Welcome to the good life.
While we don’t mean to brag, we’re also not shy about living the good life
in Eagle County. In fact, we work hard to keep it good. The spirit of Eagle County is embodied in the story of the creation of Vail as a ski resort.
Vision. Big dreams. Collaboration. Tenacity. Luck. Commitment. It was a magnet for people who wanted to live on purpose and build a magic
valley. It’s still such a magnet. We’re not for everyone. We don’t have
malls, a ton of fast food, or twenty cineplexes sprinkled around town. But, what we do have is pretty special.
It’s this good on purpose.
The internationally-known ski resorts of Vail and Beaver Creek bring more than skiers to our small community. They bring world-class
performers, artisans, chefs, and fascinating boutique retailers. Outdoor
concert series in the summer, festivals, and farmers markets mean year-
round fun. And, they foster a community aesthetic: walking paths, biking lanes, play parks, and play dates.
The one thing that makes our Valley special is exceedingly rare: we each want the other to succeed. We help, support, and build-up our
community members. For new teachers, that means you’re partnered
with a Mentor or Master teacher. You’ll receive embedded professional
development, and enjoy the coaching of your colleagues. Your first year
with us will be a success by design. It will also be balanced with living the good life beyond your classroom walls.
We take children from all walks of life, with varying degrees of ability,
wide-ranging challenges, and guide them for 13 years through a sea of information and social situations so that they can succeed in life. It’s nothing short of miracle work. Regardless of competing stresses, we strive to inspire every student, every moment, to develop a lifelong passion for learning.
We only recruit the best educators for our noble mission. We care for our students.
We offer students and staff a safe environment for learning and living. We look for new ways to engage: students with learning, their parents
with the district, and the community for support of our noble mission. Most importantly, we ignite curiosity, open eyes, fuel confidence, protect innocence, feed intelligence, create joy, soften sadness, stimulate creativity, and prepare children for adulthood.
Education is a lofty goal, but that’s what we do.
In a sense, we see educators differently. We believe highly educated, licensed educators are professionals along the lines of other such
practitioners: doctors, attorneys, and architects. You are to be afforded respect, autonomy, and the freedom to analyze the needs of your
students. Only then can you tailor instruction to meet their needs. That doesn’t mean our schools are free-for-alls. High expectations,
exceptional leaders, well-defined systemic and structural norms, and
organizational pride permit a loose-tight dynamic that keeps us on track to achieve our ultimate goal: student success on par with International high performers.
We are a professional model of teaching.
The heart of our professional model of teaching is our practice of small, building-level teams taking ownership of the unique challenges of their school and grade levels. These teams brainstorm solutions. They are
supported by district-level coaches and curriculum experts to help find and implement solutions. This inverts the typical professional
development paradigm in education. Ideas and solutions don’t come
down from on high for implementation by teachers. Ideas and solutions bubble up from the teachers closest to the work.
Master and Mentor teachers at each school deliver coaching on best
practices directly to teachers. They don’t judge – they coach, inspire, collaborate – and lift the whole organization to new heights.
Eagle County Schools practices International Benchmarking of the
world’s top performing school systems and adapts those proven, dynamic strategies to our context. We encourage you to read Unparalleled
Altitude: A Globally Inspired Vision for Eagle County Schools, which is available from the home page of our website: www.eagleschools.net.
The vision and strategies therein insulate us from unproven, silver-bullet ideas, and keep us focused on the instructional core: students and
teachers in the presence of content. Our efforts to improve are guided by impacting this holy trinity of learning.
A well-defined vision has us on our way to achieving world-class results.
So, what do the highest performing schools in the world do differently than typical schools?
• They recruit the best candidates from the best teacher prep universities. • They strive to help the community hold teachers in the same regard as doctors, attorneys, and other licensed professionals.
• They work to mitigate the effects of poverty on learning.
• They have one set of high academic standards for all students. • They tailor instruction to the needs of each student.
• They have clear college and career pathways in high schools.
• They offer student internships and apprenticeships with local businesses. • They focus on the instructional core.
Maybe you wonder, “Does the community understand and support this direction?” You bet they do.
UNPARALLELED ALTITUDE: A Globally Inspired Vision for Eagle County Schools Author Jason E. Glass, Ed.D. Superintendent & Chief Learner Eagle County Schools
Read online at http://issuu.com/eagleschools
Download our district fact sheet at www.eagleschools.net
Even though we believe that we have the absolute best place to work and live in the world, we do have many challenges. And, we need your
expertise to help us overcome them and achieve world-class success. Our biggest challenge is engaging our Latino population and overcoming language, cultural, and socio-economic conditions that hinder their achievement and success.
We need your help to reach our goals.
Our population demographics are about 50/50 White/Latino. We have
among the highest percentages of English Language Learners in the state. Plus, the gulf between the wealthy in our community and the working poor is immense.
But, we are undeterred. We have schools that have become National Blue Ribbon schools for performance growth by their Latino students. Our
ELL Director was Director of the Year in the State in 2014. Dual language programs are engaging our Latinos and demonstrating success. Our International Baccalaureate program capitalizes on the strengths of
multiculturalism. Our Expeditionary Learning schools provide hands-on, minds-on experiences. And, the AVID program at our high schools has
reduced discipline issues, raised GPAs, and ignited the spirit of learning. A funny thing happens when you see your challenges as opportunities for innovation – teams form, excitement builds, and kids thrive! You should want to be part of this – changing their lives, changes our own.
Who says you can’t have fun at work?
Apply today at www.eagleschools.net
eagleschools.net/jobs • facebook/eagle.schools • twitter.com/eagleCOschools • issuu.com/eagleschools 948 Chambers Avenue, Eagle, CO 81631 • 970 328-6321