Specialist - Literacy & Writing

Overview

• Forbes named Mesa Public Schools in their list of Best Employers in Arizona for multiple years.
• East Valley Tribune names Mesa Public Schools as Best Place to Work in East Valley for multiple years.

Employment Type: Full-time

Base Salary: $65,160.00

Calendar: Certified l, 220 workdays

Benefits: Sick leave, holidays, matched retirement through the Arizona State Retirement System, health, and life insurance

Performance Pay: Available annually

New Hire

Experience:

$500 for each full-time year of certified teaching or verified like experience

New Hire

Education:

$65/hour of graduate level credits: BA +45 hours max, MA +60 hours max $1000 for advanced degrees

Job Summary: The Disciplinary Literacy & Writing Specialist provides district wide leadership for literacy and writing across grades 7–12. This position ensures all students build and apply strong interdisciplinary reading, writing, and communication skills. The specialist collaborates with directors, coordinators, and regional teams to promote solid instructional design, appropriately rigorous instruction, select and implement high-quality instructional materials (HQIM), and align professional learning, assessment, and curriculum to ensure all students graduate prepared for college, career, and community success.

Key Responsibilities:

• Curriculum & Instruction
• Provide leadership in designing, implementing, and monitoring evidence-based literacy instruction aligned to Arizona English Language Arts Standards and district frameworks.
• Lead the design, alignment, and continuous improvement of literacy and writing instruction across secondary grade levels.
• Support HQIM selection, implementation, and evaluation for English Language Arts and literacy-rich instruction in other content areas.
• Guide the integration of reading and writing strategies across disciplines, emphasizing argumentation, research, and communication.
• Collaborate with Specialized Student Services and Language Development & Multilingual Programs specialists to ensure accessibility and appropriate scaffolds for multilingual learners and students with disabilities.

Assessment & Data

• Support the design, implementation, and refinement of literacy and writing benchmarks and formative assessment practices.
• Analyze literacy data to identify trends, gaps, and areas for instructional improvement.
• Provide analysis and recommendations to improve literacy and writing outcomes across content areas.
• Collaborate with instructional coaches and regional leads to use assessment data to drive decision-making, interventions, and enrichment.

Professional Learning

• Design and facilitate professional learning for regional leads, instructional coaches, and teachers focused on disciplinary literacy, writing instruction, and text-based analysis.
• Model effective instructional practices and collaborate with site-based coaches to strengthen teacher capacity.
• Develop and maintain district resources and exemplar materials supporting consistent literacy and writing practices.

Collaboration & Compliance

• Serve as district liaison to Arizona Department of Education and professional networks related to secondary literacy and writing.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of research and policy impacting literacy education.
• Support vertical articulation between elementary and secondary literacy programs.
• Collaborate with internal departments to ensure compliance with state standards and alignment with district goals.

General

• Perform other duties as assigned to support Mesa Public Schools’ academic goals and Portrait of a Graduate.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in education, curriculum and instruction, or a related field.
• Current Arizona teaching certificate with endorsement or certification in Secondary English Language Arts or Reading and SEI endorsement.
• Minimum of three years of successful classroom teaching experience.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in English, Literacy, Curriculum and Instruction, or a related field.
• Reading Specialist or Literacy Coach certification or experience.
• Completion of Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS).
• Experience leading HQIM adoptions or curriculum evaluations.
• Experience…