One Day, One Job » teaching

Knewton

Willy Franzen — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:45:31 +0000

You thought that you were done with test prep, but now the economy is in a rough spot and the job market is kind of weak. You’re thinking about grad school, and that means doing the standardized test thing all over again. Luckily, things have changed since you took the SAT or ACT. The one size fits all approach of classroom instruction is out, and “adaptive learning” delivered through an online platform is in. Knewton is a New York City based startup that is one of the leading innovators in the test prep market. They seem to be mostly focused on the graduate school test prep market, although they do offer an SAT prep course too (PrepMe is a similar company that focuses only on pre-undergraduate test prep). Knewton is not only focused on improving the quality of test prep results, but they’re also working hard to make test prep more affordable and more interactive.

Get a Knew Job

Knewton’s key point of differentiation from other test prep companies that provide online courses is its adaptive learning technology. While “traditional classrooms and textbooks provide the same material to every student, Knewton dynamically matches lessons, videos, and practice problems to each student’s ideal learning arc.” Along with the technology, they’re matching their students up with top notch teacher who provide both live and on-demand video instruction. The test prep market is huge, and Knewton is primed to take a big bite out of it. They’re well funded and have a leadership team with a ton of industry experience. They appear to be a growing company, and growing companies usually have jobs. Knewton is no exception. Their Jobs page shows 10 openings, and a number of them seem suitable for new grads. These positions include Interactive Visual Designer, Content Developer, Jr. Machine Learning Specialist, XHTML/CSS/JS Front-end Developer, Online Marketing Analyst, and maybe even Teacher. You can apply online for any of these positions.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you plan on ever taking a standardized test again?

New York City Teaching Fellows

Willy Franzen — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:00:16 +0000

This is a sponsored post for New York City Teaching Fellows. Check out our editorial post on entry level jobs with New York City Teaching Fellows to see what we said when we first covered them.

Before I launched One Day, One Job in 2007, I shared my idea with employers at a Cornell University career fair. One of the organizations from the fair that I was most impressed with was New York City Teaching Fellows. They are an alternative teacher certification program that firmly believes that putting the highest quality teachers in New York City public schools will lead to better academic outcomes for the students in those schools. Out of 30 or so employers that I spoke with at the fair, they were the only one forward-looking enough to actually follow up with me. As a result, they were one of the first non-profits that we featured, and now, more than 2 years later, they’re leading the charge again as one of our first sponsors. Since their inception in 2000, New York City Teaching Fellows has placed more than 13,500 teachers in New York City schools, so they are constantly looking for innovative ways to reach talented new grads. That’s why they’re working with us to reach you.

Fellowship of the Teachers

In 2000, the New York City Department of Education faced a serious teacher shortage, and in response they launched New York City Teaching Fellows. Ten years later NYCTF’s Fellows account for 11% of New York City’s population of teachers. Since 2000, the Fellowship has focused specifically on the highest need subject areas such as special education, science, math, bilingual education and Spanish. Today, the highest need subject areas are special education and science, and NYCTF anticipates most Fellows for 2010 to be trained to teach in these subject areas. As an alternative certification program, NYCTF recruits and prepares high-quality, dedicated individuals who have no prior background or experience in education. These people are often new college graduates, but they may also be career changers or people coming from graduate school.

If candidates meet NYCTF’s highly selective criteria—the organization only accepted 9% of 14,500 applicants in 2009—they are then fast-tracked into full-time teaching positions in New York City’s public schools. These Fellows first go through an intensive 7-week pre-service training program, and then continue their education through a subsidized Master’s degree program in conjunction with their teaching. It’s a tough path to becoming a teacher, but it’s intensely satisfying—at least that’s what NYCTF’s 92% first-year retention rate would indicate. I guess it also helps that Fellows with only a Bachelor’s degree will earn an annual salary of $45,530 with full benefits as a full-time teacher in the program.

Who Will Remember Your Name?

You know as well as anyone how important education is. It’s the reason that you’re able to read about New York City Teaching Fellows and say, “That’s something that I can do.” Not everyone has that opportunity, but you do. And by choosing to teach you can pass that opportunity on to your students. Getting a job is hard enough these days. Through the New York City Teaching Fellows program, you have the opportunity to earn a great salary, excellent benefits, a subsidized Master’s degree, and the ability to make a lasting difference in the lives of New York City’s children. Whether a career in education is in your long-term plans or it’s something that you are in the process of exploring, New York City Teaching Fellows is the perfect program for pursuing your ambition.

You can find all kinds of detailed information about New York City Teaching Fellows—from Fellow profiles to all of the details of the Fellowship—by visiting their home page at NYCTeachingFellows.org.

