Part-Time Founding Teaching Position · Reports to the Principal · Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s preferred in French language, literature, or education · French fluency required; you can teach entirely in French · Illinois Professional Educator License in high school French preferred and National Board Certification a major plus · 3+ years of secondary (grades 6–12) teaching experience preferred; high school (grades 9–12) teaching experience highly preferred · College-preparatory, independent, Jewish day or faith-based school experience is a plus. Being Jewish is not a requirement for this role. Fewer years but exceptional craft? We hire for mastery, not seat time.
Are you a passionate educator who believes language is the gateway to culture, identity, connection, and belonging? Do you inspire students to communicate confidently in French while engaging meaningfully with the Francophone world? Are you excited to help build a French program in a rigorous college-preparatory environment? If so, Davis School Chicago wants to hear from you.
THE DREAM TEAM
Davis School Chicago is a proudly Jewish, college-preparatory high school opening in fall 2027 in downtown Chicago, in a state-of-the-art building at the heart of a great city for learning. Every adult at Davis Chicago is an educator and a culture-builder. We hold two expectations at the same time: deep human warmth and uncompromising intellectual excellence. High health and high results, never one at the cost of the other. This is a summary of the characteristics that describe our dream team. Please read the full Profile of the Ideal Davis Chicago Educator https://www.davischicago.org/idealeducator and more information about our opportunities before you apply.
To thrive here you are:
- Warm and intellectually formidable. Genuinely kind and seriously bright. We hire for intellectual horsepower; only sharp minds grow students to their full potential.
- You bring the room to life. Passion people feel, loud or quiet, with the range to teach, support, and lead.
- A builder who owns it. Startup grit, a real growth mindset, open about mistakes, gives the gift of feedback, and the drive to create what doesn’t exist yet.
- Teach how to think, not what to think. Rigor, evidence, and a love of hard questions, including the controversial ones. Students reach their own conclusions.
- Rooted in tradition, built for what’s next. Ancient wisdom and modern tools, AI included, aimed at today's problems.
- Unapologetically Jewish. Israel has a right to exist; that is not up for debate. Everything else is fair game, including spirited debate about Israel’s actions. You’re excited to help build a proudly Jewish, pro-Israel school.
WHAT DAVIS CHICAGO NEEDS
Davis Chicago is hiring a part-time French Teacher for the founding year. Sections are drawn from French I and French II, the opening courses of a sequence that runs through AP French Language and Culture. If you are interested in a full-time role and can teach both French and Spanish, please apply for the full-time Spanish & French Teacher https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/davischicago/7ff9fd01-5e5a-41f1-8afe-0adc0f78c968 role.
WHO THRIVES IN THIS ROLE
- Warm, Relational, and High-Performing – Kind, emotionally intelligent, intellectually rigorous, and committed to excellence.
- A Proficiency-Driven Language Teacher – Lives in the target language and gets students speaking.
- A Culture Bridge – Brings the Francophone world into the room, head and heart.
- An Entrepreneurial Builder – Thrives in ambiguity, solves problems, and creates programs, systems, and traditions from the ground up.
- A Curious and Courageous Thinker – Embraces learning, evidence, critical thinking, and meaningful debate.
- Rooted and Forward-Looking – Honors tradition while embracing innovation, technology, and AI.
- Committed to Jewish Life and Community – Values Jewish identity, the diversity of Jewish thought, and meaningful engagement in Jewish life.
- A Collaborative…