La Luz Education - Lead Guide and Learning Designer (6th-8th Grade)

La Luz is looking for an educator. But more than that, La Luz is looking for a super curious person who loves the idea that learning happens anywhere and everywhere, not just in a classroom. We are looking for a dynamic person who believes middle schoolers are awesome and full of potential; an enthusiastic person who wants to impact the education system and is willing to help build a more authentic model of education. Someone that is willing to listen to families and co-create learning experiences with community partners. You see, at La Luz, we prioritize experiential learning in the community over sitting in a school AND we think that relationships, character, and this goal of being a good human are what really matters.

La Luz is a lab school that is trying to have a positive impact on the public education system by showing that returning learning to the community is not only possible, it leads to deeper, more meaningful learning and happier kids who thrive. We currently have 40 AMAZING and BOLD families that believe in our vision. This will be our fifth year in existence and we have learned a ton! Based on the number of families that have been applying and our anticipated waitlist, we know this is working; learning in the community is a more authentic way to learn than sitting at a desk. Kids and families are overwhelmingly happy. Yes, we’d like to reiterate that kids and families are happy about their middle school experience! Check out this video from Education Week to learn a little more about who we are.

Over the past four years, we have had some amazing learning opportunities. We spend the first two hours of every day working on numeracy and literacy skills tied to competencies before heading out in our vans to learn in the community. Our programming model is based on a 6-week studio that involves co-creating authentic learning experiences with a community partner: Examples include six weeks at the Denver Zoo learning alongside the zoo's experts about the many facets of conservation and six weeks at History Colorado and at the Capitol & City Council offices culminating in a public mini-exhibit on civics projects chosen by students.

We need a rockstar that thrives on the fly, loves working alongside community partners, and really knows how to lift up the learning that is happening in all of these experiences. We need an educator that is well-planned, communicates well, and is both outcome and process oriented. Knowledge with Project-Based Learning (PBL) or Expeditionary Learning (EL) would be very helpful. A positive attitude about figuring it out is a must. We want an experienced educator that has all the tools but may have rarely had the opportunity to put them to use. What is great is that La Luz doesn’t want to follow a boring scripted curriculum and just cover basic material. What is really challenging is that La Luz doesn’t follow a scripted curriculum, meaning that having some experience to backwards plan and to establish outcomes is essential to getting these learners ready for high school.

So yes, we are looking for an experienced educator. One who preferably has either elementary or middle school experience and could embrace this challenge of ensuring deep learning is happening through these experiences.

Are you interested? Are you up for the challenge, because it is hopefully very clear, this will be challenging? We know it’s a big ask and totally out of the box, but for the right candidates, we believe this opportunity should leave an educator inspired and challenged, tired yet fulfilled, and ultimately, happy to come to work each day.

The ideal EXPERIENCED candidate will have/be...

• a passion for our vision
• experience in a variety of educational disciplines
• a demonstrated passion for the natural world (preferred)
• deep interest in experiential, expeditionary, outdoor, and/or travel learning
• experience as an instructional coach, program designer, learning designer, curriculum specialist or similar role (preferred)
• a sense of humor
• experience or interest in shared leadership
• entrepreneurial spirit - comfortable with the unknown
• a builder of learning “expeditions”
• an understanding of project-based learning
• fluent in Spanish (preferred)
• zest for life
• a team player who both can lead and follow
• experience in non-traditional education environments
• a willingness to question convention, to experiment, and to take risks, balanced with an organized approach to managing details
• the ability to thrive in a self-motivated, challenging, and demanding role that will have varied and sometimes extended hours, including occasional overnight excursions
• a driver’s license and ability to drive 15-passenger van
• a good human

We 100% understand just how important this role is to the success of our bold idea. With an amazing educator, this has the potential to change “school” as we know it. It is all about the team! And again, it is going to be crazy, challenging, and different. If you are still reading this and interested, you might be exactly who we are looking for!

And, we should let you know that our students and parents will be helping us to conduct interviews and select final candidates. This is the way we roll! Families are the secret sauce and we love having their help.

Final notes:

• Compensation will depend on experience, but we believe in putting together a competitive package that would meet or exceed your expectations, including a health insurance reimbursement. ($56.5k - $72.5K) + $5k in untaxed health benefits.
• We hold a handful of fun and engaging design sessions each summer that we calendar with everyone’s schedules in mind
• Location - We begin each day in Southwest Denver, at Newlon Elementary
• Position start date: August 4, 2025

Please email an interesting and FUN cover letter (or some other format that works for you) and your resume to kyle@laluzeducation.org and cory@laluzeducation.org. If you think it sounds great, but maybe not this year, email us anyway. We hope to expand next year and the year after that. Thanks!