To apply for New York City Teaching Fellows’ June 2010 program, you should visit their Application page (be sure to use this link so that they know you came from One Day, One Job). The final deadline to apply is Monday, January 25, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. (EST), so get your act together soon!

A Better Chance

Willy Franzen — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:17:05 +0000

Having spent 7 years at a private prep school, I know the educational value that such institutions offer. I also know that private schools aren’t accessible to everyone (but neither are great public schools). That’s why I think that it’s pretty cool that a New York City based non-profit organization called A Better Chance is achieving its mission “to increase substantially the number of well-educated young people of color who are capable of assuming positions of responsibility and leadership in American society” by enrolling students of color in Member Schools (which are apparently both public and private). Since 1963 when “23 headmasters of selective independent schools made a mutual commitment to change the profiles and compositions of their student bodies,” A Better Chance has improved the educational outcomes of more than 12,000 alumni.

A Better Chance for You

A Better Chance just keeps getting bigger and bigger. They now have “a record 544 new Scholars in a growing national network of more than 300 Member Schools.” That’s more students than my school had K-12! A Better Chance’s website doesn’t go into a ton of detail on the specifics of their program (at least as far as I can tell), but I’m sure that some deeper research will give you a full view of how the program works. As for jobs, they have a number of opportunities across the country that seem as though they may be suitable for new grads. These include Resident Director positions in Simsbury, CT; Winchester, MA; and Lower Merion, PA. There are also some non-paying Resident Advisor and Tutor positions available. The application instructions vary by position, so be sure to look closely at each job description.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about A Better Chance?

HotChalk

Willy Franzen — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:29:41 +0000

Last week I told you about Sramana Mitra’s book Entrepreneur Journeys and how it was loaded with cool companies that would be awesome to work for. One of those companies is HotChalk, an educational startup that provides online learning management systems for free. They enable teachers to bring their classrooms online in minutes without having to worry about administration approval or staying within a budget. HotChalk isn’t just tailored to teachers though; HotChalk also focuses on pleasing students, parents, school administrators, and tech coordinators. The simplicity of the whole thing has enabled HotChalk to gain a ton of marketshare—they have over 7 million monthly unique visitors and more than 375,000 teachers using the service. That’s what “free” will do for you.

HotJobs at HotChalk?

The most interesting thing about HotChalk is their revenue model. Instead of building a freemium product where schools can pay for premium services once they’re forced to by teachers who have adopted the free service, HotChalk has decided that advertising is the key to profitability. They offer extremely targeted advertising to each of their user bases—teachers, students, parents, administrators, and tech coordinators; however, HotChalk has strict guidelines about what kind of advertisements can be targeted towards students, and they can never be shown ads during school hours. Now, how about jobs at HotChalk? Their Jobs page says that they don’t have any current openings, but it also says that they “are always looking for talented people.” If education technology is something that gets you excited, you should send a cover letter and resume to careers@hotchalk.com. According to HotChalk’s LinkedIn profile they have 27 employees right now, and they’re split between the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever used HotChalk?

Green Chimneys

Willy Franzen — Sat, 16 May 2009 14:46:18 +0000

Have you ever heard of animal-assisted therapy? Wikipedia defines it as “a type of therapy that involves an animal with specific characteristics becoming a fundamental part of a person’s treatment.” This type of therapy can have all kinds of beneficial effects for a wide array of ailments, and it can be done with animals ranging from dogs to horses to elephants to lizards. Green Chimneys is a Brewster, NY based non-profit organization that “operates residential treatment for children and a special education school” with a large focus on animal-assisted therapy. They’re located on a 200-acre farm, and they’re constantly working towards “restoring possibilities and creating futures for children with emotional, behavioral, social and learning challenges.”

Green Chimneys Is the Place for Me

If you love working with special-needs children and also love animals, then it would be hard to find a better place to work than Green Chimneys. They have a ton of job opportunities available, and plenty of them are appropriate for new grads. You can find the full list on Green Chimneys’ Jobs page; however, I’d recommend that you look for the following jobs: Youth Counselor, Assistant Unit Supervisor, Therapeutic Intervention Specialist (Crisis Intervention), Social Work Supervisor, Speech Teacher, 1:1 Aides, Social Worker (New York City), and Case Worker (Bronx). You can apply by sending a cover letter and resume to employment@greenchimneys.org, so get to know them by browsing their site and see if they’re a good fit for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever experienced any therapy animals?

