Professional Learning Specialist - Multilingual Learner Supports (Part Time)

The Curriculum & Instruction (C&I) Department works to ensure outstanding instruction in every classroom. Sustainable implementation of high-quality curriculum is the most important driver of that aim and supports the growth of teachers, administrators, counselors, and librarians at various stages throughout their careers. We aspire to ground our C&I work in a set of shared elements. We start with an understanding of how students learn; we organize around adult learning principles to support teachers and school leaders; we embed opportunities to modify curriculum materials for specific classroom contexts or student needs; and we organize everything around continuous improvement, to get better over time. 

Position Summary

The Part-Time Professional Learning Specialist - Multilingual Learner role is responsible for identifying areas of need for multilingual learner student development across contracted schools. This includes adapting and implementing coaching plans that build the capacity of both teachers and instructional leaders. The Part-Time Professional Learning Specialist will also work to clarify the instructional coaching model for various support situations and partner with the Lead Professional Learning Manager - ML to support the implementation of key assessments and project strategies. This part-time role requires strong collaboration and coordination with internal partners to gather information, then communicating effectively with school-facing staff to understand their challenges and provide solutions. 

The Part-Time Professional Learning Specialist - ML role involves the following bodies of work:

• Supporting  core content teachers with the language of disciplinary literacy 
• Visiting schools to carry out coaching plans that include engaging with leaders and building school-based capacity to sustain the ongoing support of multilingual learners
• Providing professional learning focused on instructional strategies for metacognition and metalinguistic awareness through a lens of disciplinary literacy.
• Reviewing student learning data, including SWD and ML, and assisting schools with placing students in appropriate reading support services, and setting instructional goals for reading.

Core Duties and Responsibilities:

Work with New Visions staff and school-based educators to:

• Travel to school sites (1-3 times per week) to observe instruction, provide feedback using an  evidenced-based feedback tool, and coach teachers on metacognition and metalinguistic awareness in their discipline
• Adapt and implement coaching plans that support both teachers and instructional leaders in developing school-based capacity to support MLs
• Continue to clarify the instructional coaching model for various support situations.

Education and Experience: 

• Masters-level degree, including coursework in the theory and practice of teaching multilingual learners
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in public education, preferably urban schools and secondary level 
• Minimum of 5 years of experience working with multilingual learners, preferably in urban schools and at the secondary level
• Minimum of 3 years of experience supervising, coaching, or leading teachers, at at least 2 different school sites

 Required Skill Sets and Knowledge Base: 

• Skills related to the design, implementation, and assessment of effective teaching of reading, writing, and speaking to adolescents who are learning academic English as a new language, across the content areas 
• Skilled at supporting MLLs at the early stages of English language development
• Demonstrated ability to lead change management by delivering professional development and coaching 
• Ability to align multiple metrics or goals to ensure they work together effectively, streamlining priorities
• Excellent written, oral, organizational, and interpersonal skills, including strong facilitation skills;
• Demonstrated experience and enthusiasm for working collaboratively
• Understanding of high school graduation requirements and compliance for special populations with a focus on multilingual learners
• Deep understanding of at least one of the high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) in use in NYC Public Schools  -- Illustrative Mathematics, New Visions Science, OpenSciEd, etc. Coaching expertise in one or more of these curricula is preferred but not a requirement.

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to travel onsite to NYC public schools across the 5 boroughs, multiple days per week, typically in 6-hour daily increments
• Ability to traverse a school environment, including accessing mu