POSITION SUMMARY:

Join our small community of learners and mission-driven adults who believe in the power of new beginnings. We are committed to academic re-engagement through building positive, supportive relationships.

Ideal candidates will have experience working with reluctant learners who have a wide range of skills, interests and goals. Strong classroom management skills and demonstrated experience building positive relationships with young people of diverse backgrounds are a must. You will enjoy a fair amount of autonomy in creating content that you are excited about, that engages young people, and that continues to hold them to high academic expectations while also experiencing the support and camaraderie of a tight team of adults.

As a teacher, you will be responsible for developing highly differentiated classroom curriculum in core content areas and electives. Classes are smaller than at the traditional schools, and that allows us to develop the relationships that ultimately lead to increased social engagement and academic success for our young people. Applicants should be knowledgeable in their content area and excited about opportunities to develop other electives as well. The position also requires maintaining regular contact with families of an advisory group while providing support, mentorship, and the ability to build positive relationships with students and staff members across cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds.

ABOUT US:

Mt. Scott Learning Center is a small, nonprofit, options high school working to re-engage students who have struggled to succeed in large traditional high schools. We believe our greatest strength is in the relationships we build—between teachers and students, between staff and student families, between colleagues, and among peers. You would be joining a warm, positive, and determined community of adults and young people who come together each day with a shared sense of purpose and belief in the power of fresh starts. Our student body is a small yet diverse community with unique learning needs and a wide variety of skills and challenges. They are what drives us. We are proud to maintain a graduation rate of over 90%, and one of the lowest dropout rates in the Portland area.

WHO YOU ARE:

• You have high expectations for what young people are capable of and are committed to problem-solving with them to help them reach their goals.
• You maintain a positive, patient and helpful attitude with students, parents and others, even when they are not at their best.
• You are committed to discretion, privacy and respect when communicating about students or other personal information.
• You model a high degree of professionalism in your conduct and dress and by setting healthy boundaries with young people.
• You balance priorities, schedules and deadlines with grace, flexibility and a clear commitment to achieving positive outcomes for the people you are working with.
• You are committed to reflecting on your own practice to continually improve.

YOUR IMPACT AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Classroom Instruction

• Opportunity to develop and refine curriculum for classes that reflect your interests and passions while meeting the needs of the student body.
• Differentiate instruction to accommodate students with varying learning styles and skills.
• Provide effective classroom management; embed the teaching of social skills and student skills into classes.
• Maintain visibility, awareness and contribute to supervision during non-instructional times, in hallways, during meal coverage, on field trips, or during community events.

Advisor Role, to include

• Maintain regular contact with families of advisees while providing mentorship, academic guidance and goal-setting support to advisees.
• Create a positive advisory culture and community.
• Design instruction for and/or facilitate effective and engaging activities for advisory.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree
• At least two years of secondary teaching experience, with preference given to candidates with demonstrated experience working successfully with students of diverse races, cultures and socio-economic backgrounds.
• Strong classroom management skills based on positive-framing; building and teaching routines and procedures, and consistent follow-through.
• Current teaching license preferred (from Oregon or another state).
• Able to pass a criminal background check

About Mt. Scott Learning Center

Connections working at Mt. Scott Learning Center