Great Oaks AmeriCorps Fellow Three-Quarter Time Member (1200 Service Hours)
Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, CT; New York, NY; Wilmington, DE
Great Oaks Charter Schools and partner schools
In partnership with AmeriCorps
The mission of the Great Oaks Foundation is to provide students with access to a quality education through high-dosage tutoring.
ABOUT GREAT OAKS CHARTER SCHOOLS
The Great Oaks Foundation is a non-profit organization that brings its model of high dosage tutoring to schools, from Maryland to Connecticut, with the mission of providing access to a high quality education for its students. The tutoring is provided by the Great Oaks AmeriCorps Fellows, which is a select cadre of recent college graduates who deliver individualized, small group instruction. This programming increases student achievement and builds a pipeline of teachers to work in Great Oaks and partner schools.
THE GREAT OAKS MODEL
The Great Oaks Foundation envisions an America where every child has the support of a tutor to enable them to realize their full human potential. Here is how Great Oaks will realize our vision and accomplish our mission:
Tapping the power of National Service to tutor students
At the Great Oaks (GO) Foundation, we recruit, train, and support a corps of service-oriented individuals who are placed in Great Oaks and partner schools where they intensively tutor students as a part of a year of service through the federal AmeriCorps program. We call our tutors Fellows to encompass the several roles they play to instruct, mentor and develop the students with whom they are matched.
- GO Fellows INSTRUCT FOR MASTERY by emphasizing continuous learning. Students must have deep knowledge, understanding, and the ability to apply that to new contexts and situations.
- GO Fellows MENTOR FOR LEADERSHIP by providing site based social-emotional learning support. Our students will use the skills that they have learned to shape the world and not be defined by its current limitations. Equity and justice are important core values at Great Oaks and promotion of those values is essential to the work we do in schools.
- GO Fellows DEVELOP COMMUNITY through parent engagement, after school clubs, and presence throughout the school. Community is the basis for healthy development and for active engagement with the world.
Combating racism and investing in community
The GO Foundation invests in the vitality of the communities in which our schools operate and in building an organization that is representative of them. The GO Foundation intentionally recruits a diverse group of tutors who reflect the children we serve and fosters inclusive learning environments for all students and staff.
Creating a pipeline of talent to the classroom
The GO Foundation invests in our Fellows' personal and professional development. Each year a select group of Fellows are accepted into our Teacher Residency Program conducted in partnership with NYU's Online Teacher Residency Program and Relay Graduate School of Education to train them to become effective classroom teachers.
The Great Oaks Foundation has successfully replicated this program in Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, CT; New York, NY; and Wilmington, DE. Additionally, we have begun partnering our Fellow program with several non-Great Oaks schools.
We are seeking team-oriented, student-centered, service-minded individuals who share the belief that all students deserve a high-quality education.
Position Summary
GO Fellows are integral members of the Great Oaks community. Over the course of the service term year, GO Fellows will collaborate with diverse stakeholders to instruct and mentor students and help develop a community where our students thrive.
As a member of the Great Oaks Fellowship, you will be directly responsible for providing individualized instruction, mentorship, and enrichment opportunities to several small groups of middle or high school students each day. This is a three-quarter time service role through AmeriCorps with an average day of service lasting 9-10 hours. Members serve Monday-Friday and some weekends.
In order to support your year of service, you will receive a living allowance, a fully furnished apartment benefit (utilities included), access to health insurance, and professional development throughout the year to support your growth. You will also be eligible for a Segal Education Award through AmeriCorps after the successful completion of your term of service - defined as completing 1,200 hours of service (and the school year) in good standing. Most importantly, you will gain invaluable experience working in an urban charter school, acquiring both educational, teamwork and leadership skills as the year progresses.
The ideal candidate for the Great Oaks Fellowship is a recent college graduate who is passionate about service and working with youth. Great Oaks has schools in Newark, NJ, New York, NY, Bridgeport, CT, Wilmington, DE and Baltimore, MD, and is seeking Fellows for all sites. Great Oaks is seeking individuals who are team-oriented, student-centered, and up for one of the most rewarding challenges of their lives.
