Application FAQs

The majority of our academic teaching positions require teachers to have a minimum of two years full-time lead teaching experience in an urban teaching environment. However, we are open to considering applicants who do not meet these requirements on a case-by-case basis.

We strongly prefer all teacher/leader candidates to be certified in Pennsylvania in the appropriate subject area prior to hire, however, candidates who are not certified when they accept a position at KIPP Philadelphia Schools must become certified within the timeline identified by the certification team. All certification and testing costs are the responsibility of the candidate.

KIPP Philadelphia teachers are a diverse group, including experienced teachers who have worked in schools serving underserved students, new teachers who are just beginning their careers, and career changers who are entering the classroom after succeeding in another profession. Teachers who joined the KIPP Philadelphia Schools Team and Family:

• Have an average of 2.5 years of full-time teaching experience
• Have an average of 2 years of full-time professional experience in an urban setting
• Most commonly (62%) hold a bachelor’s degree
• 55% identified as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color

We recognize that many applicants may qualify for more than one position. For this reason, one application for an instructional role qualifies you for all open teaching positions. Please update your applicant profile to include your grade and subject area preferences. If you are interested in non-instructional roles, however, you must complete a new application for each individual position as these are posted with varying criteria.

To learn more about applying for instructional or non-instructional roles, view our open positions on the “Apply Now” page.

No. The application process at KIPP Philadelphia Schools is completed entirely online. To be considered for one of our open positions you must apply on KIPP Careers by clicking here. Materials submitted via email, fax, or postal mail will not be reviewed.

Once you submit your application, you will receive a confirmation email. If you do not receive this email, your application has not been submitted. Please contact helpdesk@kipp.org for technical assistance.

No. We keep teaching candidates’ applications on file for the entire year. If there is a position that opens up and your skill set and experience seem like a good match for the position, we will contact you. Non-instructional candidates should submit a new application for new positions they wish to apply for.

Yes. All applications are kept on file until August of that school year. If you are applying for a position the following year, you will need to submit a new application and state your teaching preferences based on the available positions at that time.

Any positions listed on https://kippphiladelphia.org/join-our-team/apply-now/, are still open. Position availability is updated on a daily basis on our website, but we can’t guarantee the same for other sites. If you don’t see a position listed here, it is no longer open. Please refer to our website when searching for available openings.

We are fortunate to receive a large number of applications. Although we encourage you to complete your application very thoughtfully, we cannot provide feedback for candidates who do not move beyond the screening stages of the application process.

Thank you for your interest in KIPP Philadelphia. Please reach out Senior Director of Talent, Brea Smith at bsmith@kippphiladelphia.org to find out when our next event for prospective teachers will be.

Yes! At KIPP Philadelphia, we are invested in the professional growth and development of our teachers, whether they plan to be career teachers or seek leadership paths. Ongoing professional development and leadership opportunities are offered at each of our schools across the region, and the national KIPP network also has a variety of school leadership programs.

All regular full-time employees and their spouses/domestic partners and dependents are eligible to participate in comprehensive health, dental and vision plans. All employees are eligible to participate in a 403b plan.

All of our schools develop their own schedule. As a result, teachers at each of our schools have a slightly different schedule and responsibilities.

Curriculum and planning varies by subject and grade level at each of our schools. In general, our school leaders work with teachers to choose curriculum that best meets the needs of our students and provides the strongest resources. Teachers have the flexibility to create lessons that are rigorous and engaging, while pulling from the multiple programs our schools have acquired.

All of our schools use an approach to literacy that balances skill building, engaging with rigorous texts, and ensuring students have strong foundational skills. Our elementary school uses Core Knowledge Language Arts as the foundation of grade level reading comprehension skills while also building strong content knowledge. Our middle school literacy teachers use KIPP Wheatley, a program that couples worthy and rigorous texts with depth of questioning and explicit vocabulary development. Our elementary and middle schools also utilize curricula developed by the Wilson Reading System to address students’ phonics development and needs (Fundations and Just Words, respectively). Our teachers meet the needs of individual readers through Guided Reading instruction in grades K-10. In our high school, teachers plan lessons using the College Readiness Standards, to ensure that students are prepared not only for the ACT, but to get to and through college.

For math, our elementary and middle schools use Investigations and Eureka Math, respectively. Both curriculums are aligned with the Common Core, which we in turn align to the PA Core state standards, and both promote a conceptual understanding of mathematics. In our high school, teachers plan lessons using the College Readiness Standards, to ensure that students are prepared not only for the ACT, but to get to and through college.

No. Employment with KIPP Philadelphia is “at will”. Every year each member of our staff receives a letter outlining salary increases and changes in their position for the upcoming school year. We make every effort necessary to support our professional staff in order to provide consistency for our KIPPsters.

Yes! Each of our schools has professional development opportunities focused on curriculum and planning, data analysis, and school culture built into the academic calendar. We also offer Regional Teacher Professional Development once a month where all of our teachers from the region come together to collaborate. Act 48 credit hours are provided to teachers after completing sessions. In addition, our teachers have access to KIPP’s national summits, retreats, and KIPP Share, an online sharing platform, to further meet their professional development needs.

We are always looking for talented educators to join our team and family. If you know someone who may be a good fit, please refer him/her to us through our online referral system. If you are a KIPP Philadelphia employee, you may receive a $500 referral bonus for every individual you refer who accepts a job offer.

Please visit KIPP’s national website at www.kipp.org.