Company Overview | Close Up’s mission is to inform, inspire, and empower young people to exercise the rights and accept the responsibilities of citizens in a democracy. As a non-profit/non-partisan leader in civic education since 1971, we believe that a strong democracy requires active and informed participation by all citizens; therefore, we seek to reach participants of every race, creed, geographical community, socio-economic level, and academic standing.
Position Overview | Program Instructors are passionate about current public policy issues, history, politics, government and experiential education for diverse students in grades 6-12. They prepare and lead daily program components for groups of about 20 students each. Throughout the day, Program Instructors hop on and off buses, coordinating the movement of students on all program activities in the Washington, D.C. area and other program locations. They have direct contact with students who may not have received a COVID-19 vaccination, therefore, Program Instructors wear masks and practice other COVID-19 safety precautions as required by company policy.
Scheduled Hours | The Program Instructor schedule is not a standard nine-to-five work week.
- Each week mirrors the program schedule to which an instructor is assigned, generally a 55-hour week.
- Program schedules typically run from 8am through 10pm, and programs usually start late afternoon on Sundays and run through Thursday night.
- Most programs are based in Washington, D.C. but there are opportunities to travel to New York City, Florida, Philadelphia and other historic sites.
Contract Dates, Compensation & Benefits
- Initial contract period is October 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022. We expect to hire additional candidates for a second contract period that begins on/about January 3, 2022. At the conclusion of the contract period, there may be an opportunity to join the Foundation in a full-time/full-year role.
- The salary before tax is $1,400.00 per paycheck, payable twice a month; $650 bonus for contract completion.
- Medical and dental insurance with low-cost premiums, vision discount program, no-cost life/AD&D insurance.
- All meals are provided while working plus sick leave, free garage parking or mass transit subsidy, cell phone reimbursement, and free gym access.
- 120 hours of paid training in our curriculum, methodology and programing, followed by on-going professional development.
- The opportunity to earn a free graduate credit upon completion of the contract with an accompanying research paper is available.
Responsibilities | Program Instructors engage Middle and High School students from across the United States in controversial public policy discussions while using the nation’s capital as our classroom. They lead students through a life-changing educational experience which includes historic sites, iconic monuments and memorials, Smithsonian museums, meetings with elected officials and key public policy experts, as well as facilitate multi-partisan issue-based deliberations.
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree (preferably in political science, history, education, social science or related field)
- Demonstrated proficiency with public speaking as evidenced by teaching a short lesson during the interview
- Authorized to work in the U.S. for any employer
- Proof of COVID-19 vaccination as required by company policy
- Willingness to submit to a post-offer criminal background check according to federal regulations
Work Conditions
Standing | Remaining upright on the feet, particularly for sustained periods of time; Walking | Moving about on foot to accomplish tasks, particularly for long distances or moving from one work site to another; Talking | Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word; those activities where detailed or important spoken instructions must be conveyed to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly; Hearing | Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction, and having the ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and making fine discriminations in sound; Visual acuity | Performing an activity such as preparing and analyzing data; viewing a computer terminal; reading; Environmental conditions | Activities occur inside and outside, potentially in extreme heat or cold, at times with noise.
If you are excited about the prospect of becoming a Program Instructor, we welcome you to apply and explore how you can be part of an amazing network of Program Instructors who have led more than 900,000 students over 50 years through a once-in-a-lifetime Close Up experience.
Please click here to apply. In the Notes field, paste your references along with a brief statement describing why this position is the right fit for your skills and experience.
Close Up Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