School On Wheels

Willy Franzen — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 15:51:41 +0000

In Fourth or Fifth Grade, my elementary school started facing overcrowding. It wasn’t a huge deal, because it was a suburban school with a relatively low target class size, but they decided to bring in “portable” classrooms to fix the problem. By portable they meant brought in on a flat bed and never going anywhere again. The inside of the portable classrooms were nearly identical to other classrooms and kids went on learning in them just like any other classroom. School On Wheels is a Santa Barbara, CA based non-profit that brings a completely new meaning to portable classroom. Despite what their logo might make you think, they don’t have a bus that also serves as a classroom. They create classrooms wherever they’re needed to educate homeless children. It all started in 1993 with:

Agnes Stevens, a retired teacher, read a book that changed her life. The book was about homeless families in the US. Agnes was shocked to learn that hundreds of thousands of children were homeless and that many of them did not attend school. She began teaching homeless kids in a park in Santa Monica, California encouraging them to stay in school and keep up with their grades and school activities.

Now they have hundreds of tutors supporting thousands of homeless students.

Jobs On Wheels

According to School on Wheels’ website, the “average age of a homeless person is 9 years old!” That’s an astounding statistic, and it illustrates how much of a need there is for an organization like School on Wheels. If you’re looking to work at an education focused non-profit, then School On Wheels is definitely worth a look. They don’t seem to have a Jobs page, but they do post their jobs on Idealist. Right now there’s only one job that looks appropriate for new grads – it’s as a Tutor Coordinator. There’s no word on Tutor positions, but one would imagine that they’re always looking for more tutors too. To apply for the Tutor Coordinator position, send a cover letter and resume to jsettles@schoolonwheels.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about School On Wheels?

Math for America

Willy Franzen — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 12:54:38 +0000

We’ve told you about teaching fellowship programs before, and today we’re going to look at another one. It’s called Math for America, and it’s based in New York City with operations in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Washington, DC as well. Their goal is simple; they want to “improve math education in secondary public schools in the United States by recruiting, training, and retaining outstanding mathematics teachers.” Numerical literacy is essential to a properly functioning society, and, unfortunately, we’re falling short. If people can’t understand basic math, there’s no hope that they’ll ever be financially responsible. If they can’t understand statistics, how will they ever fully comprehend the political process or medical advice? Our country’s math education is woefully inadequate, and even many students at top colleges have a fear of math. Great teachers are the answer, and that’s why Math for America is recruiting great mathematical minds for America’s classrooms.

Do You Love Math?

If you really love math and want to share that love with the next generation, then Math for America is perfect for you. They are aggressively recruiting new college grads who “know and love math, enjoy teaching and interacting with young people, possess excellent communication skills, can create a constructive learning environment for students, will make a five year commitment to the MƒA Fellowship Program, and can take personal responsibility for themselves and their actions.” The Fellowship Program has great benefits, and makes teaching a much more intriguing option for mathematically inclined new grads who may have never considered education before. Math for America’s website is fantastic, and you can find all the details of their Fellowship Program here. You can apply online, and the deadline for applications is February 13th.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have any good math jokes?

KIPP

Willy Franzen — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:05:19 +0000

Did you know that only 1 out 5 low-income children make it to college? That’s a frightening statistic, but KIPP is a network of (mostly) charter schools that have combined to have a 95% college matriculation rate for the low-income students whom they serve. “KIPP began in 1994 when two teachers, Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin, launched a fifth-grade public school program in inner-city Houston, TX, after completing their commitment to Teach For America.” The success of the initial program has led to the creation of 66 schools, all of which follow a unique approach to education. Apparently the schools are run independently, but the KIPP Foundation provides support across the network of schools – that’s why they have quite a few job opportunities outside of teaching.

KIPP It Up

KIPP does have teaching jobs, although it wasn’t our initial intent to look at those. It’s unclear whether they require prior teaching experience, but if you’d like to consider teaching at a KIPP school, you can find out more information here. As for jobs at KIPP, there are quite a few options. Job openings include School Sustainability Associate, Alumni Services Project Manager, Innovation Project Manager, Database and Reporting Analyst, and Recruitment & Selection Coordinator. None of these jobs are explicitly entry level, and most of them actually say that 3-5 years of work experience preferred, but they look fascinating. If you have an interest in education, you should definitely check out KIPP. Most of their jobs are available in Chicago, San Francisco, or New York. You can apply online for each of these jobs directly from the descriptions.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about KIPP?

Harlem Success Academy

Willy Franzen — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:00:11 +0000

Did your Kindergarten class have a special name? Something beyond the teacher’s name? If it did, you probably don’t remember it, but kids at Harlem Success Academy are going to remember the names of their classes for a long time. Not only are their classes named by the colleges that their teachers went to, but the classes are identified by the year that they will be graduating from college (if my math is right, then this year’s Kindergarteners are the Class of 2025). I think that’s pretty inspirational, and that’s the point. Harlem Success Academy is a charter elementary school that is exactly what its name says it is.

