High School Science Teacher (2024-2025)

Science Teacher Job Description

Legal Prep Charter Academy seeks a Science Teacher for the 2024-2025 school year, with a July 29th start date. Legal Prep Charter Academy (“Legal Prep”) is Chicago’s first and only legal-themed High School, putting diverse, low-income students on the path for college success. Legal Prep opened its doors on August 20, 2012 in West Garfield Park and began offering free, college preparatory education to students in a community with primarily low performing schools. Legal Prep is currently the highest rated High School in a two-mile radius and has over 70% of its alumni in college. Legal Prep will be in its thirteenth year of operation during the 2024-25 school year and enroll 250 students. As the name indicates, Legal Prep has a legal-themed curriculum and uses this unique theme to engage its diverse population of students in their learning and teach skills that will make our students successful in college and life. Legal Prep also works closely with the Chicago legal community to provide additional resources, exposure, and skills that complement our curriculum and promote analytical reasoning and critical thinking.

The Science Teacher (“Teacher”) has overall responsibility for imparting important math concepts, teaching critical thinking skills, providing a constructive learning environment, and developing inquisitive, lifelong learning in our students. In this role, the Teacher will instruct one to two science classes in our vertically and horizontally aligned curriculum and be responsible for having students meet the High School Science standards and PSAT and SAT growth metrics that are defined at the beginning of each school year. The Teacher will be given the resources and support that are needed to successfully meet our goals for the school and our students. The Teacher will have access to the state of the art technology and learning software, and the coaching support of the Chair of the Science Department, Director of Instruction, and Principal. The Teacher will work closely with the other members of the Science Department and the Director of Instruction to ensure that the correct curriculum, classroom management systems, and restorative discipline practices are in place in and outside of your classroom.

Given the diversity of this role, this position requires a unique combination of student compassion and high expectations. While there will be a focus on student results and academic growth, the Teacher must be as comfortable holding the line with a student’s behavior and pushing the student to meet their potential as they are calling the student’s family with good and bad reports, showing empathy for external factors affecting the student’s learning, and developing the whole student. In addition, the Teacher should be a person of vision, high energy, initiative, creativity, and follow through. This position reports to the Director of Instruction and the Principal.

Responsibilities:

The Teacher will participate in and contribute to a broad range of activities within the organization, including but not limited to the following:

• Develop and implement daily lessons plans
• Manage classrooms consistent with the Legal Prep classroom standards with the support of the administrative leadership and Culture Team
• Advise a cohort of 15 to 18 freshman students as they adjust to High School
• Be open to constructive feedback on ways in which you can improve your classroom and curriculum
• Provide feedback to your peers and support them in their teaching efforts
• Engage your students’ families frequently to celebrate the successes and communicate the challenges
• Support the restorative practices and discipline structures inside and outside your classroom

Qualifications:

The qualified candidate for this position should have at minimum a Bachelor’s degree. Additional qualifications include experience working in either a school, non-profit, or for-profit organization, with particular experience and interest in:

• Teaching High School Science subjects
• Classroom management
• Curriculum development and implementation, and
• Program development and management.

The qualified candidate should have superior organizational skills the ability to develop a rapport with students and families and deliver standard based, culturally relevant curriculum. Other qualifications and experience should include:

• Commitment to the organization’s mission
• Experience with or in high need communities similar to West Garfield Park
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to apply principles and practices of sound management and supervisory methods
• Competence in a variety of computer applications, including Powerschool, word processing, databases, and spreadsheets

Attributes and Strengths:

The Teacher will be expected to display critical thinking skills and abilities consistent with high quality program management, including:

• Dynamic leadership skills
• The ability to manage multiple priorities
• The ability to analyze information and communicate the results effectively to a widely varied audience of administration, fellow teachers, other staff, volunteers, students, families, and other community stakeholders
• The creativity required to oversee the design of new programs and services
• The strategic thinking required to envision long-term goals and objectives
• The management skills required to move the organization forward in achieving its goals

If you would like to be considered for this position, please apply through Indeed. Thank you!

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $57,000.00 - $74,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Parental leave
• Professional development assistance
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Grade school specialties:

• High school

Physical setting:

• Charter school
• Public school

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Education:

• Bachelor's (Required)

Experience:

• Teaching: 1 year (Preferred)

License/Certification:

• Teaching Certification (Preferred)

Ability to Relocate:

• Chicago, IL 60624: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: In person