Expeditions Instructional Assistant & Substitute Teacher (California)

Summit Public Schools; El Cerrito (CA); On-site; USD 34,000 - 43,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision plans

Retirement plan

12 paid holidays

Life and disability insurance

Job summary

Summit Public Schools is seeking an Expeditions Instructional Assistant/Substitute to support middle or high school students in Expeditions experiences across Bay Area and WA sites. The role includes proctoring, mentoring, attendance tracking, and maintaining a structured learning environment.

You will collaborate with instructors and staff to engage students, address challenges, and connect families with resources. A Bachelor’s degree and substitute eligibility are required.

Qualifications

• Commitment to Summit’s values and education for all students.
• Flexibility, curiosity, perseverance, and a sense of humor.
• Bachelor's degree required to enable substitute certification.
• Experience with youth preferred but not required.
• Awareness of Google platforms (Drive, Sheets, Docs, Slides).
• Clear health and a background check; willingness to travel.

Responsibilities

• Supervise students during virtual, independent, and group learning.
• Track attendance and intervene when needed.
• Create a structured, safe learning environment.
• Build affirming relationships and reinforce classroom routines.
• Provide in-the-moment feedback and engage students in projects.

Skills

Flexibility

Curiosity

Perseverance

Humor

Passion for student success

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Google Drive

Google Sheets

Google Docs

Google Slides

Job description

Career Opportunities with Summit Public Schools

A great place to work.

Careers At Summit Public Schools

Current job opportunities are posted here as they become available.

Expeditions Instructional Assistant & Substitute Teacher (California)

Expeditions Instructional Assistant/Substitute

This is an hourly, full-time position for 10 months (during the school year).

Summit Public Schools is searching for Expeditions Instructional Assistants, to work with students as they participate in our Expeditions program. The Expeditions Instructional Assistant will support a classroom of middle or high school students engaged in various self-directed and small-group experiences with coaching, encouragement and guidance.

Students are vocal about what they want – they want more agency and flexibility, more high-interest and high-quality choices, greater attention to their needs as whole children, and more intentionality about launching them successfully toward a diverse array of college and career options. During a student’s Expeditions period, they are engaged in experiences, activities or coursework that exposes them to the local and world community outside of the walls of our school. For example, students might be working on a community service project with a local non-profit, might be taking an online college course, or might be collaborating with classmates on a self-designed exploration of a particular field. Students develop their understanding of themselves and the world as they decide on their next steps after graduation. The Expeditions Instructional Assistant will work with the Dean of Expeditions to support a classroom of students as they engage in these activities.

Positions are available at all Summit Public Schools campuses across the Bay Area and Washington State. Some, not all, available positions include time at nearby school sites in addition to work at your primary school site.

Additionally, the Expeditions Instructional Assistant will serve as a site-based substitute during times that they are not actively supporting Expeditions.

Who We Are:

What if all students graduated high school with the knowledge, skills and habits they need to lead a fulfilled life?

This is the question that guides our mission at Summit Public Schools.

Summit is a leading network of public schools that collectively prepares a diverse community of young people with the skills, knowledge, and habits to attain economic empowerment and success in a chosen concrete next step toward a fulfilled life. We operate 10 schools serving over 3,000 students in the Bay Area and Washington state. 100% of Summit graduates are college-ready, and Summit graduates complete college at double the national average.

We need exceptional, diverse, and mission-aligned individuals to join our team to help prepare our students for a fulfilled life. Join us!

What You’ll Do:

This role will serve as an in-person proctor and mentor for students enrolled in Summit Expeditions Experiences.

• Supervise students during virtual, independent, and student-led group learning
• Track and monitor student attendance – intervening if attendance challenges occur
• Arrange and maintain a safe, structured, and effective learning environment
• Create a positive environment that excites and invests students (e.g., develop affirming relationships with students, establish classroom routines, procedures and celebrations,)
• Encourage students to engage and be active participants in their projects or online work
• Troubleshoot minor technical issues (e.g., forgotten headphones, lost chargers)

Provide Student & Community Support

• Build positive relationships with students, families, and faculty members
• Supervise students during virtual, independent, and student-led group learning
• Provide in the moment feedback to students regarding their engagement and participation – affirming and engaging students in the learning
• Communicate with students’ family and teachers keeping everyone informed of their progress
• Maintain and reinforce Summit's graduated discipline process, including connecting students who are struggling with the appropriate school resources
• Collaborate with the Dean of Expeditions, instructional faculty, and other school personnel, parents and a variety of community resources for the purpose of improving the overall quality of the student experience during Expeditions
• Assist with other related duties and projects as assigned

Communication with online instructors (as needed)

• Regularly communicate with online course instructors for students engaged in online coursework.
• Share insights as to how students are engaging with the content (e.g., where they struggle, points of interest, questions)

General Education & Substitute Teaching Support (during non-Expeditions weeks)

During other times of the school year, you may support teachers and students in core academic courses, such as English, History, Art or Math or serve as a substitute teacher on some days.

In addition to the above, a substitute teacher’s responsibilities include:

• Provide a high quality student experience based on plans and materials provided by the classroom teacher
• Adapt, adjust and supplement instructional materials, as necessary
• Tutor small groups or individual students, as necessary
• Some, not all, available positions include time at nearby school sites in addition to work at your primary school site.

What You Need:

• Commitment to uphold Summit’s values, belief that all children deserve a rigorous and equitable education that prepares them for college and for life
• Must possess flexibility, curiosity, perseverance, a sense of humor and a burning passion to see students succeed.
• Bachelor's degree (to enable substitute certification)
• Experience working with or teaching youth is preferred but not required
• Experience with or openness to learning Google Platforms, including Google Drive, Google Sheets, Google Docs, and Google Slides.
• Clear health and a background check
• Willingness to travel to different school sites based on the Expeditions rotation schedule
• Have a 30 Day Substitute Teaching Permit (CA) / Teacher Substitute Certificate (WA) or a commitment to obtaining one upon employment

Who You Are:

• You maintain high expectations for all students and believe all students can find success in school, college, and life.
• You thrive while collaborating and are excited to work with your colleagues. You find positivity in sharing successes.
• You’re deeply dedicated to social justice and feel motivated by the challenge and impact of working in a heterogeneous community and closing the achievement gap.
• You share our vision to reimagine what schools should be and are excited to make an impact on the public education landscape.
• You are positive and resilient in the face of big challenges.
• You possess outstanding organizational skills and have a passion for the details.
• You are empathetic and culturally competent. You’re open to having hard conversations.
• You thrive in innovative environments and are comfortable with the ambiguity that can come with a dynamic and progressive workplace.
• You’re committed to continuous improvement, see feedback as a positive, and have a growth mindset.

What You Get:

In addition to joining a highly motivated team and engaging in meaningful work, you may have access to a comprehensive suite of benefits depending on your schedule and eligibility. These may include a retirement plan, personal and sick leave, 12 paid holidays, and at least 2 weeks of organization-wide closures during the year. You and your dependents may have access to multiple health, dental, and vision plans at a fraction of the cost and employee life and disability insurance at no cost. Additionally, our compensation policy strives to be equitable and transparent. The pay for this position starts at $24.84 per hour and goes up to $31.24 per hour commensurate with location, experience, and qualifications.

Summit is an equal opportunity employer. We believe that diversity, equity, and inclusion are directly intertwined with education. We are ALL better when we are able to bring our whole selves to work and honor each other’s voices across identities, cultural backgrounds, and life experiences. We welcome and encourage applications from individuals who are members of historically marginalized communities. Spanish language proficiency is a plus.