You Can Succeed Too

Harlem Success Academy has a different culture and a different take on academics. It all comes down to results, and that’s what Harlem Success Academy is all about. They’ve only been around for just over two years, but they were able to take their first class of 1st Graders from 44% reading at grade level to 96% reading at grade level by the end of the year (and 2/3 were reading at 2nd Grade Level or above). That’s a serious accomplishment in a short amount of time. It seems that Harlem Success Academy has cracked the code when it comes to improving educational outcomes in underserved communities.

If this sounds like something that you’d like to be a part of, then you’re in luck, because Harlem Success Academy is doing a lot of hiring. Their job listings show 25 current positions that they’re hiring for. Three of these are in Elementary School Teaching – Elementary School Teacher (with openings in Kindergarten, First Grade, Second Grade, Third Grade, Science, Special Education, Music, Dance, Sports, and Art), Assistant Teacher, and Special Education Teacher. It’s hard to tell whether these jobs will be well suited to a new college grad since the job descriptions aren’t very clear about what the experience and degree requirements are, but they’re certainly worth inquiring about. There are also openings that are seemingly entry level in Student Support Services (Educational Associate, Speech Therapist, and Teacher Aide) and Administration (Instructional Data Analyst, Technology Assistant, School Affairs Coordinator, Finance Assistant, Recruitment Assistant, Executive Assistant, and Special Projects Manager). You can find full descriptions of each of these jobs on the category pages that we just linked to, and you can apply for the jobs directly from the descriptions. And in case it wasn’t obvious, the jobs are located in Harlem, NY. Now go tie your personal success to the success of Harlem Success Academy and apply for a job!

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think about getting Kindergarteners focused on going to college?

Bright Beginnings

Willy Franzen — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 13:46:03 +0000

The July after I graduated from high school, I went on a weeklong church missions trip to Washington, DC. During the trip we interacted with two distinct groups of kids. There were the “street kids” – the kids who lived in the area of the church we were staying. They were fun to be with, but you could tell that they were headed for trouble. Living completely unsupervised lives, these kids would ring the doorbell of the church in the middle of the night, use language that most adults would be embarrassed to use, and often grope the girls – not a good sign of things to come for a 4 or 5 year old kid. The second group of kids were the kids we worked with in a nursery school program. They were some of the sweetest, most polite kids that I’ve ever met. It seemed obvious that the free nursery school program for these kids was working. Still, these children faced an uncertain future. As we were leaving the school to go to a local pool to teach the kids how to swim, many of the children said what’s up to a guy standing on the street corner. I thought it was nice that there was such a sense of community for these kids, until one of the teachers told me that this guy happened to be a crack dealer. Despite this startling fact, it still seemed that these kids were headed on the right track. I don’t remember the name of the nursery school program that I worked with, but Bright Beginnings appears to be doing similar work to help provide better futures for impoverished children in the DC area.

Help Make Beginnings Brighter

I think my story illustrates how important nursery school can be in making the way for success in a child’s life. Even children who are lucky enough to be part of programs like the one I worked with or Bright Beginnings face significant challenges because of the environment that they live in. Bright Beginnings is all about doing its best to give children a good start in life. Not only do they provide nursery school education for homeless children, but they also provide relief for homeless parents. Many homeless parents can’t maintain a job because they must take care of a child. Bright Beginnings allows the parents to get back on their feet and build a new life in which they can escape homelessness and eventually move their children into a more nurturing environment.

Bright Beginnings currently has 6 job openings, and a number of them look well suited for new college grads. The opportunities that look most geared towards the entry-level are Infant/Toddler Teacher (Day & Evening), Recruitment and Family Education Coordinator, LGSW – Social Worker, and Family and Health Services Specialist. All of the jobs are located in Washington, DC, and you can apply by sending your cover letter and resume to bgaines@brightbeginningsinc.org. There is a ton of information about Bright Beginnings on their website, so be sure to follow the links below to continue your research.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever worked with inner-city children in DC? What were your experiences like?

StreetSquash

Willy Franzen — Sat, 31 May 2008 13:15:21 +0000

To many people squash is a type of fruit, but for those of privilege it is a sport played at your private racquet club. Growing up in Connecticut, I was quite familiar with the phenomenon of rich parents’ forcing their children to play squash in hopes that the kid will get recruited to play in college. The truth is that squash isn’t nearly as easy of an in to the Ivy League as people expect it to be, but that hasn’t stopped parents from signing their kids up. StreetSquash is a non-profit organization that also sees squash as a way to better the futures of young people, but in a very different way. They make squash more accessible to inner-city youths while combining “academic tutoring with squash instruction, community service, and one-on-one mentoring.”

