Community of Practice Coordinator – Consultant, Philadelphia Learning Collaborative

Posted by Philadelphia Learning Collaborative on August 30, 2022

Location: Semi-Remote
Reports to: Philadelphia Learning Collaborative Executive Director
Position Duration: 11 months

The Philadelphia Learning Collaborative (PLC) is looking for an energetic professional with experience in creating and delivering professional development to teachers in the education sector. The part-time consultant role falls under PLC’s Educator and Partner Development activities and is the result of partnership to create a Community of Practice (CoP) focused on strengthening student intrinsic motivation to develop skills through work-based learning experiences, such as CTE and during the school year internships.

The Consultant will:
● plan and facilitate four face-to-face events (tentatively scheduled for October 10, December 3, 2022, February 25, 2023, and May 6, 2023)
● plan, facilitate and moderate all virtual activities of the CoP, including curriculum design sessions and periodic virtual office hours.
● support educators and schools with meeting deadlines to submit high-quality lesson plans adapted from nXu curriculum.
● document and collect materials and artifacts related to the grant, including digital curriculum examples from educators that will be collected in a shared database
● support grant research by assisting in scheduling classroom observations; interviews and focus groups of educators and students; managing, collecting, and verifying signed permission slips and release forms for students and educators.
● assist with recruitment of additional CoP participants, to potentially include students, parents, and local businesses
● encourage engagement of PoC members to participate actively in virtual CoP platform

The ideal Candidate has
● experience conducting professional development and leading train-the-trainer models
● experience planning and hosting highly engaging online and virtual events for educators
● experience working with teachers and families in Philadelphia
● deep knowledge of the Philadelphia community and the ability to develop healthy, trusting, and mutually respectful relationships with students, families, and teachers
● the organizational skills to keep track of electronic documents such as evidence from in-school CoPs and permission slips
● familiarity with technology platforms such as Slack, Google Workspace, and Zoom.

The successful candidate will be part of a team made up of PLC’s Executive Director, two consultants from the Learning Accelerant, and a researcher.

Together, this team will pursue the following goals over the course of this two-year grant:
● establish a Community of Practice structure that fosters collaboration both within and across schools and both virtually and in-person to share resources, insights, and implementation strategies
● provide purpose training to educators from 10 high schools to prepare them to integrate new practices that intentionally infuse beneficial purpose development into their schools’ culture and curriculum
● coach and support educators from these high schools in implementing these new practices during the grant period
● study the impact of the CoP on facilitating this change
● study how bringing purpose development intentionally to CTE and work-based learning settings impacts the educators and students involved.

About PLC
The Philadelphia Learning Collaborative (PLC) is a grassroots organization that launched in 2017 to address the common challenges that progressive schools in Philadelphia face. Our growing network of – K-12 schools (public, independent, and charter), schools of education at five of Philadelphia’s leading universities, The School District of Philadelphia, and several regional educational nonprofits – works together to build systems and structures that support existing and new schools with progressive education models in Philadelphia. The student-centered school models in PLC’s membership feature personalized instruction, real-world learning, and school cultures that are shaped by restorative justice practices; as well as guidance found in the Deeper Learning competencies and PLC’s Key Distinguishers.
Collaborative members and leadership are nationally and internationally recognized forerunners in the field, with substantial experience and success in opening new schools for students from economically and racially diverse neighborhoods across Philadelphia.

PLC has three work priorities:
1. Educator and Partner Development | Goal: Strengthen and widen the pipeline of teachers and leaders trained and prepared to work in PLC schools implementing Deeper Learning
2. Real-World Connections | Goal: Consolidate, create, and share the resources PLC schools need to build strong partnerships with outside organizations
3. Movement Building | Goal: Expand membership, improve member engagement, and share learning within the Collaborative and beyond.

Compensation:
This project is funded by the John Templeton Foundation. The grant is a partnership between Inquiry Schools, Learning Accelerant, & Philadelphia Learning Collaborative (PLC). This role is a contractor role reporting to the Executive Director of the PLC. The estimated monthly commitment for this project averages between 20-25 hours starting September 2022 and ending July 31, 2023. The budget for this consultancy will not exceed $35,000. Interested? Please email your cover letter and resume to crystal@phlcollab.org