School Mission

Compass Collegiate Academy provides every scholar with the academic foundation and strong habits that inspire and cultivate lifelong learners who lead purposeful, civic lives.

Compass Collegiate Academy strives to create a diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist community. People from historically underrepresented groups are encouraged to apply.

School Overview

Compass Collegiate Academy (CCA) is a public charter school that opened in Charleston, South Carolina with grades K-1 in August of 2021. The school will add a grade each year thereafter until it is a full K-8 school serving approximately 720 scholars. In the 23-24 school year, CCA will have grades K-3 and approximately 150 students. CCA has intentionally built its school model and structured its budget to ensure that the student body is representative of the student population in North Charleston and the Charleston peninsula, the school’s geographic target area. CCA is driven by the following core beliefs for its school model:

All Means All - The school will operate with a non-negotiable belief in the potential of every child. Every adult employed at the school will operate with a daily mindset that every scholar can achieve at high levels irrespective of a scholar’s family income, disability, language proficiency or prior developmental experience.

Rigorous Curriculum - The school’s rigorous curriculum and academic program is designed to assist scholars to acquire a foundation of knowledge and advanced literacy skills in the early grades that will prepare scholars to undertake higher order analysis, evaluation, and critical thinking skills in later grades.

An Intentional Commitment to Scholar Social and Emotional Growth - Preparing scholars for successful secondary and postsecondary pursuits involves growing both sharp minds and big hearts. CCA will focus on helping scholars to better understand their own identities, their communities, and how to successfully build relationships with peers across lines of difference. Scholars will develop character strengths such as kindness, determination, curiosity, gratitude and integrity and will be better equipped to positively impact their diverse local communities and world.

High-Quality Staff - The school will have a robust hiring and development model based on some of the nation’s best public schools to ensure a high-quality teaching and learning environment for scholars. Teachers and leaders will be respected as skilled practitioners and professionals in a culture that prioritizes continuous growth and development for adults as well as scholars. 

Personalized Learning through Data-Driven Instruction - Through a continuous cycle of assessment, analysis, and action, the school will identify personalized needs to close academic gaps while also differentiating instruction for scholars with more advanced achievement. 

Parental Involvement and Intentional Community - The school values families as partners in the academic growth and human development of scholars. Families can expect daily updates on scholar progress, weekly phone communication and availability with a scholar’s teacher, open doors to the school, and access to workshops and seminars on childhood human development. The school will intentionally cultivate a supportive school community among diverse families.

Role Expectations

K-5 Lead Teachers will be part of a hardworking team to help grow Charleston’s newest open enrollment public charter school serving all scholars. K-4 Lead Teachers are responsible for achieving the school’s mission through leading joyful classrooms that are academically rigorous, intensely focused on literacy skill development for all scholars, and intentional about daily scholar social and emotional growth. He or she will report to a member of the academic leadership team and contribute to creating the school’s achievement-oriented culture.

Responsibilities and Duties:

Instructional Leader

• Develop weekly lesson plans and instructional materials that are informed by data.  Adapt plans and materials as necessary to ensure that every scholar experiences a high-quality curriculum.
• Utilize effective teaching strategies to deliver effective whole class, individualized and small group instruction.
• Lead a daily classroom-based social and emotional learning (SEL) program and link SEL lessons to the academic program. 
• Regularly collaborate with classroom co-teachers and school staff to provide effective instruction to all scholars.
• Identify, record, reflect on scholar needs and participate regularly in professional development to assess, plan, monitor, and implement methods to solve scholar learning challenges.
• Communicate regularly with parents to support scholar learning needs.
• Lead Teachers are accountable for scholar’s mastery of academic standards.
• Develop expertise with the school’s literacy program, including the STEP Assessment.

Classroom Management

• Establish and maintain high standards of scholar behavior needed to achieve an optimal learning classroom learning environment.
• Regularly input, review, and use CCA’s schoolwide data system for tracking scholar behavior.
• Provide a functional and attractive classroom learning environment with teaching aides and materials aligned to the curriculum.
• Regularly collaborate with classroom co-teachers and school staff to provide effective behavior interventions and supports to all scholars.

Assessment and Data

• Participate cooperatively in CCA’s assessment system and data platforms to monitor scholar learning and progression.
• Develop classroom based formative assessments as necessary to check for scholar progress and mastery.
• Advance professional knowledge of CCA data systems, data reports consistent with CCA’s distributed data philosophy and approach.
• Administer assessments in a variety of forms (formative, summative, standardized, etc.) in accordance with CCA’s testing programs.
• Evaluate scholar’s academic and SEL growth, keep appropriate records, prepare scholar reports and regularly communicate with parents regarding their scholar's progress.

General Responsibilities

• Regularly participate in CCA’s professional development program, including CCA’s annual summer professional development prior to school opening.
• Actively participate in CCA’s instructional coaching program (coach and be coached).
• Supervise scholars in out-of-classroom activities on rotating schedules. Examples include, but are not limited to: lunch duty, bus monitor, and recess duty.
• Communicate with parents, CCA leadership team, and CCA colleagues in a timely, consistent manner.
• Attend school wide functions and community events as requested.

K-5 Lead Teachers will perform other duties as required to achieve the school’s mission.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree is required; Master’s degree is preferred.
• South Carolina teaching certification in relevant elementary teaching field is required.
• Proven track-record of achievement as a teacher.
• Mastery of and enthusiasm for teaching academic subjects.
• Evidence of self-motivation and willingness to be a team player.
• Experience working with a culturally diverse student body preferred.

Ability to:

• Work hard to achieve the school’s mission.
• Improve the minds and lives of scholars in and out of the classroom.
• Communicate clearly and effectively in both oral and written language.
• Establish and maintain positive relationships with a variety of people. 
• Engage families and the larger community in the life of the school.

Salary is competitive and commensurate with your experience. Compass Collegiate Academy full-time employees are provided with a benefits package that includes medical, vision, and dental insurance, retirement plan, parental leave, and a laptop.

All employment with CCA is AT-WILL and nothing contained in this job description or in any other document provided by CCA creates a contract of employment for a specified term. In at-will employment, both the employee and employer retain the right to terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason, with or without cause and with or without any advance notice.

Compass Collegiate Academy is committed to providing equal access to educational and employment opportunities regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, disability, pregnancy, age, sex, or any other protected characteristic, as may be required by law.