Responsibilities
Instruct for Mastery - The GO Fellowship, with its intense focus on individualized instruction, changes education outcomes for students. Small group instruction delivered in the context of a supportive relationship between student and AmeriCorps Fellow will result in a significant increase in student math and ELA achievement. Members will deliver on average, over 200 hours of targeted instruction per student - high-quality lesson time that students in other schools do not receive.
- Provide daily small group instruction (tutoring) to students in math and/or English Language Arts for an average of five (50 minute) periods a day
- Utilize 1-2 prep periods each day to organize, adapt, and/or plan instructional materials
- Provide students with extra academic supports during after school and/or Saturday Academy over the course of the school year when necessary (dependent on campus placement)
- Work with students and teachers to set individualized and student driven academic goals
- Actively participate in student and/or content focused meetings with Fellow leadership, school leadership, and teachers
- Assess student progress on a regular basis and effectively use data to inform more personalized instruction
- Provide in-class or curriculum support depending on your role in the program
Mentor for Leadership - Fellows have a fundamental role in supporting students in their social and emotional growth. Fellows encourage their students through coaching conversations to have personal investment in their success and to build an understanding that they have control over their lives. Fellows help empower our students to evolve into leaders.
- Provide daily mentorship to small groups of Great Oaks students in formal and informal settings
- Collaborate with teachers and administrators to support individualized learning needs of all students
- Constantly serve as a model of professional behavior for students
- Work with students to set individualized student directed social emotional goals
- Develop relationships with families through weekly phone calls and other communications, maintain an open conversation about student progress
Develop a Community - Members will help develop Great Oaks schools into positive and holistic communities for students. AmeriCorps members will also develop as people and professionals.
- Support the development of an enriching school environment by being present during morning entry and afternoon exit, being present in the hallways during student transitions, engaging with students during lunch, supporting during school based events, and generally being an active and present member in the school community
- Learn and acclimate to the Great Oaks school culture and procedures, hold students accountable to expectations when necessary
- Actively participate in professional development sessions that are focused on student instruction (tutorial) techniques, student mentoring and coaching techniques, student data, personal career development, diversity and inclusion, etc.
- Attend and support student and/or family events to help further build the school community
- Participate in school wide service days such as 9/11 Day of Service and Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service
- Lead or support after-school clubs and homework support (varies depending on campus)
- Support sports programming (varies depending on campus)
- Effectively collaborate with a team of Fellows, being prepared to cover for absent teammates and fill in gaps when necessary
- Additional responsibilities may be established by school leadership in collaboration with network leadership
Qualifications and Competencies
A successful candidate will bring the following qualifications and competencies:
- Completed a Bachelor’s degree by start of service
- Citizenship or legal Permanent Residency in the United States (AmeriCorps requirement)
- A commitment to serving children in under-resourced, urban communities
- An unshakeable belief that all students can succeed
- Some experience working or volunteering with children; tutoring or mentorship experience preferable
- Some experience working on teams; exceptional relationship building, communication, and collaborative skills
- The maturity to live and work closely with others
- A remarkable ability to stay organized and to adhere strictly to deadlines even in extremely busy time periods
- A do-whatever-it takes attitude that coincides with an innate drive to get the details right in a flexible manner
- A passion for service and a resilient, positive mindset
- An exceptional ability to respond well to and implement feedback
- A zeal to drive innovation, try new approaches, and collaboratively solve problems from many angles and with creative solutions
- An open minded sensibility; a willingness to learn, follow the lead of others, and take leadership opportunities when appropriate
General Information
This AmeriCorps service role will start in September 2020 and run through June 2021. GO Fellow positions are available in New York City, NY, Newark, NJ, Bridgeport, CT, Wilmington, DE and Baltimore, MD.
Application Process:
- From the date of your application, you can expect to receive notice within a week regarding your eligibility
- After reviewing your qualifications and background, we will schedule you for a brief phone screen interview with one of our Recruitment Associates
- Should you move on in the process, you will be scheduled for an interview and work product evaluation with one of our four locations
(If you are applying through a mobile phone, we suggest using the notes feature and copying and pasting your paragraph into the application to ensure the clarity of your writing)