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Program Operations Manager – Oakland Teaching Fellows and Oakland Practitioner Teacher Program
Oakland, CA

The New Teacher Project (TNTP) helps school districts and states fulfill the promise of public education by ensuring that all students—especially those from high-need communities—get excellent teachers. A national nonprofit organization founded by teachers, TNTP recognizes that although teachers matter more than any other school factor in student success, the nation’s education systems are not aligned with the goal of an effective teacher in every classroom. In response, TNTP develops customized programs and policy interventions that enable education leaders to diagnose their teacher quality challenges and find, develop and keep great teachers. Since its inception in 1997, TNTP has recruited or trained approximately 33,000 teachers—mainly through its highly selective Teaching Fellows™ programs—benefiting an estimated 4.8 million students. TNTP has also released a series of acclaimed studies of the policies and practices that affect the quality of the nation’s teacher workforce, most recently including The Widget Effect: Our National Failure to Acknowledge and Act on Differences in Teacher Effectiveness (2009). Today TNTP is active in more than 25 cities, including Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, New Orleans, New York, and Oakland, among others. For more information, please visit www.tntp.org.

We are currently seeking a Program Operations Manager for our Oakland Practitioner Teacher Program and Oakland Teaching Fellows programs in Oakland, California. The Program Operations Manager will be a TNTP employee based in the Oakland Unified School District office. This position is available immediately.

The Programs
TNTP works in partnership with the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) to run the Oakland Teaching Fellows program. Oakland Teaching Fellows is an alternative certification program established in 2004 to recruit, select, and train talented recent college graduates and mid-career professionals, who do not have a traditional background in education, to teach in Oakland’s high-need subject areas. Fellows undergo a rigorous selection process and complete an intensive Training Institute over the summer. There are over 200 Fellows teaching in schools throughout Oakland. In 2007, in order to create district-specific, relevant, and rigorous year-long development for new teachers, OUSD and TNTP further partnered to establish a district intern program called the Oakland Practitioner Teacher Program (OPTP). Following the rigorous summer Training Institute, participants participate in the year-long Teaching for Results Content Seminar Series, as well as a Language Acquisition and Literacy seminar, while teaching full time. Teaching for Results develops a teacher’s knowledge and ability to teach specific content while supporting a standards-based planning approach as a means to significantly increase student achievement levels in high-need schools. OPTP ensures new teachers are applying knowledge and strategies from their seminars to their classroom practice. Upon successful completion of all OPTP requirements, participants will be eligible for the Preliminary Teaching Credential.
For more information on Oakland Teaching Fellows and the Oakland Practitioner Teacher Program, go to www.oaklandteachingfellows.org.
Role and Responsibilities
The Program Operations Manager (POM) is responsible for contributing to the goals, processes, and success of both programs. The POM will contribute to both programs through the management and coordination of all systems that are necessary to support the recruitment, selection, district hiring, employee processing, training, and credentialing of all candidates and new teachers pertaining to the programs. Specifically, the Operations Manager will be responsible for:

• Managing all administrative processes that apply to the Oakland Teaching Fellows (OTF) and the Oakland Practitioner Teacher Program (OPTP)
• Managing all office communications for the programs
• Creating communication goals, systems, and tracking mechanisms and communicating directly with candidates and participants regarding program updates and requirements through in-person contact, e-mail, phone calls, large mailings, and newsletters
• Assisting in the recruitment of applicants through the management of print ads, postings, and grassroots campaigns
• Coordinating and facilitating cultivation, selection, district hiring, enrollment, and training events and effectively representing the program in a variety of contexts
• Creating and managing processes to ensure candidates’ and participants’ timely completion of program and district requirements
• Maintaining and improving upon the processes and technology used to facilitate applicant admissions and tracking
• Building and maintaining strong working relationships with District and school-based staff
• Serving as the primary liaison with TNTP’s finance and human resources staff to manage tuition payments and employment forms
• Managing the submission and approval of all certification applications to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
• Maintaining accurate candidate files and records
• Managing part-time seasonal staff, where relevant, to meet goals and timelines
• Generating memos, reports, and other analysis on the status of various initiatives
• Generating innovative solutions to program challenges

This position offers the successful candidate the opportunity to have a profound impact on how teachers are prepared to teach in Oakland.

We are seeking candidates who believe deeply in our organization's mission, who thrive in an entrepreneurial and dynamic environment, and who demonstrate a record of achievement.

Successful candidates will also demonstrate:

• Outstanding interpersonal and teamwork skills
• A commitment to producing consistently high quality, detailed work
• The ability to learn quickly, work in a fast-paced environment, and multi-task effectively
• The ability to identify challenges and actively work to find solutions
• Strong communication and writing skills
• The ability to work effectively with others at all levels of an organization and to consistently display a high level of professionalism in all interactions
• Excellent event planning, organizational, and time-management skills
• Extraordinary attention to detail
• Flexibility
• The ability to work well independently while collaborating with others on meeting common goals
• Public-speaking abilities, including the ability to inspire others
• Knowledge of the Oakland school system (strongly preferred)
• Experience working with underperforming schools (preferred)
• Excellent skills working with computers, including a strong working knowledge of the Microsoft Office suite
• A willingness to work non-standard hours and/or occasional weekends

Compensation

The annual salary for this full-time position is $50,000 or commensurate with experience in a similar position. We also offer a motivated team of colleagues, a collegial atmosphere that values professional development, a comprehensive benefits plan effective on the first day of employment – including medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance, flexible spending account options, generous vacation time, and a 403(b) plan with matching – as well as the opportunity to impact the direction of a growing, mission-driven company that is committed to the success of our nation’s children.

Please submit your cover letter and resume online at http://tbe.taleo.net/NA5/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=THENEWTEACHERPROJECT&cws=1&rid=436

We review applications on a rolling basis – so it is to your advantage to apply as soon as possible. We will not consider applications without a cover letter tailored to this position, which can be addressed to the Human Capital Team. The New Teacher Project is committed to fostering and capitalizing on the diversity of our organization. We are an equal opportunity employer and seek individuals of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to apply to this position. If you would like to learn more about our mission, please visit our web site at www.tntp.org.