Squash Your Notions About Squash

StreetSquash is based in Harlem, NY and works with 140 boys and girls from ages 9 to 18 “to improve academic performance; to develop an ethic of hard work and commitment; to boost self-confidence; and to increase school attendance.” Assuming things have gone as planned, the Steven L. Green StreetSquash Center should have opened or be opening soon. This is a $13 million project that StreetSquash has been working on, and its essential to improving their capacity to serve. The reason that squash is usually thought of as a sport for the rich is that the equipment can be expensive and most courts are located in high end, private health clubs. The combination of StreetSquash’s programs with this new facility should have some very exciting results.

With the opening of the Center, it looks like 2008 is a big year for StreetSquash. Beyond opening what looks to be a gorgeous facility, they’re also looking to hire for positions that start in September of this year. The StreetSquash Jobs page lists 3 positions, 2 of which look prime for new college grads. The entry-level jobs are Director of Squash & Community Service and Academic Director. Obviously knowledge of squash is essential, as is experience in working with youth in a learning/mentoring environment. Proficiency in Spanish is also a huge plus, although it’s not required. The full description on the StreetSquash Jobs page are quite descriptive, so be sure to take a look at those too.

StreetSquash is a member of the National Urban Squash and Education Association (NUSEA) which includes other similar programs such as Squash Busters (Boston, MA), City Squash (Bronx, NY), Squash Smarts (Philadelphia, PA), and MetroSquash (Chicago, IL). If you like what Street Squash is all about, but Harlem isn’t where you want to work, you might want to see any of these organizations are also hiring.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Any squash players out there? Leave a comment and say hello.

Internationals Network for Public Schools

Willy Franzen — Sun, 18 May 2008 12:16:39 +0000

Ever since we received an e-mail from a reader who was looking for help finding jobs that offer sponsorship, we’ve taken an added interest in helping international students in their job search. We published an article on job search tips for international students, and we try to make a note of it when we find jobs that offer sponsorship. Well, job search isn’t the only time international students face difficulties that most American students don’t. High school is tough enough for all of us, but international students have an even tougher time. They often face learning a new language while going through all the other typical high school struggles. The Internationals Network for Public Schools is a non-profit organization that is “dedicated to the development and support of the network of International High Schools that serve late-entry immigrant English Language Learners.”

Bilingual or English as a Second Language? Both!

Internationals Network for Public Schools is a non-profit organ It all started in 1985 with the launch of the first New York City International High School, a joint venture between the NYC Department of Education and LaGuardia Community College. As more International High Schools popped up across the city, an informal organization called the Internationals Schools Partnership was formed to help the schools share ideas and resources for teaching international students the English language. In 2004 funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation allowed this partnership to grow into the Internationals Network for Public Schools, which enhances the resources available to International High Schools with private money.

At the time of admission, all students in our network of New York City public high schools have been in the United States for less than four years and score at the lowest levels on an English language assessment test. Our students come from 90 countries, speak 55 languages, and live in low-income households: between 71-92 percent are eligible for free meals. In New York City, this student populations average four-year graduation rate is only 26 percent. The International High Schools average four-year graduation rate is more than double: 73 percent. More than 90% of our graduates matriculate to college.

The Internationals Network for Public Schools program addresses these issues through a hybridization of bilingual and English as a Second Language education techniques. There are currently 8 public high schools in NYC that are part of the Internationals Network for Public Schools; however, the organization is aiming for national expansion over the next 5 years.

Looking for a Few Good Teachers

Although Internationals Network for Public Schools is working in conjunction with the New York City Teaching Fellows, the hiring of Teacher Apprentices appears to be done outside the program. Internationals Network for Public Schools calls their alternative certification program ISTART.

In the first year of the program, you will serve as an apprentice in an International High School, engage in project-based coursework at the school level, and participate in seminars led by experienced Internationals and LIU faculty. You will receive health benefits and a stipend of approximately $28,000. During the second year of the program, you will assume full teaching responsibilities and, likewise, receive a full teachers salary. At the conclusion of the two-year program, you will receive New York State certification in and a Masters degree in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL).

The full job description can be found here. If you have excellent language skills and would love to make a difference in the lives of international high school students, there couldn’t be a program better suited to your interests. Use the links below to find out more about the Internationals Network for Public Schools. They still have openings for the 2008-2009 school year!

One thing that we couldn’t figure out is if Internationals Network for Public Schools sponsors international students for their jobs. If anyone knows, please leave a comment. We’re not sure how that would work in regards to the jobs’ being in public schools.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Become a Facebook Fan of One Day, One Job. It’s fun.

