Elementary Reading Support/Assistant Teacher

Empowerment Academy Charter School is hiring a Teaching Assistant to specifically help elementary students with Reading and Writing in Small Groups. This is for the 2025/2026 School Year and beyond. Substitute Certification in NJ is required!

This Teaching Assistant/ Support Teacher role is different than a typical teaching assistant role. We are specifically looking for candidates with a strong background in reading/writing to provide support to small groups of students during reading and writing instruction in the classroom. Candidates may be asked to take and pass an in-house assessment during the interview process to demonstrate competency in this field. Please read the requirements below carefully and only apply if you meet these requirements.

Base Salary: $41,000-$56,000

Requirements

CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS

We generally seek the same qualities in assistant teachers that we seek in lead teachers. This is because often times our assistant teachers become lead teachers within our school! That being said, a CE or Teaching Certificate in Elementary Education or Early Childhood Education issued by the NJDOE is a major bonus. We will also consider candidates that are working towards certification as an opportunity for them to grow with us. Please see below for the minimum qualifications to apply:

• Candidate holds a Substitute Certificate issued by the NJDOE
• 2 years minimum of college (60 credits) and 2 years minimum of experience in a classroom; or a BA and 1 year minimum of experience in a classroom
• Knowledge of reading development and progression for early childhood and elementary level
• Experience with differentiation and teaching students of various abilities
• Understanding of grammar and writing at the elementary level

Benefits

Charter schools ARE public schools. Our teachers are part of the New Jersey Teachers’ Pension and Annuity Fund (TPAF), same as teachers at traditional public schools, and can transfer their pension credits from a traditional public school to our school and vice versa. Additional benefits include:

• Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
• Retirement Plan
• Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
• Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity)
• Short Term & Long Term Disability
• Training & Development

As an equal opportunity employer, Empowerment Academy hires without consideration to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or disability.

Why Our School is Special

Empowerment Academy is a highly successful charter school that truly supports its teachers and staff. We serve a student mix that is among the most diverse in America while enjoying the cultural vibrance of Jersey City, Hoboken and New York City. If this appeals to you, then apply today! We have achieved academic success without burning out our teachers/staff by meshing an effective education program with effective support and professional development.

WE VALUE OUR FACULTY

At Empowerment Academy, we emphasize teamwork and community and truly value our faculty:

• Evidencing this, compared to those with similar experience, OUR FACULTY MEMBERS ARE AMONG THE HIGHEST PAID IN NEW JERSEY;
• Moreover, we seek to achieve academic success without burning out teachers by meshing an effective education program with effective teacher supports and professional development.

TEACHER SUPPORTS

Teachers at Empowerment Academy are part of a school-wide team. They receive career-long coaching and professional development support from school leaders; work with their peers in professional learning communities (PLCs) to plan lessons and solve problems; and partner with an array of specialists to meet scholars’ diverse needs.

Examples of such teacher supports include:

• Abundant planning periods during the school day;
• A research-based curriculum and supporting curricular materials;
• High-quality formative assessments, aligned with the curriculum, that help identify when students have not achieved mastery of a skill, concept, or knowledge item; and
• Full-time reading and math specialists who tutor students struggling to master an essential skill, and counselors and social workers who help students struggling with non-academic problems.

INDSUPPORT