| Teaching Position: Theatre Director Reports to: Assistant Head of School ---- Start Date: August 2022 The School... Vistamar School is an independent college preparatory day school serving grades 9-12. The founders’ vision was to tap into the diversity of Los Angeles to bring together students who could learn from each other the skills and attitudes necessary for global citizenship. The Vistamar experience is guided by its core values and its mission which rests on three pillars: challenging academics that engage and inspire students; an intimate atmosphere that supports students with caring relationships; and a diverse community that encourages the authentic exchange of perspectives and leads students to be comfortable crossing cultural boundaries. Vistamar believes there’s a better way to do high school. Vistamar School serves a highly diverse population of students in grades 9-12, supported by a generous program of Moderated Tuition. Approximately 33% of our students participate in our Moderated Tuition program, and approximately 50% of our students identify as students of color. We seek to attract a faculty and student body who bring a diversity of thought and culture to our school community, and who will be committed to ensuring that we provide an inclusive environment for the respectful exchange of multiple perspectives. Vistamar is located in the easternmost section of El Segundo. The school is close to major freeway interchanges and is well serviced by public transportation, including a commuter rail station. Since our opening in 2005, enrollment has grown steadily to 260 students. Vistamar attracts and enrolls one of the most diverse student bodies in the greater Los Angeles area, with students from over 60 zip codes and more than 80 schools. We will add faculty and classrooms incrementally as we approach our target enrollment of 300. Both tuition and salaries are competitive with other Los Angeles - area independent schools. Vistamar is fully accredited by the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and holds institutional memberships in the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) and the Council of International Schools (CIS). The Opportunity... You will be joining us as a teacher in the Visual and Performing Arts Department for our Theater program. This position includes teaching an introductory course for drama and theatre arts, an advanced acting course, and a theatre production course as well as directing and staging three theatre productions each school year. At Vistamar, the Arts are considered a vital part of a comprehensive education and includes a wide variety of options for students both to experiment with new forms of artistic expression and to deepen their aesthetic skills. All students are currently required to take a full year of visual or performing arts in a single medium or performance area over a period of three successive trimesters. Beyond the graduation requirement, a wide variety of arts courses are available and may be taken as electives, either in a single medium or performance area, or various. The Visual and Performing Arts Department seeks to provide for our students a creative foundation with the tools and techniques to effectively express themselves; critical thinking and problem solving skills; a sense of the individual, artistic impulse; skills in communication and collaboration through various artistic endeavors; an understanding and appreciation of the arts and their contribution to a vibrant cultural life at school. A typical week would include the preparation and teaching of four regular courses, each meeting four times per week, serving as a student advisor, assisting with student activities, directing after school rehearsals, and engaged participation in faculty and team meetings. Additional responsibilities include maintaining active communication with students & families, active participation in admissions/development events, and other important community gatherings. Qualifications… The Vistamar School community seeks candidates who can fulfill our Four Attributes of Excellent Teaching. Successful candidates will also commit to multicultural educational practices and working in a diverse community. Additionally, Vistamar School seeks candidates who engage in professional development opportunities to further develop inclusive teaching practices. Ideal Candidates... - Practice culturally responsive pedagogy.
- Cultivate strong and collegial relationships with all community members in a culturally responsive manner.
- Embrace working with high school students with enthusiasm.
- Seek to know, understand and serve the social-emotional needs of the whole child
- Use strong pedagogical skills and depth of content expertise to design meaningful learning experiences that foster a passion for learning in students
- Demonstrate an ongoing commitment to the reflective, iterative nature of teaching and thus seek continuous growth and development as a lifelong learner.
- Embrace the school’s culture as an engaged, energetic, and thoughtful community member.
- Teaching experience at the high school level, a deep knowledge of the subject matter, and familiarity with student-centered approaches to teaching that promote critical thinking and help to make students’ thinking visible.
- Can design learning experiences toward performance-based assessments using a “backward planning” model.
- Can supervise a large number of students in both the acting and tech areas of student productions.
- Can meet a student where they are in terms of their artistic growth.
- Have knowledge and expertise in a variety of technical theatre roles including set design and construction, audio engineering, lighting, props, costumes, hair/makeup, etc…
- Have knowledge of a variety of acting techniques.
- Have knowledge of theatrical history from a variety of cultures, and an interest in presenting a diverse and inclusive range of plays to students.
- Optional - knowledge of film production to potentially teach an additional course - Film Production.
- A master's degree and teaching credential are preferred.
- Have a minimum of 3 years of teaching experience at the high school level.
- Must be available to engage fully with our onboarding process.
How to Apply... Additional information about Vistamar School is available on the school’s website: https://www.vistamarschool.org. Applicants should submit a complete résumé and cover letter by email to: positions@vistamarschool.org. No calls, please. |
