Experiential Education Teaching Fellow

Job Description

Summary

Albuquerque Academy seeks a cohort of teaching fellows for the 2025-26 academic year. Albuquerque Academy is looking to engage candidates who embrace a growth mindset in their approach to education and will bring that perspective to teaching in our 6-12 program.  We are looking for someone who is patient, engaging, and inspires a love of the outdoors and the natural world in all students, works well with colleagues, and enjoys thinking about the art of teaching outdoor and leadership education.  In addition to co-teaching a class, candidates will teach as part of an instructor team for the department’s array of experiential education trips. Diversity is a core value at Albuquerque Academy, and we seek candidates who demonstrate an abiding commitment to equity and belonging.

All teachers at Albuquerque Academy approach their work in accordance with the values in our mission and in a spirit of kindness, professionalism, generosity, and civility to all members of the community. An education at the Academy focuses on the whole child, and teachers and administrators are expected to teach well and also to function as adult mentors for students, in and out of the classroom. Our community norms, listed below, underlie our school culture, and all community members are expected to commit themselves fully to them.

• Value and respect the diverse contributions of each person in the community.
• Assume positive intent and inquire if you are left with questions or concerns.
• Engage in face-to-face direct conversations; be clear, open, and honest in your conversations.
• Be present and participate.

Strong candidates are attracted to our mission and see themselves as engaged community members. They will need to create and implement relevant curriculum in the classroom and in the field. Outside the classroom, our teachers work with students in ways that foster their growth and development into effective community members. The teaching fellow’s daily activities include classroom teaching, being available to students for assistance, communication with parents and other department members, trip preparation and deissue, leading and co-leading a variety of single and multi-day trips, and serving the school community in a variety of other ways. The teaching fellow reports to the department chair and to the division head.

The teaching fellow position in the Experiential Education Department requires a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. Competence in outdoor living skills, outdoor travel and navigation, and judgment and decision-making is required. Familiarity with technical skills such as rock climbing is preferred. The Albuquerque Academy Experiential Education Department supports and enhances the school’s rigorous college-preparatory curriculum and experiential education trips are required for students in grades 6-9. Students in grades 10-12 can elect to take classroom-based electives that include a field component. Programs are offered throughout New Mexico and the Four Corners region. Detailed information can be found on the department website.

The teaching fellow will commit to full participation in all aspects of the teaching fellows program, including: regular seminars on a variety of aspects of school life with the associate head of school and professional development opportunities with the rest of the faculty as well as those designed especially for the teaching fellows cohort.  Successful fellows will seek out direct feedback and value all aspects of the mentoring offered in this position. The school commits to helping the teaching fellows embark on a job search for the following year. Should there be an opening at the Academy, fellows are welcome to apply, but there is no guarantee of future employment with Albuquerque Academy. The teaching fellows program is a one-year position.

Additionally, Teaching Fellows will participate as teachers and advisers in the Academy’s “Bridge Program,” an academic and social preparation and orientation experience for rising sixth-grade students that takes place right before school begins in early August.  Teaching fellows will have flexibility in terms of their presence on campus before August, when they will need to be physically present to participate in training and then work with students. July should be used for preparation and planning for the start of the school year, to include some meetings (can be remote) to work with their mentor-teacher and department chair.  The stipend for the Fellows program is $25,000; fellows are considered full-time employees (40 hours per week) and are therefore eligible for the full array of benefits. Fellows should expect to be on campus during the school day, and sometimes after and before school for meetings.  The experiential education department’s hours may extend beyond the typical work day during the field season.  Time off for the Teaching Fellow in January into early February reflects the extra time commitment during the field season.

The position is open until filled, and applicants are asked to submit a letter of interest, resume, and three professional references along with their online application.  Experiential Education teaching fellow candidates are also asked to submit a personal and professional trip-leading resume with a sample of personal and professional trips to exemplify their experience: include length of trip, type of travel/ skill taught, dates, locations, participant age, on/off trail specifics, your role in leadership, planning, logistics, etc., as well as any mountain biking, rock climbing, and kayaking experiences.

Albuquerque Academy seeks to maintain a diverse and energetic faculty to work with over 1100 highly capable students, including over 50% students of color. We encourage applications from groups traditionally underrepresented in independent school communities.

