Job Description
JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY
In 2009, Career Ladder roles were introduced as part of the Empowering Effective Teachers plan, co-written by Pittsburgh Public Schools and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. The Literacy Academic Coach position is a Career Ladder promotional opportunity which offers increased leadership responsibilities for teachers with a track record of success for students. The Literacy Academic Coach position enables teachers to use their leadership skills to increase learning for Pittsburgh students and their colleagues, and to earn additional compensation for assuming these roles.
The Literacy Academic Coach is directly supervised by the K-12 Literacy Coordinator and is responsible for promoting access and equity for all students by providing job-embedded coaching and professional learning. The Literacy Academic Coach supports teachers in implementing literacy strategies across content areas and works most closely with English Language Arts (ELA) teachers. The Literacy Academic Coach is a centrally assigned role that carries a caseload of schools, and specific grade bands, to support with varying coaching cycle lengths based on support needs. The Literacy Academic Coach works with classroom teachers to support student learning and teacher practice in the areas of reading and writing. The Literacy Academic Coach focuses on individual and group professional learning that will expand and refine the understanding of District-supported best practices in literacy instruction in order to positively impact student achievement. The Literacy Academic Coach works with the grade band specific Literacy Curriculum Coordinator on coaching support deployment and maintaining focused and intentional coaching cycles.
WORK MONTHS
10 months
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
1. Provide job-embedded coaching and professional learning to build teacher capacity in literacy content, evidence-based instructional strategies, and equitable teaching practices which include but are not limited to modeling, co-teaching, side-by-side coaching, and support cycles.
2. Develop detailed support cycles of data-based coaching with specific measurable goals, coaching strategies, and progress monitoring.
3. Facilitate collaborative planning and/or professional learning communities to support teachers in studying the curriculum and planning culturally responsive lessons that meet all students' needs.
4. Support teachers in the effective use of a variety of formative assessment data and student work to inform instruction and plan responsive lessons.
5. Facilitate District-wide professional development and learning sessions based on literacy initiatives and assessed teacher needs.
6. Assist school leadership in developing and implementing a school-wide professional development plan.
7. Collaborate with school and district leaders to gather input and insights on instructional priorities, educator needs, and implementation challenges in order to inform the design and delivery of professional development
8. Serve as a content specialist to assist in the development and implementation of school based instructional plans that align to District goals, curriculum, and PA Core Standards. Serve as a content specialist to assist school leadership in the development and implementation of improvement plans that align with district goals.
9. Support curriculum and assessment writing and review.
10. Lead progress monitoring and continuous improvement processes by ensuring timelines for data collection and analysis are met and that resulting data is leveraged to inform instructional practice and to monitor and adjust student achievement and teacher practice while supporting the district literacy team.
11. Maintain and improve professional competence by staying knowledgeable about current research in literacy instruction, general teaching practices, and adult learning, and participating fully in district professional growth opportunities.
12. Support the organization and distribution of district curriculum and instructional materials.
13. Establish professional relationships with colleagues, students, families, and the community that reflect recognition of and respect for every individual.
14. Support school-based literacy events and initiatives.
15. Maintain accurate records of coaching activity and impact, ensuring on-time submission of all required documentation and reports.
16. Other relevant duties as assigned by supervisor in support of the department's or school’s goals and objectives and the District's mission and Superintendent's Priority Goals
EDUCATION REQUIRED
Bachelor’s Degree
CERTIFICATION/LICENSURE REQUIRED
Pennsylvania Department of Education Instructional Certification, Level II in relevant content area.
For more information on Pennsylvania (PA) Department of Education Certification Requirements visit the ahref\="https://www.education.pa.gov/Educators/Certification/PAEducators/Pages/PACerts.aspx">PA Department of Education’s Certification Types and Codes webpage.
YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
3 years of experience teaching literacy/english
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, \& ABILITIES
WORKING CONDITIONS \& PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
The working conditions and physical requirements described here are representative of, but not limited to, those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodation may be made.
Employees of Pittsburgh Public Schools engage in the extremely important and fulfilling job of educating students in the City of Pittsburgh. Employees must believe in, value and be committed to the educability of all; must promote the school and District vision of high standards of learning and academic rigor, continuous school improvement, and the inclusion of all members of the school community; must be willing to work in a fast-paced environment while maintaining the energy necessary to meet the responsibilities and expectations of the position; may be required to work in close collaboration with staff at multiple sites and multiple disciplines; show considerable concentration and creativity; and promote and appreciate diversity in the organization.