Chicago Botanic Garden

Willy Franzen — Sat, 17 May 2008 12:35:16 +0000

We’ve featured jobs at a botanical garden before, but we thought it was time to reach out to those plant science and botany majors again. It’s especially appropriate because spring is in full force at One Day, One Job Headquarters. Everything has bloomed, and not only is it beautiful here, but it also smells great. As soon as we open a door or window we’re hit with a fragrant burst of springtime. Since we hear from a lot of people that we focus too much on jobs in New York and California (hey, that’s where a lot of the jobs are), the addition of the Chicago Botanic Garden to our employer profiles should be welcome.

Chicago Has Great Flora and Fauna

You may have heard that a wild cougar was recently shot by police in downtown Chicago and that another was sighted shortly afterwards. Usually big cities don’t get that much wildlife action, which is why things like botanic gardens were created – to make sure things didn’t get too urban. “The 385-acre Garden features 23 display gardens and three native habitats, uniquely situated on nine islands surrounded by lakes.” It sounds wonderful. I haven’t been there yet, but I’m in Chicago often enough that I will make a visit sooner or later. Once I go, I’ll leave a comment on this post with my observations. There are three core components to what the Chicago Botanic Garden does: collections, education, and research. There are job opportunities that touch on all three of areas, but most of the current openings are geared towards the education side.

Jobs for People Who Stop and Smell the Flowers

The good news is that the Chicago Botanic Garden has a wide variety of employment opportunities for new college grads. The bad news is that you have to look in a few different places to find them. That’s not really bad news though, because we’ve done all the hard work for you. Everything can be accessed from their Jobs page, which includes permanent, year-round positions at the Chicago Botanic Garden. There is only one job in this category that would be considered entry-level, and it’s as a Part-Time Horticultural Specialist, Plant Information Service (it’s 25 hours per week).

The next place to look for jobs is on the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Seasonal Employment page. Many of these jobs are actually perfectly suited to new grads, so they might be a great way to transition into something more permanent. Most of these jobs require or prefer a relevant college education, and they are, for the most part, only available during the summer. Current openings include: Camp CBG Instructor, College First Instructor, Plant Collections Specialist, Science First Assistant Instructor, Science First Program Assistant, Landscape Laborer, Natural Areas Land Management Assistant, Tram Tour Guide, and Visitor Services Assistant.

Finally, the Chicago Botanic Garden offers a number of different internships. That link will take you to One Day, One Internship, where we will cover the specific internships in depth. This should be of interest to new college grads because the Chicago Botanic Garden has an internship program that is specifically geared towards transitioning new college graduates into full-time employment with government agencies. That means that anyone who is looking or a full-time botany related job should not overlook internships with the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Although full-time entry-level opportunities are a bit sparse, the Chicago Botanic Garden offers quite a few interesting alternatives for a new college graduate. Their jobs website is really well done, and all of their job descriptions are well written and informative. They even put “Filled” in red text next to any job that they are no longer hiring for. That’s a really nice touch. We imagine that they’ll add more entry-level jobs periodically, so keep your eye on their website.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

How is spring coming along where you are?

Inner-City Arts

Willy Franzen — Sat, 10 May 2008 12:27:45 +0000

I was always bad at art. From the moment I had my first art class, it was blatantly clear that I had no business using paint, clay, pencils, or crayons to express myself. This probably isn’t too unusual, except for the fact that my Dad is an Architect, my Mom is a Graphic Designer, and my sister is a Painter. Somehow the artistic genes missed me. This led to a love-hate relationship with art class. The fact that you could talk and get messy during a class was pretty neat, but it’s hard to enjoy something when it’s so obvious that you have absolutely no talent for it – especially at a young age. Still, I appreciate having had the opportunity to realize that art wasn’t for me. I had access to art supplies in school and at home, but many children in inner-city schools never even get to give art a try because the programs because funding has been cut at their schools. Inner-City Arts is a non-profit organization that provides art instruction for children who would otherwise miss out on art at their public schools.

Art is Smart

Inner-City Arts currently operates in cooperation with the Los Angeles Unified School District to bring Art back to public schools. They “offer comprehensive arts and language programs during the instructional school day, with classes in visual art, ceramics, dance, music, drama, and animation to over 8,000 children from 35 area public and charter schools.” Inner-City Arts has their own campus in downtown Los Angeles, where students are bused twice a week during school day for their classes. A given class will typically participate in the program for 7-10 weeks. Not only do these programs expose children to art, but they also have real academic impact:

A recent evaluation of Inner-City Arts programs by the University of California Los Angeles provided conclusive evidence that classes whose children and teachers actively participate in Inner-City Arts’ programs scored up to 26% higher in areas such as Math, Reading and English on the Stanford 9 test than did children who had no association with Inner-City Arts.

