Teaching Fellow

Teaching Fellow Position

Domus is the educational provider for incarcerated youth in the Hartford Residential Center (HRC). Students are remanded to the center and attend school, full time, until they are transferred to another program, or released. It is Domus's role to provide a comprehensive education experience to all students, using the common core standards and our curriculum. Our educational mission is to successfully transition our students to the next stage of their education.

The Teaching Fellow covers classrooms for high school students as necessary and will deliver instruction in whole-class, small-group, and one-on-one environments.

REPORTS TO: Director of Domus at Hartford Residential Center

Essential Responsibilities

• Serves as the building substitute
• Teaches assigned curriculum to all students
• Provide instruction on diversified activities and tasks that contribute to the understanding of course curriculum
• Maintain a classroom environment that is conducive to learning
• Meet and instruct assigned classes in the locations and at the time designated
• Maintain the established routines of the class
• Promotes a positive social and learning environment for each student
• Meets assigned responsibilities including timelines, administrative meetings, individual student supervision, personal supervision, training, etc.
• Understands and applies child development principles regarding educational stages of development
• Facilitates critical thinking and student independence as a learner
• Effectively organizes time, space, materials, equipment, etc. to maximize instruction

Qualifications

• BA or BS degree required, preferable in Education or related field. A combination of education, training and experience will be considered.
• Experience working with target population preferred
• A great sense of humor!
• Willingness and ability to work with a behaviorally difficult youth population in a positive and calm manner
• Absolute commitment to the Domus mission, values and core principles, including the Sanctuary model of trauma-informed care
• Ability to work within systems, with a nuanced understanding of the balance of building relationships and advocating within an institution that is not operated by Domus
• Demonstrated ability to be self-directed and take initiative
• Ability to successfully handle multiple projects concurrently
• Commitment to finding methods to keep students in the school building to serve consequences
• Flexibility and adaptability, able to shift styles to fit the needs of a wide range of cultures, people, and organizations

Skills

Required:

• Excellent organizational, time management and follow-up skills
• A strong work ethic
• High emotional intelligence, able to easily develop deep, trusting relationships with diverse individuals from many different backgrounds
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with demonstrated ability to speak and write clearly and persuasively
• Excellent problem-solving, critical-thinking, and strategic planning skills
• Ability to receive and respond to constructive feedback
• General computer literacy in relevant educational software programs and excellent proficiency with MS Office
• Must be able to instruct, evaluate, direct, discipline, delegate, supervise and motivate students
• Ability to learn quickly and be effective in a fast-paced, dynamic, entrepreneurial environment

Our Hiring Process & Timeline:

• To apply: complete the online application and submit a resume and cover letter.
• We will review all qualified applications on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
• Candidates should note that this job requires you to meet in person with students and you are based on site at the Hartford Residential Center.

Compensation

• This is a 10-month position that follows the school calendar year.
• Salary Range: $50,000 - $57,000
• Staff members are provided with a competitive salary, a comprehensive benefits package (health, dental, vision, 403(b) plan, life insurance, disability, etc.), and a working environment that includes all the necessary technology and resources to succeed.

Join a team of like-minded educators who work to achieve the mission ensuring that the community's most struggling students get the world-class education and social support they need to thrive at the next level.

Domus is committed to equal employment opportunity, and we encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply for open positions. Domus does not discriminate against applicants based on race, age, color, religion, creed, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, genetic information, physical or mental handicap, or disability or veteran status.

Core Program Beliefs

The following beliefs are essential commitments for our staff team:

• We believe that within each of us is a desire to move towards health and achievement, under the right conditions. It is our job to provide young people with those conditions.
• We believe that every young person wants to love and be loved. It is our job to love these young people, and to help them learn to love themselves and others.
• We believe in the power of belonging. It is a core human condition to want to be missed when we are gone. We will miss young people when they are absent, and we will express that: "We didn't see you yesterday. We missed you. We are glad you are back". We will make sure every young person belongs in our community. No matter what. "She drew a circle to shut me out. Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But love and I had the wit to win. We drew a circle that took her in" (Edwin Markham)
• We accept young people for who they are. Right here. Right now. They do not have to change to be respected and loved and valued and be a member of our community. Behavior is not a condition of their worth as human beings.
• We believe that every young person wants to be in charge of their own life. To that end, we will give young people a voice in this program, and choices of how to best accomplish their goals.
• We are hungry to understand if our interventions are having the intended impact. We will be meticulous in our data entry, and ruthless in our hunt to understand the data and learn from it. If what we are doing is not working, we will set aside our egos, intentions and preconceived notions and we will change what we are doing.
• We believe that the young people with whom we work deserve our full attention and our best selves. Therefore, we will: NOT allow our personal beliefs or baggage to interfere with our work; we will commit to doing excellent work all the time on behalf of our young people; we will be honest and transparent with ourselves, our colleagues and our partners. To be very clear, by working in this program we are committing to:
• Engaging in self-care outside of work so that our personal issues don't interfere with our ability to focus on our young people;
• Open communication - Bringing all issues directly back to the person OR to the group session in a way that fosters a healthy team;
• Learning our craft before practicing on our youth;
• Giving and receiving honest feedback, even if it is uncomfortable to hear or say

Working Conditions

• Work will be performed inside of the Hartford Residential Center or alternative venue as established by the Director.
• Expect to work a school day/year as established by the Director. This is a 10-month position.
• Work will be under the supervision of the Director with periodic performance appraisals.
• Will be working with faculty, staff, and administrators in a team-teaching approach.
• The Hartford Residential Center is an environment not controlled by Domus, which at times may be high-risk. Staff are required to follow all rules and procedures as established by the Hartford Residential Center.