ADDITIONAL JOB INFORMATION
Term
Literacy Academic Coach positions have a two (2) year term.
Seniority
An agreement between the District and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers has established new provisions related to accrual of building seniority for Career Ladder teachers to modify those outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Beginning in 2015-16, all school-based Career Ladder teachers have accrued building seniority as would any other teacher, in addition to accruing special category seniority while they serve in a Career Ladder role as outlined in the CBA. Academic Coaches will have special category seniority, by certification, District-wide. (See Article 161 for more detail on special category seniority for each Career Ladder role.)
Existing provisions regarding building seniority in cases of a voluntary transfer will apply if a teacher transfers schools to assume a Career Ladder role. As with all teachers who voluntarily transfer to another school, teachers who transfer schools to assume Career Ladder roles would take with them half of their system seniority as their new building seniority. However, in order to incentivize movement into the District's highest-needs schools, teachers who transfer in to a school designated by the Pennsylvania Department of Education as Focus, Priority, or among the bottom 15 percent in the state to assume a Career Ladder role would receive credit for all of their building seniority or half of their system seniority, whichever is greater. As with all teachers, however, a Career Ladder teacher’s building seniority may not be greater than the age of the school. A teacher moving into a Career Ladder role in his/her current building maintains his/her building seniority.
1. Literacy Academic Coaches are centrally assigned roles that will function as school-based roles for the purpose of building seniority. As a result, building seniority provisions related to Career Ladder roles agreed upon by the two parties in a letter dated April 14, 2015 will apply. Specifically, teachers serving in a Literacy Academic Coach role will accrue building seniority as would any other teacher in addition to accruing special category seniority. Literacy Academic Coaches assigned simultaneously at more than one (1) school shall receive proportional credit for building seniority at each of the schools to which they are assigned.
2. Any individual who does not continue as a Literacy Academic Coach due to a reduction in force will have the rights to any vacant Literacy Academic Coach position during the subsequent school year. A Literacy Academic Coach whose position is not continued due to a reduction in force will continue to accrue special category seniority while not serving in the role but will not earn the Career Ladder differential until they are serving in a Literacy Academic Coach role. As with other Career Ladder teachers who are impacted by a reduction within a Career Ladder program, his/her ability to remain in the current school assignment will be based on the building seniority rules established in Articles 33, 142 and 143.
Training
Teachers in Career Ladder roles have a longer work year, which includes up to 10 additional work days. These days include a combination of planning time and leadership opportunities, as well as training and support. When starting a new role, Career Ladder teachers will participate in orientation and training before the start of school. Career Ladder teachers will also participate in professional development throughout the school year and will document best practices, lessons learned, areas for further growth, and goals for the following school year.
Evaluation
Career Ladder teachers must maintain overall performance at the Proficient or Distinguished level to continue in a Career Ladder role. In addition to the performance threshold established for the past three school years, offers will be contingent on the same criteria based on 2024-25 evaluations.
In addition to receiving end-of-year ratings, Career Ladder teachers will be evaluated using the 5th Domain of RISE, which was collaboratively developed by Pittsburgh Public Schools and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. Career Ladder Teachers must receive the following minimum ratings in Domain 5 in order to continue as a Career Ladder Teacher: at least two components Proficient or Distinguished, no more than one Unsatisfactory component in their first year in the role, and no Unsatisfactory components ratings in the second year and beyond.
Work Environment
Employees of Pittsburgh Public Schools engage in the extremely important and fulfilling job of educating students in the City of Pittsburgh. Employees must believe in, value and be committed to the educability of all; must promote the school and District vision of high standards of learning and academic rigor, continuous school improvement, and the inclusion of all members of the school community; must be willing to work in a fast-paced environment while maintaining the energy necessary to meet the responsibilities and expectations of the position; may be required to work in close collaboration with staff at multiple sites and multiple disciplines; show considerable concentration and creativity; and promote and appreciate diversity in the organization.
ADA
The employer will make reasonable accommodations in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Other Information
This job description will be reviewed periodically as duties and responsibilities may change. Essential and marginal job functions are subject to modifications permitted by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
CITY OF PITTSBURGH RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT
This position does not have a residency requirement.
Type : INTERNAL \& EXTERNAL
Location : PITTSBURGH PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Grade : TR POST10 G1 BW
Group : PFT TEACHE
Posting Start : 06/30/2026
Posting End : 12/31/9999
MINIMUM PER PAY RATE: $2,246.91-$2,246.91
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