Inner-City Arts is currently looking for Visual and Performing Art Instructors to teach students to love and appreciate art. If you’re considering applying, you should have a degree in an art related field or in education, and have prior experience working with school aged children. Being bilingual is a huge plus. You can find the full job description on the Inner-City Arts Employment page. There are options for full-time, part-time, and contract work, so even if you have another job lined up in the LA area, you may be able to find a way to work for Inner-City Arts as well.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Unfortunately many of my grade school masterpieces were ruined in a basement flood last spring. Did you create any great pieces of art when you were in elementary school? Tell us about them.

The New Teacher Project

Willy Franzen — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 13:00:55 +0000

This post was written by Alyssa Godesky as one of her entries in our Find a Job, Win a Wii contest, which she ended up winning. We don’t have any contests going on right now, but if you’d like to write a post for us and get your name in the spotlight, e-mail us at info@onedayonejob.com

Are you interested in a job in education, but teaching in a classroom just isn’t for you? Entry-level jobs in education that are done outside of the classroom are tough to find, but they’re out there. The New Teacher Project is a fine example. The New Teacher Project is a non-profit organization that recruits and trains teachers to put them in classrooms where they are badly needed.

The New Teacher Project (TNTP) focuses on four main elements to achieve success: teaching fellows programs, staffing initiatives, teaching certification, and policy and research. The New Teacher Project founded The New York City Teaching Fellows program and many others like it around the country. From there, TNTP partners with school districts to help improve the flow of qualified teachers into the schools that need quality teaching the most. This is partly to ensure that schools open fully-staffed; however, TNTP is also involved in developing and implementing many levels of professional training to help teachers become, and stay, certified to teach. Lastly, TNTP conducts targeted research, which allows them to identify the obstacles that school systems are facing and make realistic recommendations that will improve the quality of education that students receive.

TNTP occasionally recruits on college campuses, and hires about ten entry-level employees every year. Most entry level positions fall into either the Communications or Operations Associate category. Judging from other people’s experiences, if you are a hard worker who shows dedication and enthusiasm for TNTP’s cause, you can move up very quickly. Here is an overview of TNTP’s hiring process and expectations for applicants. One downside to TNTP is that they do note on the job listings that these positions may require “non-traditional” work hours, including weeknights and weekends. Nonetheless, TNTP has been named by Princeton Review as one of 2007’s Best Entry Level Jobs and also offers above average salaries for non-profit work.

The New Teacher Project allows you to for specific positions through their job listings. You can also inquire about jobs by e-mailing jobs@tntp.org. Be sure to include a detailed cover letter when you apply.

Note: On April 27th we revisited entry-level jobs at The New Teacher Project.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have anything to say about TNTP? Leave a comment.

Harlem RBI

Willy Franzen — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 13:00:11 +0000

Were you a baseball fan growing up? Was the floor of your room often covered in baseball cards? Did you spend more time oiling your glove than actually playing with it? Did your Mom make you throw away your favorite team’s cap because you absolutely wore it out? It’s amazing how your love of a sport can define your childhood. Harlem RBI is a non-profit organization that is cultivating that love of sport in New York City’s youths. Through the power of teams, the kids that participate in Harlem RBI’s programs are given the opportunity to play, learn, and grow – hopefully into graduates who are physically fit, confident, caring, and work-ready or headed for college.

Harlem RBI is an organization that has big dreams, but is also showing results. Since 2004, 96% of Harlem RBI Seniors graduated from high school and 93% were accepted to college, while 100% of Harlem RBI youth have avoided teen parenthood. Harlem RBI has also earned a 4-star rating on charity navigator. By putting kids on teams (usually a teams link directs you to an organization’s staff, but Harlem RBI actually has over 3 dozen baseball and softball teams as a part of their mission) and combining the baseball aspect with after-school programs, Harlem RBI is maximizing the potential of its participants through consistently high involvement in their lives.

Harlem RBI is offering a nice mix of full and part time positions that might appeal to entry-level baseball lovers. The best fit for most new grads who are looking for a job might be the Grant Writing Associate position, since it is the most similar to other entry-level jobs that you might be considering; however, you may also want to take a look at the Senior Program Coordinator job, which is not exactly entry-level, but could be an excellent fit for a recent college graduate with extremely strong volunteer experience. Harlem RBI is also offering a number of part-time positions that have varying levels of time commitment. They might be a nice paid alternative to volunteer work (since getting by in New York City isn’t easy), or they might be a fun second job. We especially think (and we could be wrong) that these part-time jobs would mesh well with a teaching fellowship position. Harlem RBI currently has part-time openings as a Baseball Coordinator, After School Program Teacher, or After School Program Assistant.

