Literacy Content Specialist

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Posting Date

Sep 29, 2026, 5:55:47 PM

Primary Location

Southwest Side-501 W 35th St (Bridgeport)

CPS Non-Union Job Grade : SG1

Estimated Annual Salary Range

90,000.00 - 122,400.00

Position Type : Non-Union Position

Overtime Status

Exempt

Final salary offers are dependent upon candidate qualifications.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is a district on the rise, serving over 320,000 students in 500+ schools and employing over 44,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life. In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families, and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability, and integrity. Six core values are embedded within these commitments – student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.

The CPS Department of Literacy is committed to increasing equity of literacy outcomes across the district and ensuring that advanced literacy skills serve as a gateway to opportunity for all CPS students. Through the CPS PK-12 Vision for Advanced Literacy, the department sets clear expectations for what literacy learning should look like in our district and outlines the district-wide shifts and key practices we promote and support through universal and differentiated professional learning to ensure students have equitable opportunities to develop advanced literacy skills. Our departmental efforts are aligned with the CPS Success 2029 Together We Rise 5-year strategic plan.

Job Summary

Reporting to the Literacy Manager, the Literacy Content Specialist will collaborate closely with other Content and/or Program Support Specialists to ensure that a coherent vision for PreK-12 Literacy teaching and learning is scaled throughout CPS. The primary objective of the Literacy Content Specialist will be to ensure that the support provided by the Office of Teaching and Learning improves the student experience and outcomes aligned to the CPS Instructional Core Vision. Content Specialists will be assigned to professional learning work streams and will have responsibilities on PK-12 strategic priority teams.

The Literacy Content Specialist will work to enact the CPS PK-12 Vision for Advanced Literacy through leadership on assigned departmental initiatives aligned with Specialists’ areas of expertise and educational experience. This is a full-time exempt position that will be paid for time worked on a salary basis.

The Literacy Content Specialist will be held accountable for the following responsibilities

• Design and facilitate role-specific professional learning for teachers, instructional coaches, and school leaders adopting Skyline, the CPS universally available, high-quality curriculum. This includes design of foundational learning to support new Skyline ELA adopters as well as targeted professional learning to support more experienced Skyline ELA adopters in refining their use of the curriculum, and cross-departmental professional learning tailored to meet the needs of educators adopting Skyline in multiple content areas (e.g., ELA, science, and social science). Professional learning workstreams may be specifically focused on supporting instructional coherence in core/Tier 1 instruction, Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions, tutoring or other academic supports (e.g., EdTech tools), multilingual supports, and/or supports for students with IEPs. Work will involve cross-departmental and cross-office collaborations, including working with other Content Teams in the Office of Teaching & Learning, the Teacher Development Team, the Office of Multicultural-Multilingual Education and Office of Students with Disabilities, as well as collaboration with Instructional Support Leaders (ISLs) and Network partners.
• Lead and/or collaborate on additional assigned work streams aligned to annual Literacy Vision strategic priorities. Work stream assignments will be based on Literacy Content Specialists’ expertise in one or more of the following areas of the CPS Vision for Advanced Literacy: supporting Black student success, multilingual pathways, and the rightful presence of students with disabilities; multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS); pathways to post-secondary success; emerging technologies to support advanced literacy or strengthen skills for striving readers; and/or family and community engagement.
• Contribute expertise to the development of strategic initiatives designed to increase equity of literacy outcomes for Black and Latinx students, multilingual learners, and students with disabilities in alignment with the CPS PK-12 Vision for Advanced Literacy and District priorities outlined in CPS’s 5-year Strategic Plan. Participate in regular cycles for Continuous Improvement of curriculum, instruction, and assessment, including the improvement of Skyline ELA and other programs, the evaluation of various sources of data to inform future professional learning needs, and participate in centralized feedback structures to inform continuous improvement of professional learning facilitation.
• Contribute to the development of district-wide resources, instructional guidance, and policy recommendations aligned to the PK-12 Vision for Advanced Literacy. This includes, but is not limited to, guidance to support engagement in key literacy practices, literacy-specific assessment and MTSS guidance, implementing accelerated course pathways, etc. Collaborate with Content Specialists across departments and offices to ensure a consistent instructional vision is promoted within and across content areas.
• Maintain content area expertise through staying abreast of current research, practices, and innovation in the field.
• Other duties as assigned

In order to be successful and achieve the above responsibilities, the Literacy Content Specialist must possess the following qualifications

Education Required

Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field of study from an accredited college or university, required

Master’s degree in a relevant field of study, preferred

Valid teaching certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) with appropriate grade level and content level endorsement is required

LBSI, ESL, or Bilingual Endorsement, preferred

Experience Required

Minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience in education, including the following, is required:

Minimum of five (5) years of classroom teaching experience, including English language arts instruction. Experience implementing high-quality, comprehensive ELA curricula, including the Skyline ELA curriculum, is preferred.

Minimum of three (3) years of teacher leadership experience, such as leading school teams in the development of curriculum and assessments, analyzing student performance data, etc.

Minimum of three (3) years working with adult learners, including creating, organizing, and facilitating professional learning experiences to meet the needs of participants.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Expertise in planning, designing, facilitating, and evaluating professional learning

Success in working with culturally and linguistically diverse student populations; knowledge of culturally and linguistically sustaining language arts instructional practices and pedagogy; familiarity with strategies for supporting English learners, students with disabilities, and students with a wide range of reading and writing skills

Deep knowledge of Literacy teaching and learning instructional best practices

Exceptional organizational skills; ability to effectively manage several work streams simultaneously

Capable of building and sustaining positive, productive relationships with colleagues and stakeholders

Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; comfortable collaborating and communicating across a diverse range of audiences, including network teams, principals, teachers, and support staff

Commitment to CPS Instructional Core Vision

Ability to build consensus and leverage expertise with educators across the district

Excellent technology skills (Google Suite)

Health & Wellness: Your Care, Your Choice

• Medical Plan Options
• Pharmacy
• Vision
• Behavioral Health & EAP
• Employee Wellness Program

Financial Security: Planning for Today and Tomorrow

• Basic Life Insurance
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Pension Plans
• Supplemental Retirement Plans (403(b) and 457(b))
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)
• Spot Pet Insurance

Work-Life Balance: Supporting Your Personal and Professional Life

CPS values the well-being of its employees and offers competitive paid time off policies:

As a condition of employment with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), employees are required to:

Establish/Maintain Chicago Residency - Employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of their CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district. The Chicago residency requirement does not apply to temporary/part-time positions; however, all CPS employees must be residents of Illinois.

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