these commitments – student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.

The Department of STEM at Chicago Public Schools supports inclusive and innovative learning experiences in math, science, computer science and whole-school integrated STEM & STEAM programming across the district. It is our commitment that every day, in every STEM classroom at CPS, all students will: actively make sense of and construct solutions to complex questions, productively contribute to the learning community to support a culture of collaboration, risk-taking, and innovation, and regularly reflect on and communicate their understanding of disciplinary ideas. Through these experiences and purposeful opportunities to face transdisciplinary challenges, students will graduate from CPS with advanced STEM literacies prepared to make the world a better place.

The part-time/temporary Science Professional Learning-Misc Support role will assist the Department of STEM Science Director and Science Managers with the implementation of sustainable, high-quality science education programs. This role will work in close collaboration with colleagues in the Department of STEM, especially science, in developing the SY25 K-5 Science Professional Learning Plan and the K-12 Science year-long professional learning plan in collaboration with the 6-12 Science Manager. This part-time/temporary position will be compensated for time worked on an hourly basis. The work schedule for this role will consist of an estimated 10-15 hours per week for an anticipated period of ~6 months beginning in May of 2024. Due to the part-time/temporary nature of this work, this is not a benefit-eligible position. This role will report to the Director of Science within the Department of STEM.

The part-time/temporary Science Manager Support role will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

• Create and organize the K-5 Science comprehensive professional learning execution plan for SY25 with full project plan elements, including timelines, deliverables, task owners, development sequence, and project debriefing for the following PL plan structures:
• New Adopters
• Sprint sessions
• Professional Learning Communities (PLCs)
• Teacher Leader pathways
• Other PL structures as added to the Universal PL Plan SY25
• In collaboration with the Science Director and 6-12 science manager, develop a coherent science professional learning plan with opportunities for K-12 vertically aligned learning opportunities
• Analyze and synthesize data to examine the impact of K-5 science professional learning on student learning outcomes and experiences
• Using data collected to create a report that outlines the current state of K-8 science education in the district
• Other duties as assigned

In order to be successful and achieve the above responsibilities, the Science Professional Learning-Misc Support role must possess the following qualifications:

Education Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field of study from an accredited college or university, required
• Valid teaching certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) with appropriate grade level and content level endorsement, required. (Candidates with a valid out of state, reciprocal license will be considered but must obtain ISBE licensure within 6-months of hire.)
• LBSI, ESL, or Bilingual Endorsement, preferred
• Master’s degree in a relevant field of study, preferred

Experience Required:

• Minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience, including the following, is required:
• Minimum of three (3) years of classroom teaching experience.
• Minimum of three (3) years of teacher leadership experience, such as leading school teams in the development of curriculum and assessments, analyzing student performance data, etc.
• Minimum of three (3) years working with adult learners, including creating, organizing, and facilitating professional learning experiences to meet the needs of participants.
• Experience leading a high-functioning team within the content area focus
• Experience with program management, providing professional coaching or managing others
• Experience with strategic planning and adult learning to shape the cross-content district-wide professional learning strategy

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Expertise in planning, designing, facilitating, and evaluating professional learning
• Deep knowledge/understanding of Science teaching and learning instructional best practices
• Strong leadership and team building skills, e.g. ability to develop high performing teams united around a clear vision for serving schools and achieving student success
• Effective strategic planning capabilities, including the ability to establish and articulate a vision and goals, set high standards, and effectively guide individuals and teams in the realization of expectations set
• Excellent leadership development and instructional leadership skills; capable of coaching directors and managers toward excellence, building capacity of content area teams and developing meaningful and high impact professional communities for teachers and school leaders
• Exceptional organizational skills; ability to effectively manage several work streams simultaneously
• Capable of building and sustaining positive, productive relationships with colleagues and stakeholders
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; comfortable collaborating and communicating across a diverse range of audiences, including network teams, principals, teachers, and support staff
• Commitment to CPS Instructional Core Vision, and ensuring that all students have access to grade-level, standards-aligned learning opportunities
• Ability to build consensus and leverage expertise with educators across the district
• Excellent technology skills (Google Suite)

Conditions of Employment

As a condition of employment with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), employees are required to:

• Establish/Maintain Chicago Residency - Employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of their CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district. The Chicago residency requirement does not apply to temporary/part-time positions.
• Be Fully Vaccinated or Submit to Weekly COVID-19 Testing - Employees are required to be fully vaccinated within 30 days of their hire date. Full vaccination is defined as at least two weeks after your second shot of a two-shot vaccination course, or at least two weeks after a one-shot vaccination course. Unvaccinated staff must submit to weekly testing.