Upper School English Teacher

THE POSITION

The position will involve full-time teaching in Park’s Upper School English Department. Current projections suggest that the candidate we hire will teach four 90-minute sections (two per day), with two or three preparations (typically two sections of English 9 or 10, and two sections of electives). In addition to teaching, the faculty member will serve as an advisor to students, support co-curricular activities, co-facilitate weekly DEI meetings with students, and attend weekly faculty and departmental meetings, as well as additional meetings to support individual students.

Devoted to intellectual inquiry, a collaborative spirit of learning, and an appreciation for the diversity of human experience, The Park School of Baltimore is a community founded on positive expectations of our students and respect for individual differences.

We cultivate children’s innate curiosity by nurturing their interests and engaging them as active participants in their own education.

We support young people in becoming confident questioners and responsible citizens of the world.

The Park School is a non-sectarian, independent, coeducational day school of 845 students from Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12. Founded in 1912 as one of the early progressive schools, The Park School continues to practice a distinct educational philosophy. The core values today, as in 1912, are a belief in children’s capacity to love learning, to grow academically and emotionally when inspired by highly qualified, caring teachers, and to develop self-discipline, confidence, and creative problem-solving skills through deep exploration and constant challenge. At every grade level, from Pre-Kindergarten through Upper School, Park actively encourages questioning and conversation as essential elements of the learning process. The school philosophy emphasizes a belief in positive expectations and expects that students, as they mature, will take increasing responsibility for their own learning.

QUALIFICATIONS

We are looking for a candidate who:

● embraces the school’s progressive philosophy and teaching methods

● holds at least a B.A.

● has a broad and deep background in the study of literature and writing

● has demonstrated experience in teaching writing as a process

● provides students with honest, encouraging, and timely feedback on their work

● values student input and enjoys discussing the “why” of something

● enjoys working with young people in both the classroom and a variety of other settings

● brings flexibility and creativity to the classroom

● thrives with independence in the classroom and is eager to develop their own courses

● can help the department continue to broaden and diversify the scope of current offerings

● considers teaching young people their vocation

● has a demonstrated openness to supporting our anti-racist action plan

● remains curious about the world and continues to learn

We welcome candidates without previous experience in independent schools. Candidates who are from diverse backgrounds and/or who have experience in cultural competency work are strongly encouraged to apply.

THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
Park’s philosophy statement is at the heart of the Upper School English curriculum. Because we believe that students “are capable and desirous of rational self-discipline,” we offer an elective system after ninth grade that allows them to pursue their interests. Because we believe that “the activity of learning is an expression of positive energies, fulfills natural impulse, and enriches life,” we seek to create an engaging classroom environment in which teachers and students work together to find meaning and to establish the highest standards for thinking, discussing, and writing.

Within our classrooms, we ask students to attend to their own words, to the words of others, and to the language of the texts in order to build understanding. They must be open to questions and willing to clarify their answers, look closely at words, and share interpretations. We believe that with this shared responsibility, everyone has a stake in the conversation. Further, when students debate ideas or express disagreements, we encourage them to embrace the conversation and to persevere as they work toward understanding of themselves and others.

The English Department offers an elective curriculum that is driven by the interests of teachers and students, and encompasses a wide variety of literary genres, periods, and themes. Recent offerings include Graphic Narratives, Etymology and Semantics, American Woman, The Interview, The Reading and Writing Classroom, Environment in American Lit, Sympathy for the Devil, Shakespeare’s Henriad, Art of the Essay, Russian Literature, Poetry Writing, Ancient Greek Classics, Border Ontologies, Psychology and Lit, Writing as Ritual, and Excess and Restraint in the 20th C Novel. We often team up with teachers from other departments to create interdisciplinary courses, such as Irish History and Literature, Public Digital Humanities, or Lyrics in Literary and Cultural Contexts: Bob Dylan & His Influences.

We encourage candidates to go to the website to read our Program of Studies and Park’s Philosophy.

SALARY AND BENEFITS
Park salaries and benefits are highly competitive with those in other leading area independent schools. For new appointments, salaries reflect experience and training equated to Park’s scales. In addition to normal retirement and health benefits, the school offers the following distinctive programs:

APPLICATION PROCESS
Due to the large volume of incoming resumes, we cannot accept phone calls. Interested candidates are asked to send a letter of interest, personal statement, resume and list of references via email or US mail.

CONTACT PERSON
Priscilla Morales
Associate Head of School
The Park School 
2425 Old Court Road
Baltimore, MD 21208
academicresources@parkschool.net

The Park School of Baltimore does not discriminate against employees or applicants for employment on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, ancestry, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or any physical or mental disability unrelated to a reasonable performance of an employee’s duties.