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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 nearly 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.

District-run CPS schools are organized into 18 networks, which provide administrative support, strategic direction, and leadership development to the schools within each network.  This network support model is designed to support the unique needs of CPS elementary and high schools and their school leaders that focus exclusively on those needs. Network 5 focuses on the elementary schools in the western geographic areas of Chicago.  

Job Summary: 

Under the direction of the Chief and Deputy Chief of Schools (Network 5), the Instructional Support Leader (ISL) supports instructional development and school-level improvement to drive academic achievement for elementary schools. Specific content expertise and requirements for the ISL will vary based upon the needs of the schools in the network but it is expected that all ISLs will be instructional experts with proven content expertise in at least one core subject (i.e., Literacy, Mathematics, Science) and/or with priority student groups (i.e. Diverse Learners and English Language Learners).

The preferred area of content expertise for this position is Science.

The Instructional Support Leader will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

• Build day-to-day instructional capacity of classroom teachers and school administrators in a portfolio of schools to deliver core district and network priorities which include: Common core state standards, a multi-tiered system of support, and a framework for teaching

• Provide differentiated instructional support by working directly with administrators, teacher leaders and teachers in the classroom, as appropriate, to model effective, research-based instructional practices, by working collaboratively with teacher teams to drive data-informed instructional planning, and by working with school-based leadership teams to actualize CCSS implementation at the classroom level.

• Consult and collaborate with Principals, Assistant Principals, school-based Instructional Leadership Teams, and fellow Network staff as needed to develop data-informed strategies to support development and implementation of CIWP. These strategies include: curriculum development, professional development plans, direct support to classroom teachers, student outcome progress monitoring, and student intervention plans.

• Design and lead professional development around Common Core implementation for network teacher leaders and network administrators.

• Organize and communicate Network initiatives and/or other District initiatives to support the improvement of instruction and academic achievement.

In order to be successful and achieve the above responsibilities, the Instructional Support Leader must possess the following qualifications: 

Education Required: 

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is required

• Master’s degree in Education, Curriculum and Instruction, or Educational Leadership highly preferred

Certifications Required:

• Valid standard teaching certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education with appropriate grade level and content level endorsements is required

• General Administrative (Type 75) Certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education (or equivalent certificate from outside Illinois) preferred 

Experience Required: 

• Minimum of five (5) years of classroom teaching experience

• Minimum of three (3) years of experience working with adult learners, including coaching, and designing and facilitating professional development for classroom teachers and school leaders

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: 

• Strong communication skills including speaking, presenting, listening, and writing

• High levels of instructional expertise, integrity, honesty, credibility, and the courage to make difficult yet necessary decisions

• 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

• Ability to build collaborative relationships with a variety of constituent groups, including external partners, to ensure the entire system operates in the most effective manner possible to support schools and principals

• Ability to use multiple data sources to set measurable goals and strategically plan to complete the goals

• Ability to define problems, analyze data and develop action plans as part of a continuous improvement cycle

• Excellent communication skills: writing, speaking, and listening

• Experience with curriculum mapping, unit planning, and formative progress monitoring

• Knowledge of research-based school improvement models and strategies

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, however, all CPS employees must be residents of Illinois.

• Be Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19 - Unless approved for a medical or religious exemption, all employees are required to be up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations, including boosters, and to submit proof of vaccination to the district within 30 days of hire. “Up-to-date” on vaccination is defined as being at least two weeks past all primary vaccine doses and any applicable boosters. Unvaccinated staff with an approved exemption must submit to weekly testing.