Arts & Leadership Institute Professional Educator
Background Information
The Big Buddy Program is a 32-year-old youth-serving organization in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, providing Mentors and learning experiences to youth that lack access to these success-promoting resources. We believe that every youth deserves to be part of a safe, supportive community that offers healthy opportunities for development and supportive relationships.
The youth we serve are hungry for exposure to creative options to feed their souls, as well as academic support to insure they will be able to feed themselves when they become adults. The Arts and Leadership Institute (ALI) is designed to give students the opportunity to develop skills and knowledge that can enhance school success by focusing on three main areas: (1) academic enrichment to help meet state achievement standards; (2) enrichment activities in content areas that reinforce and complement the regular academic program; and (3) leadership development to empower teens to recognize their own role in creating a thriving community. At the core of the ALI structure is our commitment to the curative power of a consistent, committed adult and an asset-based approach to working with young people.
Professional Educators (experts in academic areas) provide academic tutoring, and Teaching Artists provide enrichment courses that build upon students’ interests and social skills. Academic support includes tutoring, homework assistance, ACT Prep and academic skill-building. Enrichment courses include: poetry, foreign language, computer technology, journalism, video production, martial arts, culinary arts, various genres of dance, DJ-ing, and other interests that link to the workforce.
Each youth participant is paired with an ALI Advisor (and/or Mentor) to receive support and guidance in accomplishing academic and life-skill goals. Big Buddy ALI Leadership Team, along with ALI Advisors, Mentors and school personnel, will work collaborative with the youth and his/her supportive family unit to create a plan for success at each grade level and for life after high school. This plan will be coordinated with the prescription for success for each grade level, to ensure the youth graduates with the requirements needed to pursue his/her goals. The role of the ALI Program & Youth Advisor is to ensure that the youth have the necessary support to accomplish their goals. Your success is based on the success of the youth that you advise.
It is important for contractors working with the Arts and Leadership Institute to know the goals of the program and to understand how their work with the youth in the Institute contributes to accomplishing the overall goals. A detailed outline of the goals and objectives has been provided below, along with how these goals will be measured:
1) 100% of the youth in the Arts and Leadership Institute will show greater academic growth than that of their counterparts not in the program. We will assess each participants’ GEE scores and compare them to non-participants of the same grade level attending the same school. We will contract with the Policy and Research Group, an independent evaluation consulting organization, to access the test data, conduct the comparison and issue a report at the end of each school year.
2) 100% of the students participating in the Arts and Leadership Institute will be promoted to the next grade at the end of the school year. We will collect end-of-year report cards to determine if a youth has been promoted and provide a summary report on the 50 full-year program participants.
3) Each semester will offer a minimum of 6 courses not currently addressed in the high school curricula that build the life skill sets of the youth. We will design a youth satisfaction survey with Policy and Research Group which will measure a variety of factors, including the provision of relevant life skills courses and the participants’ assessment of how the material provided in the courses assist in executing their life plans. Feedback will be provided by the Policy and Research Group so that adjustments can be made to the course offerings.
4) All youth will have the opportunity to be involved in a minimum of 6 interactive engagements with community partners. These events will be opportunities for the youth to participate in direct learning with role models who are professionals in the field. Satisfactory surveys will gauge the relevance and importance the participants assign to these experiences.
5) 90% of the youth will have a one-on-one mentor relationship with the same adult role model for the entire year. We will administratively track each mentor placement and will ask the youth participants to assess the value of their Mentor/Mentee relationship in the youth survey.
The ALI Professional Educator positions are contract positions. Compensation is based on conducting academic courses that meet the standards of the subject area taught and the growth of the youth enrolled as measured through periodic evaluations and feedback from the youth and Site Manager. The information below outlines the expectations of this position in detail.
Term contract will begin on August 29, 2011 and end on December 16, 2011.
The contract begins with ALI Professional Educators attending a series of training courses during the last week of August and the first week of September. Specific dates will be provided during the interview process, and compensation for these training sessions will be provided. Training sessions will include, but are not limited to, increasing knowledge in the philosophy and concepts of positive youth development; establishing a mentoring relationship; basic safety practices; and course content requirements and guidelines.
Scope of Work:
Overview
To promote the goals and objectives of the Big Buddy Program by working the Arts and Leadership Institute (ALI) Directors, Coordinators, Managers, Teaching Artists, Professional Educators, Staff and ALI program partners to provide an environment for our youth that gives them access to positive adult role models; allows for the instruction of skills to meet academic and social gaps; and offers opportunities for engagement and experiences in meaningful activities that promote success in life. The Professional Educator’s position is key to providing the academic support needed for success.
Instructional Responsibilities
Professional Educators will provide lessons/curriculum for their course(s) that address identified skill gaps or areas in need of improvement in various subject area(s); expose youth to workforce development experiences; further develop their leadership skills; and offer opportunities for engagement and experiences in meaningful activities that promote success in life. Instruction provided must align with the state and/or national standards of high quality programming in the relevant subject areas. Special expertise in ELA, Math, Workforce Development, Science and/or Social Studies is definitely a plus. Individuals who can demonstrate success in tutoring youth in these subject areas will receive priority in hiring.
Professional Educators will need to be available during the hours of 3:00pm – 6:00pm, Mondays – Thursdays, in order to be considered for this position.
Other Expectations
● Attend weekly check in-meetings held by the Site Manager
● Work with Positive Youth Development Coach (PYD Coach) as needed
● Exhibit professionalism when communicating with other ALI Staff and volunteers of the agency
● Meet given deadlines for completion of tasks
Compensation Structure and Schedule
Professional Educators will be compensated at a session rate of $30 – $40/session. The rate is determined by the skills and talents of individual Professional Educator and by the completion of deliverables each week.
To Apply
Your Statement of Purpose and Employment Application should be MAILED or DROPPED OFF to the Big Buddy office at 1415 Main Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70802.
Click Here to download application (Word Document)
The Big Buddy Program is an EEO Employer. It is our policy to recruit the best candidates possible. All qualified applicants, who are eligible for employment, will be considered for job opportunities without discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
The Big Buddy Program is a local non-profit (501(c)(3)) youth services agency that provides positive role models and quality learning experiences to over 1,500 disadvantaged youth weekly. For over 30 years, the Big Buddy Program has provided children and youth with positive adult role models through the Big Buddy/Little Buddy mentoring programs; character education and leadership sessions; after-school programs, holiday camps and summer enrichment programs; teen programs, and literacy skill improvement.
