This position is at Susie King Taylor Community School to support the Georgia Early Literacy Act and provide appropriate services to ensure a cohesive, sustained, intensive and classroom-focused approach that is rigorous, engaging, and relevant for students. The coach will closely with the building principal, other academic coaches, and K-3 teachers to prioritize, schedule, organize, and provide technical assistance so that students are achieving grade level reading by the end of 3rd grade. 

PRIMARY FUNCTION:  The School-Based Structured Literacy Support Coach will work in assigned schools to support the Georgia Early Literacy Act and provide appropriate services to schools so that there can be a cohesive, sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused approach that is rigorous, engaging, and relevant for students. School-Based Structured Literacy Support Coaches will provide a non-threatening, open, professional, and collaborative work relationship with principals, other academic coaches, and K-3 teachers. They will be required to effectively identify the needs of assigned schools in order to prioritize, schedule, organize, and provide technical assistance so that students in assigned schools achieve grade-level reading by the end of 3rd grade. 

REPORTS TO:  Principal

SALARY SCHEDULE:  Teacher

WORK DAYS:  190

School-Based Structured Literacy Support Coach 

REQUIREMENTS: Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education or Special Education.

• Valid Georgia Professional Teaching Certificate at level 4 or higher.
• Advanced preparation in Reading/Literacy through completion of Reading Endorsement, Dyslexia Endorsement, or independent training program approved by International Dyslexia Association.
• Minimum of 5 years elementary teaching experience including evidence-based word recognition and comprehension instruction.
• Advanced preparation in Reading/Literacy through completion of Reading Endorsement, Dyslexia Endorsement, or independent training program approved by International Dyslexia Association.
• Demonstrated ability to work well with people of diverse racial and cultural backgrounds.Highly developed human relations and communication skills.
• Proficiency with general office software applications (MS Office, Excel, Access and internet).
• Demonstrate effectiveness in oral and written communication, including public speaking and working with individuals from varied racial, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.
• Demonstrate organization skills and self-initiative.
• A thorough understanding of: reading processes, acquisition, assessment, and instruction.
• Systematic, explicit instructional process
• Instructional coaching approaches and strategies for teaching adult learners.
• Scientific reading research and its application to effective classroom instruction structure, and practices, as well as intervention.
• Understanding of Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) in English Language Arts, Social Studies, Science as well as new Georgia K-12 ELA Standards.
• Multi-Tiered Systems of Support and Data analysis and application. 

 Preferred 

• Master’s degree in Elementary Education, Reading, or Special Education.
• Advanced preparation in instructional coaching through completion of Coaching Endorsement, Teacher Leader Endorsement, or independent training program (e.g. Instructional Coaching Group), or 
• 3 years instructional leadership experience including curriculum design, professional development, and implementation support at the school or district level. 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide monthly reports related to the literacy components of the school improvement plan.
• Meet monthly with the regional structured literacy support coach as a professional learning community to ensure consistency of services and discuss trends in needs across districts.
• Attend regular training and professional learning sessions developed by the statewide structured literacy coaching coordinator. 
• Assist principals and other leadership in assigned schools with aligning schoolwide systems, processes, and resources to structured literacy as defined by Georgia Early Literacy Act.  
• Assist school administrators and other leadership with providing regular and user-friendly data reports to their respective districts and other stakeholders. 
• Assist K-3 teachers in addressing grade specific curriculum by developing an effective school-wide literacy plan and providing strategies for monitoring the plan’s implementation. 
• Collaborate with Regional Structured Literacy Support Coaches to design and conduct professional development to meet the varied needs of K-3 teachers. 
• Facilitate and lead structured coaching cycles with teachers, fostering a collaborative and growth-oriented environment that includes goal setting, lesson observation, constructive feedback, and reflective discussions to enhance literacy instruction and student outcomes.
• Provide clear, practical, timely, and candid written and oral feedback to teachers about their instruction. 
• Conference with teachers identified for additional support to create, implement, and monitor goals and plans for improving practice. 
• Meet regularly with principal, other school-based coaches, and K-3 teachers to review data and make recommendations for adjustments in instructional practices. 
• Maintain an organized system for documenting coaching services.

Terms of Employment Incumbents will receive a regular annual teaching contract. The work calendar will be 190 days. Salary will be determined based on level of certification and allowable experience. This is a school-based but state grant-funded position and contingent upon availability of grant funds.

Non-Essential Responsibilities

A responsibility is considered to be “non-essential” (for the purposes of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act) if:

• it is shared between multiple incumbents in the job; or
• it could be performed by an employee in another job within the workgroup.

Note the responsibility number from the list in the “Duties and Responsibilities” section for those responsibilities that could be considered “non-essential” based on this definition.

Certain limited aspects of General Duties and Responsibilities items referenced in Section 1 (b) and (d) might be considered “non-essential” in a specific situation. Any request for accommodation must be reviewed on an “individual case” basis.

Physical and Sensory Demands

Most jobs in the District have physical and sensory demands that can be described by one of the two categories noted below. For jobs that require more physical or sensory effort, please list the requirements in this section. The category applicable for this position is listed below.

CLASSROOM   Employees in this category spend at least most of the workday in a typical classroom or related educational environment. There will be prolonged periods of standing or walking, and there may be frequent bending, stooping, or stretching. There are occasions that require the lifting or pulling of equipment or supplies. Reading, listening, writing, and speaking are requirements. There are few exceptional physical or sensory demands, but there may be occasions that require the lifting or restraint of a student.

Other: Must have reliable transportation, and be licensed and able to drive to district schools as well as to community events.