Instructional Coach

School Overview

St. Louis Voices Academy of Media Arts is a new, innovative charter public school that will open in fall 2022 to serve students and families within the boundaries of St. Louis City. The school will start with kindergarten through first grade and add a grade each year, growing to kindergarten through fifth grade. St. Louis Voices Academy is a public charter school that leverages media arts and storytelling to equip students with the agency to excel academically, author their own futures, and make meaningful contributions in their communities. St. Louis Voices Academy is committed to media and storytelling, whole-child development, real-world inquiry, and progressive learner autonomy as design elements that allow the school to fulfill its mission.

Role Overview

The Instructional Coach is a critical lever in improving student achievement. The Instructional Coach is a non-supervisory role with the primary responsibility of building teacher capacity and their understanding of instructional practices through data-driven instructional methodologies. The Instructional Coach works collaboratively with the Instructional Leadership Team to ensure continuous alignment with the school schools vision of high-quality instruction. 

Mission Alignment

Mission-aligned members of the St. Louis Voices Academy community share the following dispositions: 

• Dedication to the school’s mission, vision, values, and graduate outcomes; 
• Understanding that relationships are essential to working with students who have experienced the effects of poverty or trauma; 
• Belief that our students have strengths and assets and build on these strengths in their work;
• A positive attitude and a solution-based approach to challenges in the workplace;
• Commitment to restorative justice as a means of addressing conflicts or challenges in the community, whether between students, staff members, or students and staff members;
• Commitment to inclusive excellence, including a willingness to engage in conversations about privilege, power, equity, and diversity and to invest time in community-building and professional development based on inclusive excellence;
• Active participants in a supportive and demanding professional community that fosters respect, trust, honesty, risk-taking, open-mindedness, flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. 

Responsibilities

• Assists teachers and academic team members with the analysis of reading, writing, math and other types of assessment results
• Reviews students’ data with teachers to create actionable steps for classroom instruction
• Works with the Instructional Leaders, Special Education Coordinator, Interventionists, and classroom teachers to determine the most appropriate intervention for at-risk students
• Creates and delivers professional development to teachers and staff on an as-needed basis throughout the course of the year, at least one-half day each month
• Creates individualized improvement plans for struggling teachers and monitoring progress towards clear goals
• Evaluates academic achievement and progress towards school-wide goals through detailed data analysis of student performance on a wide variety of metrics; Lead and support teachers in using the student data collected to drive instruction and intervention
• Serves as a coach to individuals and teams to determine intervention strategies as appropriate.
• Works with the Academic Leaders to identify professional development (PD) activities and training that is related to academic goals and school improvement plans
• Facilitates and/or present professional development activities with staff and teachers as needed
• Assists in the planning of professional development activities and other in-service program training to help raise the level of instructional performance
• Collaborates with teachers to find real solutions to challenges faced in the classroom, using data to drive decision making
• Provides recommendations for school-wide professional development based on the instructional needs of teachers
• Maintains open communication and positive relationships with staff, teachers, and academic leadership team members.
• The Coach does not evaluate teachers but will work with them to build upon their strengths in improving instruction
• Perform all duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• A Bachelor's degree; Master’s degree in education preferred
• Missouri Certification for relevant grades or demonstrated process towards obtaining certification
• A minimum of 3 years of demonstrated success as a full-time elementary classroom teacher
• Excellent communication, presentation, facilitation and interpersonal skills and the ability to establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with a diverse staff
• A self-directed learner who solicits and implements feedback to improve outcomes and achieve objectives
• Evidence of alignment with school’s mission: leveraging media and storytelling to equip students with the agency to excel academically, author their own futures, and make meaningful contributions to the communities
• Evidence of alignment with St. Louis Voices Academy’s core values: community, commitment, courage, confidence, compassion, and celebration
• Demonstrated commitment to educational equity and a deep understanding of drivers of the opportunity gap
• Proactive, strategic problem-solver who is able to work successfully in a fast-paced environment, often while balancing competing priorities
• Personal responsibility and commitment to continual professional growth

Additional Information

St. Louis Voices Academy offers competitive salaries commensurate with experience and a comprehensive benefits package. Aside from extensive professional development, all our staff members are equipped with laptops, email, and all necessary supplies. Performance is evaluated by the Director of Teaching and Learning in accordance with St. Louis Voices Academy’s human resources policy.

St. Louis Voices Academy believes in the importance of being a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization that enables our students and staff to thrive. We are committed to building a talented team that reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students. At the same time, we work to ensure an inclusive community by creating a space for meaningful dialogue about issues of race and identity for our staff and students. As an equal opportunity employer, we hire without consideration to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, or disability.