Culture Associate (2024-2025)

Position Reports to: Director of School Culture & Family Engagement

Core Relationships: Leadership Team and Social Workers

Start Date: August 5, 2024

Hours: 8:00 am – 4:30 pm some out of school time responsibilities

Compensation: The salary range for this role is $50,000 - $65,239. East Harlem Scholars Academies also offers a comprehensive benefits package.

FLSA Status: Non-exempt 

Who We Are 

East Harlem Scholars Academies are community-based Pre-K to 12 public charter schools operated by  East Harlem Tutorial Program (EHTP). EHTP began in 1958 as a children's reading group and has since grown into a multi-site after-school program for traditional public school students and a network of public charter schools focused on significantly increasing the college graduation rate in East Harlem. We are on track to serve at least 25% of East Harlem students by 2025, with enrollment for this year at approximately 2200 students in our schools and after school programs. In 2020, 99% of our seniors were accepted to college, and our current scholars in college are on-track to graduate at eight times the national average of their peers.

At EHTP we also aim to serve as an agent of change and thoughtfully contribute to the national fight for racial equity. Through our organization-wide commitment to anti-racism work, we prepare our scholars to effect change, challenge the status quo, and thrive in the world around them. As staff members, we face our own racial identities and conscious and unconscious biases. With this in mind, all of our professional development, curriculum, organizational materials, and processes are designed with a goal of racial justice. Read our racial equity statement here.

We ground all of our work in racial equity, in our core values, and in our four guiding pursuits: the Revolutionary Pursuit of Love, the Radical Pursuit of Knowledge, the Responsive Pursuit of Healing, and in the Relentless Pursuit of Results. These pursuits inform and are reflected in our current four key strategic priorities: to increase high-impact, high-quality academic curriculum, programming content, staff capacity, and coaching; to embrace and advance our use of technology; to deepen our embodiment of ethical and equitable radical humanity; and to efficiently operationalize teaching, learning, community, and care. 

For more information about Scholars Academies, please visit us at www.eastharlemscholars.org.

About the Opportunity

The Culture Associate works closely with the Director of School Culture & Family Engagement (DSCFE) to provide support to scholars and classroom teachers. They are responsible for providing behavioral support to students, ensuring students are on task and that the behavior expectations established by the school culture are implemented in a consistent, caring and disciplined manner. The Culture Associate will execute the vision for school culture and leadership-learner experience, and is responsible for shaping and sustaining school-wide systems, process, and opportunities for students to internalize and program around the school's values for academic excellence, problem-based learning, love, liberation, and healing; and functions as support to the staff in the implementation of school-wide systems and procedures.This is an ideal opportunity for a dynamic individual to play an integral role in growing and shaping a premier charter school committed to helping students not just to be learners, but also leaders.

The breakdown of the role is as follows:

• 60% Student Culture Systems and Processes
• 20% Elective and/or Afterschool Instruction
• 20% Family Engagement (i.e., workshops/info sessions, student/family meetings, etc.)

What Qualifies You:

• You have 1-3 years of professional experience with students, or related field
• You hold yourself to high professional and ethical standards
• You enjoy and/or have experience working with diverse populations of students and communities
• You have a strong understanding of the challenges and opportunities of working with First Generation, Black, Brown, and/or economically-vulnerable college-bound students 
• You have strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills
• You experience working in a fast-moving, and entrepreneurial environment
• You have experience facilitating workshops with middle and/or high school students and adults

Please note that many do not meet 100% of the desired qualifications. If much of this describes you, we encourage you to still apply. 

Areas of Leadership:

• Collaborate with the DSCFE in driving and sustaining the school’s culture framework, which includes student data analysis
• Provide 1:1, small group, and whole class assistance as needed to scholars
• Help monitor uniform compliance as scholars enter the building in the morning
• Maintain culture office hours during the day to receive scholars who are referred out of the classroom
• Report all behavior referrals to the DSCFE and input all behavior-related data
• Attend and participate in culture team meetings and professional development
• Monitor and support scholars who are in alternative placements 
• Facilitate culture-huddles for families and students to support cultural initiatives within the school
• Support the development, implementation and revision of culturally relevant and responsive systems for all grade and developmental levels
• Analyze and present culture data to identify areas of focus for improvement
• Support and develop students to build and reinforce community-focused leadership, affirming self-identity, antiracist character strengths, and a commitment to the creation of loving, liberating, and healing school environment
• Manage school-wide culture systems grounded in restorative practices, social emotional learning and equity
• Lead recognition assemblies, families academies, community meetings, and other school-wide culture building activities in partnership with DSCFE and the Dean of Students
• Conduct regular school culture walk-throughs to help staff maintain a high bar of excellence
• Managed by the DSCFE, actively participate, model, and/or lead arrival, morning circle, breakfast, lunch, transitions, dismissal and transitions to ensure they are orderly, aligned, and positive
• Learn, monitor, and positively enforce school-wide and grade-wide community agreements
• Plan and facilitate one elective class and/or afterschool program

Thank you in advance for taking the time to submit an application.