Think about how much baseball meant to you as a kid. Why not find a job that allows you to share your passion with inner-city kids.

Note: On April 27th we revisited entry-level jobs at Harlem RBI.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What is your fondest baseball memory as a kid? Tell us in the comments.

SEED Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 13:00:06 +0000

The SEED Foundation is a nonprofit organization (and the last one we’ll be featuring this year) that builds urban public boarding schools to prepare kids in underserved communities for college. They opened their first school in Washington, D.C. in 1998 and will be opening their second in Maryland next year. Amazingly, 97% of SEED graduates go on to college, and 85% are on track to graduate after matriculating. Some of them might even be your classmates (here’s a list of schools attended by SEED grads).

Currently SEED’s public charter school in Washington, D.C. is hiring a Middle School Math Teacher, a High School Math Teacher, and a High School Science Teacher. It appears that these teaching jobs do not require a teaching certificate, master’s degree, or previous teaching experience; however, they are strongly preferred. We’re not sure how entry-level friendly these jobs are, but the trend in education is definitely for schools to look at new college grads. We hope the SEED Foundation is following the trend.

They will also be posting a significant number of positions in January for the SEED School in Maryland. These jobs will have a July ‘08 start date, so they might be perfect for new grads – we won’t know until they post them. So be on the look out.

Note: On April 26th we revisited entry-level jobs at the SEED Foundation.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about the SEED Foundation? Leave a comment.

New York City Teaching Fellows

Willy Franzen — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 13:00:00 +0000

New York City Teaching Fellows is now a sponsor of One Day, One Job. Check out our sponsored post to get an updated look at their teaching opportunities for new grads.

Do you remember the name of your first grade teacher? If the answer is yes, think about the impact that he or she had on your life. If your answer was no, either you partied a little too hard in college or your teacher didn’t give you the educational experience that you deserved. Every child should be able to look back on his or her teachers and appreciate their devotion to education. New York City Teaching Fellows wants to help make you somebody that will be remembered.

The New York City Public School System, with 1.1 million students, has an especially dire need for devoted teachers. Since teachers are legally required to gain certification before they teach, the shortage is exacerbated by the hurdles applicants must jump over to enter the field. In 2000 New York City’s Department of Education collaborated with the New Teacher Project to form New York City Teaching Fellows as an alternative certification program. Instead of requiring teachers to go through the traditional teacher education program, Fellows engage in a short, intensive pre-service training program and then complete their subsidized Master’s of Education while they teach. Since 2000, NYCTF has added 13,000 new teachers to New York City’s public schools from over 115,000 applicants. Talk about filling a need.

Over the past 7 years, NYCTF has become a very selective organization with only 1 in 8 applicants being hired on average despite the fact that the program has been expanded to 2,000 Fellows a year. NYCTF hires from all backgrounds. They are looking for both career changers and recent college graduates. The awesome thing about NYCTF’s job requirements is that the list of things you can’t have done before is longer than the list of things you should have done. They want people who are new to teaching whether it is their first or twelfth job. In fact, they don’t even care what you majored in. If you want to teach Math or Science but didn’t have a relevant major, NYCTF offers Math and Science Immersion Programs. NYCTF is more impressed by who you are and how you can lead than what experiences you’ve compiled for your resume.

As if the opportunity to touch the lives of children every day isn’t enough, NYCTF also offers excellent benefits and a starting salary of $45,530 for recent grads with only a Bachelor’s Degree. On top of that are the subsidized Master’s Degree and a nontaxable $2,500 stipend during the training period. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, and to begin as a June Fellow (for the 2008-2009 school year) your application must be submitted by January, 7th.

Overall, the NYCTF website is phenomenal. It’s easy to navigate and includes every detail you would want to know about the program. The site is what corporate careers sites should look like. Unfortunately, there is one glaring error on the site. It’s easy to access every page on the site, except the application page. Here at One Day, One Job we uses Apple Macs with the Safari browser. When we try to go to their application page, we get a browser not supported error. The silly thing about this is that our browser is supported! We know how to trick the site into thinking we’re using Firefox or Internet Explorer, and then it works fine. What is happening is that they block “unsupported browsers” from viewing the page, even if the browser can display the page perfectly fine. I hate to think how many applicants are being frustrated by this (especially with the growth in Mac users over the past few years).

We don’t want to end this post on a sour note, though. New York City Teaching Fellows is an amazing program for college graduates whether you are planning on a lifelong career in teaching or just want to try it out for a few years.

Note: On April 26th we revisited entry-level jobs at New York City Teaching Fellows.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Teaching can be a stressful job, why not enter our contest so that you can relax by playing Nintendo Wii after a long day at school?