Teaching Artist

PLAY ON PHILLY; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 27,552 - 61,992; Part time

Job summary

A nonprofit music education organization in Philadelphia is seeking passionate Teaching Artists to provide instruction to K-12 students. The role involves ensuring student progress in music and creating a welcoming environment. Applicants should have experience teaching music and a commitment to community service. This position is flexible and may require work during evenings or weekends. Hourly teaching rate is competitive. Join a diverse team dedicated to fostering music education in the community.

Qualifications

• Professional musician with teaching experience.
• Passionate about music education and committed to serving the community.
• Able to work flexible hours including nights and weekends.

Responsibilities

• Ensure students make steady progress on their instruments and music skills.
• Create a safe and welcoming environment for students.
• Participate in professional development opportunities.

Skills

Experience teaching groups of five or more students

Passion for music education

Ability to serve community through music

Problem-solving skills

Creativity

Education

Professional musician

At least one year of formal music teaching experience

Job description

Description

Play On Philly (POP) is a non‑profit organization that provides daily, after‑school music instruction to over 300 K-12 students. We work in communities that historically have had little or no access to formal music education.

POP is always looking for passionate, committed, and social justice minded music educators! Although there may not be a current opening that fits your experience, as our programming continues to grow, so does the need for qualified Teaching Artists. Applying to this position allows us to start the conversation for future positions and expand our bench of substitutes who may be available on an as‑needed basis.

Job Description

Teaching Artists (TA) work collaboratively and independently to ensure students are making steady progress on their instruments, music literacy skills, and repertoire and can manage their class to create a safe, welcoming, and rigorous environment in their classrooms and at their Music Center, at‑large. All POP TAs are responsible for encouraging students to adhere to the POP rules and guidelines for student citizenship.

As POP team members, TAs actively participate in professional development and continued education to cultivate and hone their teaching skills. TAs receive regular feedback and coaching on their job performance. Successful candidates are interested in cultivating their skills in group instrumental teaching and are excited to grow.

This role is supervised by the Music Center’s Program Coordinator and works in partnership with the Program Manager, Music Director, and other POP TAs within specific instrument families. We are looking for lifelong learners, and collaboratively natured individuals who enjoy and have experience working with school‑aged children (K‑12), are creative, and can problem‑solve and multi‑task.

A successful candidate:

• You are passionate about music education.
• You are calm under pressure.
• You have experience with teaching groups of five or more students at once.
• You are excited to serve a community through music.

Requirements

• You are a professional musician.
• You have at least one year of formal music teaching experience with young people.
• You can work occasional nights and weekends as required.
• You have been fully vaccinated against COVID‑19.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

POP is committed to being a diverse and inclusive workplace and is actively trying to attract a wide pool of candidates. Discrimination against race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age, disability or genetic information is both illegal and against our organization’s values. As part of our Commitment to Cultural Equity and Anti‑Racism, POP is working to understand who is applying to our open positions. Your responses will help us to evaluate and improve our current practices. If you feel comfortable volunteering your demographic details strictly for informational purposes, you will be invited to respond to the optional section in the job application.

Our Community

POP is rooted in the community of Philadelphia. We welcome all applicants and invite our local community members to apply. We want to hear from you!

Compensation

Hourly Teaching Rate: $45 Hourly Admin Rate: $20

In lieu of a cover letter, please be prepared to answer the following questions: [250 word maximum per response]

• Why are you interested in POP?
• What do you like about working with children or young adults?
• Tell us about a teacher or role model who really influenced you.