Lead Preschool Teacher

Lead Teacher
Organization & Program Summary
The Center for African Immigrants and Refugees Organization (CAIRO)'s mission is to enhance social justice and achieve parity for the diverse African immigrants and refugee communities in Oregon and Central Minnesota through community organizing, collaborative leadership, and service advocacy. We envision a more just and equitable society in which children, youth, and families live in sustained, supportive communities that reinforce the family's cultural wealth and lived experience.
CAIRO Academy is a decentralized preschool program funded by Preschool Promise and Preschool For All, with 5 classrooms across the Portland metro area. The Academy's focus is to provide a culturally-specific and accessible preschool curriculum that draws on the values and approaches of Reggio Emelia, Montessori and play-based learning. The Academy runs on a school-year schedule from late August - mid June.
Position Summary
The Lead Teacher is responsible for daily classroom operations, classroom licensing compliance, and curriculum development. They are expected to use a team-teaching approach and implement a curriculum that is guided by our program's philosophies and assessment tools such as ASQ-3 and Teaching Strategies Gold. Please note that due to our decentralized program structure, the Lead Teacher is considered the Site Director for licensing purposes.
The Lead Teacher is also a leader for the staff in their classroom, and is expected to perform supervisory duties such as running breaks, providing feedback to staff, and assigning tasks. The Lead Teacher will work with their Preschool Supervisor on professional development opportunities, performance management, and conflict resolution.
This position is located at Imlay Elementary School.
Required availability from 7:15a - 3:15p This is a full-time, exempt position for the duration of the school year that reports to the Preschool Supervisor.
Salary: $28.50 - $30.00 per hour (paid on a salary basis) depending on experience.
Benefits
CAIRO offers the following benefits for this position:

• 12 days of Paid Time Off per year, plus a 1-week paid spring break.
• 16 paid company holidays.
• Medical and dental insurance with employee-only premiums covered 100% by CAIRO.
• Vision insurance.
• 401(k) plan with an up to 3% employer match.

Duties & Responsibilities
Compliance

• Act as the site's licensing Director; ensure classroom compliance with licensing requirements, e.g. student:teacher ratio is maintained, accurate files and records are kept, etc
• Collect student immunization records and submit them to the state
• Submit daily and weekly meal counts (CACFP)
• Submit monthly attendance reports

In the Classroom

• Develop and implement weekly lesson plans that are age-appropriate and culturally responsive using Creative Curriculum, student observation and interests, and data from Teaching Strategies GOLDPlus.
• Plan class field trips and events such as Open House, guest speakers (may sometimes be done in coordination with another classroom)
• Observe and take daily notes on students' behavior and progress; document in TS Gold and ASQ on daily basis
• Address individual learning needs of students and determine if further evaluation with early intervention specialists are needed.
• Complete required developmental (ASQ) and social/emotional (ASQ:SE) for all children
• Schedule and attend staffing and Individualized Family Support Plan (IFSP) meetings as needed for individual children and families
• Ensure the safety of children and staff in the classroom and monitor the physical and social/emotional wellbeing of the children while relating to each child with acceptance, understanding and care.
• Communicate regularly with parents about their child's progress and support parent understanding of early learning, child development, kindergarten readiness and school expectations in the U.S.
• Conduct parent - teacher conferences 3 times a year, involving parents in learning goals and understanding of their child's progress & developmental screenings.
• Substitute in other classrooms as needed, sometimes on short notice.

Supervisory

• Provide day-to-day support and coaching to the Assistant Teachers and Classroom Aides; assign cleaning/preparation duties.
• Implement classroom staff meetings at least once per week (may be shared with Supervisor) to discuss lesson plans, get feedback from Assistants and Aides, and address any concerns/challenges.
• Ensure all staff are given appropriate breaks in accordance with state law.
• Work with Supervisor on staff conflicts / training needs.
• Assist the Supervisor with reviewing staff timesheets.

Administrative

• Attend all CAIRO Preschool staff meetings and trainings, as well as organization-wide meetings as requested.
• Maintain communication with external program partners and CAIRO administrative staff.
• Classroom purchases; credit card expenditure reporting.
• Assist families with enrollment.
• Assist Supervisor with hiring, including candidate screenings and interviews..
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications/Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or bachelor's degree preferred and coursework equivalent in a major related to Early Childhood Education (as defined by the Oregon Registry Step 8.5 that includes 30 quarters of college course or 20 semester of college course credits)
• Knowledge of early childhood development and principles of early childhood education; knowledge of culturally relevant and anti-bias curriculum for 3-5 year-old preschoolers is required.
• Two (2) years of experience teaching 3-5-year-old children in an early childhood education setting; with one (1) year as an employee supervisor preferred, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Preferred: Experience working with parents in community settings.
• Must be able to successfully pass applicable background and Oregon Central Background Registry checks prior to new hire processing and beginning actual employment.

Abilities/Skills

• • Excellent oral and written communication skills.
  • Strong analytical skills to read outcomes reports and measure a child's progress
  • Ability to work well as part of a team.
  • Ability to assign, coordinate, and supervise the work of others.
  • Excellent organizational and planning skills and ability to prioritize workload.
  • Experience with Google Workspace products, Procare, TSGold and ASQ.

• Preferred: Ability to speak fluently in Somali, Swahili, Arabic, Spanish, Vietnamese.

Work Environment
The responsibilities described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
The noise level in the work environment is usually noisy. This position requires frequent bending, crouching, lifting up to 30lbs, sitting on the floor.