Essential Functions

• Understand, champion, and apply the Academy’s mission. 
• Strive to inspire a love of learning in students.
• Create a positive, collaborative working and learning environment.
• Co-teach 1-2 sections of an experiential education 10-12 class during the academic school year with their teaching mentor.
• Initially follow the curriculum of their mentor teacher and senior faculty for the first quarter of the year and on initial field experiences.
• Invite and value regular and consistent observations of their teaching by their mentor teacher, department chair, instructional coach and others.
• Observe their mentor teacher regularly; most often they will be in the classroom with their mentor teacher every time the designated course meets.
• Create, develop, and implement relevant curriculum, teaching and learning objectives, and varied assessments that support the needs of students in collaboration with their mentor teacher for the latter part of the year.
• Lead day hikes for students in grade 6; design and implement curriculum including an introduction to natural history and outdoor living and travel skills.  
• Teach as part of an instructor team with a faculty or contract instructor for 3-5-day wilderness-based backpacking trips for grades 7 and 9; design and implement curricular progression for outdoor living and travel skills.
• Teach as part of an instructor team with a faculty or contract instructor for  technical all-day 8th grade trip; design and implement route and associated curriculum.
• Support field components of various 10-12 elective courses.
• Manage students and contract instructors in the field using risk management techniques; continue to evolve risk management through reflection and discussion. 
• Manage trip logistics such as equipment packing and repair, food planning and packing, trip administration, and parent communication.
• Foster and maintain a culture of mutual respect, equitable practice, and joy, in and out of the classroom. Demonstrate cultural competence and communicate and collaborate effectively across differences.
• Work productively with parents, administrators, and colleagues when student academic or behavioral concerns arise. 
• Be available to students outside of class throughout the school day for additional help.
• Design formal and informal assessments that measure student progress. Employ a variety of formative and summative assessments to gauge student progress toward mastery.
• Give timely feedback and grades on written work and field-based behavior; engage with colleagues in 1:1 feedback when warranted.
• Use the school's learning management system to keep students informed about their responsibilities, grades, and expectations.
• Continue to advance their own understanding of curricula and pedagogy by participating in the school and department’s professional growth and development plan.
• Willing to work outside of the standard business hours on a regular basis, including some weekends.

Other Responsibilities

• Attend lunch, provided free to faculty, to help to monitor the dining hall.
• Attend full-faculty, divisional, and departmental meetings, as well as other meetings as needed.
• Attend and support divisional or school activities including other duties such as chaperoning dances, monitoring supervised study hall, proctoring standardized tests, etc.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Job Qualifications

Education

• A Bachelor’s degree is required. 

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

• Interest in working within an independent school setting and investing in a career of outdoor education.
• Competent in outdoor living skills, including: tent use; whisperlite stove use; finding, purifying and transporting water in desert and mountain environments; campsite selection and management; self-care including nutrition, first aid and staying warm and dry; Leave No Trace ethics.
• Familiar with navigation, map and compass use and route finding; some experience with off-trail travel is preferred.
• Experience with judgment and decision-making; familiar with field-based risk management and student management.
• Current medical certification at the Wilderness First Responder level.
• Clean driving record (minimum age 21).
• Administrative skills including organization, written and verbal communication, computer literacy.
• Excellent interpersonal, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.
• Capacity to work independently and on a team.
• Effective communicator; comfortable giving and receiving timely and relevant feedback with colleagues and students.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Legally authorized to work in the United States.

Experience

• Personal and/or professional wilderness backpacking experience is required.
• Prior experience teaching and/ or working with adolescents is preferred.
• Basic competence or interest in one or more technical skills such as rock climbing, river kayaking, mountain biking, and survival skills is preferred. 
• Prior experience being a part of a leadership team and communicating around goals, decision- making and risk management is preferred.

Working Environment

• Generally, teaching is performed in an outdoor classroom or wilderness field setting.
• Hours are generally from 8:00 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. from early August to late May. Field and trip season hours may differ. Time off for the Teaching Fellow in January into early February reflects the extra time commitment during the field season.

Physical Demands

Must be able to lift up to 25 pounds at times. Must be able to traverse school facility and lead students to safety in the event of an emergency. Involves long periods of standing/sitting.  Frequently involves carrying textbooks and classroom supplies, communicating/speaking, retrieving files and supplies, writing, using a computer, and reading for preparing daily teaching and grading.

EEO/ADA Compliance

Albuquerque Academy is an Equal Opportunity Employer. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Academy will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities and encourages both prospective employees and incumbents to discuss potential accommodations with the employer.