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The Open School is hiring a full-time staff member to work on campus in Santa Ana, California. This position is for a Monday-Friday schedule at 7 hours/day.
Position Summary
The Open School staff members work directly with students and take on specific responsibilities to keep the school running. We hire staff rather than teachers to emphasize that adults are not automatically teachers and that people learn from each other in complex ways. The Open School staff are not responsible for creating activities for students to pursue and do not have the authority to unilaterally establish or enforce rules. Staff at The Open School are available as role models, facilitators, and peers as students pursue their own interests.
There are numerous ways that staff interact with students ranging from tutoring in a specific subject, playing games (computers, cards, sports), working on collaborative projects, building things, going on field trips, cooking, producing plays to playing music, etc. Staff are expected to act as dependable stewards of the school; facilitate student access to resources; exemplify mature practice of personal fulfillment and societal engagement; and anchor school culture to values of interpersonal respect.
Staff also support all areas of school operations from ground maintenance to budgeting. Most work is done from Monday through Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm, but there are times when staff will need to work outside of those hours, such as a weekend event or an evening meeting.
In addition, staff will be engaging in our virtual program on a regular basis. This may include taking part in activities, meeting one-on-one or in a small group with students virtually, and holding any number of meetings online. Staff will also be expected to pursue relationships with parents, holding regular conversations and meetings with them to deepen the parents’ understanding of and relationship with the school.
A successful candidate demonstrates:
Beneficial Experience:
Compensation:
Upon hiring, staff members are considered “fellows” for a period of at least 3 months and no more than 1 year. During the fellowship period, they are compensated at an hourly wage of $22.50/hour or commiserate with their salary offer (see below) while they complete their training to become a full staff member. At the end of the fellowship period, the successful candidate will receive a vote of confidence from the School Meeting and earn the title of Staff Member. They will then be paid at salaried rate based on the matrix below.
Employees are placed on the pay scale based on their completed years of experience. For newly hired employees, experience at other schools would be measured according to the below formula. The HR Committee will determine the definition of previous experience for new staff:
Newly hired staff cannot be placed higher than row F.
Pay adjusts at the anniversary of hire based on years of experience.
Row 2023/24 matrix Salary
A Entry $36,331
B 1 year $38,147
C 2 years $40,054
D 3 years $42,057
E 4 years $44,159
F 5-6 years $46,366
G 7-9 years $51,003
H 10-14 years $56,104
I 15+ years $61,714
Benefits include:
Schedule:
The Open School follows a standard academic calendar. Staff have fewer responsibilities during the summer and therefore have a fair amount of time off during those months. There are periodic meetings and this position will require some summer work to prepare for the following year as well as further develop the program. Additionally, staff are considered on break during the school breaks (i.e. winter break, spring break, etc).
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This opening is for a substitute staff member for our campus in Santa Ana, California.
The Open School staff members work directly with students and take on specific responsibilities to keep the school running. We hire staff rather than teachers to emphasize that adults are not automatically teachers and that people learn from each other in complex ways. The Open School staff are not responsible for creating activities for students to pursue and do not have the authority to establish or enforce rules unilaterally. Staff at The Open School are available as role models, facilitators, and peers as students pursue their own interests.
This position is for an on-call substitute staff member. There may also be opportunities for regularly scheduled and pre-scheduled shifts. This position is NOT a school meeting member and will not have the ability to vote in the weekly School Meeting.
A person filling the role as a substitute for our staff should be familiar with our model and philosophy and willing to learn how we interact with students. This is NOT a teaching position. Substitute staff will be expected to engage with students respectfully and without condescension. You should be available to help students with requests and needs, as they are presented and should not interfere with their activities.
Additionally, substitute staff should be prepared to support the staff members on campus as needed. School operational or administrative tasks may need to be completed, or the substitute staff may be asked to station themself in a particular location to be present for student requests.
School hours are 8:30am-4:30pm and staff shifts are either 8:15am-3:45pm, 9:30am-5pm, or 10am-5:30pm with a 30 minute break. A substitute staff should be available for any one of those three shifts and will be trained on opening or closing shifts as needed.
Tasks may include: