Lead Teacher

About Strive Charter School

Strive Charter School is opening its doors in Fall 2026 in a newly renovated historic school building at 604 East 139th Street in the South Bronx, one block from the 6 train and just minutes from Manhattan. Strive is built around a simple but radical belief: when children are given abundant time, meaningful choice, joyful relationships, and a rich environment for reading and play, they soar. We are an extended-time elementary school with a progressive, child-centered approach to teaching and learning. We see academic excellence and whole-child development not as competing priorities but as mutually reinforcing. Standardized tests matter—but so do deep curiosity, intrinsic motivation, social skills, and a love of learning.

Our school culture is warm, friendly, relaxed, and rooted in positive discipline, genuine respect, and strong relationships. We believe school should feel like a second home: a place where children want to be, families feel welcomed, and educators can do the best work of their careers.

About the Role

At Strive Charter School, we will pay our educators a reasonable salary for reasonable hours in good working conditions. Your working day will be eight hours, including at least 2½ hours during the day for lunch, professional development, and individual and team planning, so you shouldn’t need to take work home. Instruction begins at 9 a.m., so you’ll be able to arrive at 8:30 a.m. and leave by 4:30 p.m.

Our school is conveniently located in the South Bronx, just two blocks from the Cypress Avenue #6 subway station. Our dress code is relaxed—you can wear sneakers and dress comfortably, so long as it is appropriate for our students’ parents.

Our philosophy is pragmatically progressive. While we include some traditional instruction, much of the day will involve children in self-directed activities such as reading books of their choice, doing science kits, engaging in project-based learning, and playing educational games. We aim to create a joyful and rewarding school environment for both teachers and students.

If you have elementary school-age children, they are welcome to attend our school. We are building a joyful and academically ambitious school where we would want to send our own children.

You will have support from teaching assistants who supervise lunch and recess and assist in the classroom, allowing you to provide small-group instruction. You will be treated with respect by students, parents, and administrators. Teachers work too hard to be treated disrespectfully, so we don’t tolerate it.

Responsibilities

• Foster a joyful, child-centered learning environment where students thrive through reading, play, and self-directed activities.
• Integrate progressive teaching methods with traditional instruction to support academic excellence and whole-child development.
• Collaborate with teaching assistants to provide small-group instruction and individualized support.
• Maintain a warm, respectful, and inclusive classroom culture rooted in positive discipline.

Requirements

• Teaching experience, preferably at the elementary school level.
• Bachelor’s degree.

Pay

Salary ranges from $80,000 to $100,000 annually, starting at $80,000 for candidates with two years of classroom experience (as a teacher or assistant teacher) and increasing by $2,000 for each additional year of experience.

Benefits

• Generous fringe benefits, including health insurance and a 401(k) plan.
• Ten weeks of paid time off annually, including:
  • 5 weeks when the school is closed (including federal holidays).
  • 3 weeks of vacation days (to be scheduled during the summer).
  • 5 days of sick/safety leave, convertible to vacation days if unused.

Schedule

• 8-hour workday (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), with instruction beginning at 9:00 a.m.
• At least 2½ hours daily for lunch, professional development, and planning.