Website Town School for Boys
Town School for Boys
Lower School Learning Specialist (Full time)
Since 1939, San Francisco’s Town School for Boys has had a rich history as a school specializing in teaching boys. The school is also known for the Town School New Teacher Institute and its commitment to training teachers new to their craft. The school’s goals include teaching boys to be good citizens, to enjoy their childhood, to develop a positive sense of self, to give back to their greater community, and to develop academic and intellectual skills which will serve them well through their lifetimes. The school prizes its growing diversity of background, religion, and race, as well as the diversity of interests which is so noteworthy in its student and alumni bodies. Located in San Francisco, Town School for Boys is a K-8 independent day school. Since its founding, Town School has been committed to providing the best possible education for boys and is recognized as one of California’s leading independent elementary schools.
Position Description:
Town School is seeking a collaborative and experienced educator to serve as a Lower School Learning Specialist for the 2022-23 school year. The Learning Specialist is a specialized practitioner providing a variety of support to students, faculty members, and families. The Learning Specialist supports the academic programs of students with diagnosed learning differences and students requiring intervention, and additionally works with faculty and parents to ensure that learning differences and strategies for intervention are well understood and supported in the school community.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Identify students in need of academic support in consultation with faculty and administration
- Provide direct academic support to identified students in 1:1, small or whole group settings
- Maintain and update students’ learning profiles
- Collaborate with faculty members to modify curricula and/or implement instructional techniques to reach all learners
- Help teachers design and implement strategies and accommodations to support individual students’ learning needs
- Facilitate communication between families, the school, and any outside service providers or agencies to effectively support students
- Conduct formal and informal screenings and assessments
- Facilitate the verbal and written interpretation of assessment results
- Provide student observations with verbal and written feedback for teachers, administration, and parents
- Provide intervention support of specific skills for individual students
- Help students develop effective learning strategies that promote academic improvement
- Participate in Student Referral Process
- Attend and actively participate in Student Support Team meetings
- Collaborate with the Learning Services team to provide professional development that supports and enriches teachers’ understanding and application of differentiated instruction and best practices for supporting all learners
Desired Qualifications and Skills:
- Master’s Degree in Special Education, Educational Therapy, Special Education Certificate or equivalent
- Three years experience directly serving children with learning differences or other special needs in a school setting
- Expertise in the areas of assessment, differentiation, and case management
- Specialized training in remedial programs
- Technical/Computer skills as required for job performance
- Experience teaching in diverse learning communities
- Ability to think ahead and plan for effective one-on-one or small group instruction
- Ability to organize and manage multiple priorities
- Ability to use technology to enhance the learning experience
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (verbal and written)
- Commitment to school’s mission, values, and vision
- Ability to collaborate and work in a team environment
COVID Procedures:
When schools were forced to close their physical doors in the spring of 2020, Town quickly and successfully pivoted to online learning, supported by thorough planning and a nimble team of faculty, administration, and board members. In the fall of 2020, Town was the second school in the city of San Francisco to be granted permission to reopen, taking exceptional caution to protect the safety of faculty and students. Since October 2020, we have welcomed all grades in the building five days a week. The 2021-22 school year has been held in person, with mask and social distancing protocols in place and following all SF Department of Health Guidelines. All adult employees of Town School for Boys are required to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination.
Town School for Boys Mission:
At Town School learning is prized, love of school is essential, and boyhood is celebrated.
Philosophy:
As an all-boys school, Town provides a rich, challenging, and rigorous educational experience that addresses the distinctive energy levels and developmental styles of boys. Town values being a diverse community that nurtures integrity, sensitivity, and respect in its boys, and prepares them to become productive and contributing members of an ever-changing world.
Core Values:
Respect: We respect ourselves and others.
- We treat others the way they want to be treated.
- We practice good listening, compassion and empathy.
Curiosity: We are curious.
- We ask questions, think critically and solve problems.
- We seek opportunities to reach our highest potential.
Belonging: We all belong.
- We embrace and celebrate each of our unique stories and experiences.
- We seek to ensure that every member of our community feels an equal sense of inclusion.
Integrity: We act with integrity.
- We have the courage to do the right thing even when nobody else is watching.
- We always try our best and when we fail, we try again.
Joy: We are joyful.
- We make space for play, fun and laughter.
- We know joy can be found in hard work, risk-taking and perseverance.
Statement of Teaching Philosophy:
Our goal is for each boy to be engaged in an environment that weaves together collaboration, critical thinking, integrity, empathy, and creativity. These broad skills, as well as a firm grounding in core academic competencies, offer boys an excellent preparation for their further education. We promote social and emotional learning as a foundation of academic excellence and self-discovery. We prepare students to meet challenges in the world by helping them develop an appreciation for a variety of perspectives from the local to the global. We celebrate diversity by fostering a community of learners built on mutual respect. Learning experiences are inclusive, relevant, flexible, innovative, and adapted to reflect the needs of all kinds of learners. In our joyful, active, and collaborative school, boys flourish.
We achieve these goals through an authentic curriculum that originates in the classroom, travels through the halls, and extends into the world. Our teaching balances traditional methods with key student-centered approaches including inquiry, project-based learning, and teaching for understanding. We stay relevant and current through our testing of innovative, research-based approaches. We model a commitment to lifelong learning, and we hone our craft by pursuing professional development and sharing knowledge with one another.
Statement on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity:
Diversity, inclusion, and equity are essential core values of Town School. The best education for our students requires a diverse experience because a broad spectrum of ideas is essential for understanding different perspectives, challenging assumptions, and inspiring curiosity, to support critical and complex thinking.
We are committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming environment where each boy is free to be himself, and where boys are confident and secure in their own identities. We equip each boy with the tools to explore differences in experiences, background, beliefs and ideas. We seek to provide each student with the support and resources he needs to succeed and thrive at Town School.
A diverse and vibrant community is essential. To build and sustain such a community, we reach out to enroll students and families from a broad range of socioeconomic backgrounds, cultures, races, religions, and sexual orientations, and we recruit and retain faculty, staff and administrators from the same broad range of backgrounds. We cultivate an environment where every member of the Town community senses they matter as a significant part of the life of the school. Only when each person feels valued and is engaged may the school and the individual achieve their full potential.
Non-Discrimination Policy:
Town School for Boys admits students of any race, color, religion, or national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, or national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, scholarship programs, athletic and other school-administered programs.
Salary and benefits are commensurate with our peer schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and with like NAIS schools.
Application for this position can be found at https://town-school-for-boys.hiringthing.com/. To learn more about our faculty culture and community in general, please visit our Employment page.
