Eagle Rock is Now Recruiting New Cohort of Public Allies Fellows

If you’re reading this and you see yourself as a future educational leader filled with a passion to inspire change in the worlds of educational reform, social justice and youth development, we might have a program that’s of interest to you.

Here at Eagle Rock School and Professional Development Center, we offer a Public Allies Fellowship that annually provides a dozen individuals with an advanced yearlong service and leadership development experience like no other.

Located in the mountainside community of Estes Park in the Colorado Rockies, Eagle Rock is a full-scholarship residential high school, serving students between the age of 15 and 21. These teens and young adults come from diverse backgrounds and neighborhoods around the country. For most of them, success in a conventional school setting was just not in the cards.

In addition to providing nontraditional education to Eagle Rock students, we also support schools across the country, implementing effective practices that foster each student’s potential. To this end, the Public Allies Fellowship at Eagle Rock is a residential, community-based opportunity for individuals who are passionate about alternative teaching and learning approaches, social justice, youth development and empowerment, and re-engaging high-school students in their own education.

The next cohort of Public Allies Fellows at Eagle Rock runs from Sept. 1, 2017 to Aug. 17, 2018, with applications due on March 1 of this year.

So what exactly does a Public Allies fellowship at Eagle Rock School entail? Plenty. There’s in-classroom instruction, curriculum development, out-of-classroom mentorship, residential life curriculum development, and participation in initiatives for national education reform.

Allies are also tasked with creating, improving and expanding services offered by Eagle Rock, specifically in the areas of youth development and education. You’ll also be asked to participate in a rigorous leadership development program, on-going training and community building activities, and team service projects.

Classroom teaching fellowship areas are available in:

• Human Performance (Physical Education)
• Literature and Literacy (English)
• Math
• Music
• Science
• Societies and Cultures (History, Social Studies, Sociology)
• Visual Arts
• World Languages (Spanish, etc)

We also offer a handful of student services and administrative fellowship positions. These roles support our students, our school and our national mission outside the classroom, and include:

• Curriculum and School Leadership
• Health, Wellness and Counseling
• Life After Eagle Rock (guidance counseling)
• Outdoor Education (wilderness trip instruction)
• Professional Development Center
• Residential Life
• Service Learning

To fill these positions, we’re looking for candidates with a college degree or equivalent life experience, prior classroom teaching experience, or experience working with youth-serving organizations, as well as the enthusiasm to devote endless time and energy as positive role models and mentors for our students.

Those with experience, knowledge and skills in the particular content area will have a distinct advantage, however we certainly score highly for passion and interest along with that experience. In addition, applicants should be culturally competent in working with youth from all communities, regardless of race, affiliation, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or ability.

Each year, we seek out a team of fellows who meet the above requirements and who are committed to developing their leadership skills in order to create more just and equitable communities by continuously seeking advancements at the intersection of educational reform, social justice, and youth development.

Each of these positions include an $18,000 living stipend — paid bi-monthly — health insurance, a shared room in a communal house, meals when students are on campus, a $5,700 AmeriCorps education award when the program is completed and other benefits. In addition, those accepted into the program will have the opportunity to participate in a Colorado state alternative teacher licensure program, paid for by Eagle Rock.

For more information, specific job descriptions and application instructions, please visit the Public Allies at Eagle Rock webpage. For other questions, feel free to contact Christi Kelston, Eagle Rock’s director of Public Allies, at ckelston at EagleRockSchool dot org. Or call Christi at (970) 586-0600, Ext. 1332.