---
title: 'TK Teacher at Rocketship Public Schools'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/tk-teacher-rocketship-public-schools-san-jose-gj054kkjzss2'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-08'
---

# TK Teacher at Rocketship Public Schools

- **Company:** Rocketship Public Schools
- **Location:** San Jose, CA
- **Compensation:** $71k–$83k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2025-10-16
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-08
- **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/rocketship/79bf3ce6-465a-4902-bcbe-6445e4df77b7

## Job description

At Rocketship Public Schools, we believe in the infinite possibility of human potential. We believe that every student deserves the right to dream, to discover, and to develop their unique potential and it is our responsibility and our privilege to unleash the potential inside every Rocketeer we serve. Our non-profit network of public elementary charter schools propels student achievement, develops exceptional educators, and partners with parents who enable high-quality public schools to thrive in their community. We are a collective of parents, teachers, leaders, and students working together to transform the future for underserved communities across our country. At Rocketship Public Schools, we are unleashing potential.

Position Description Our TK teachers are subject experts who specialize in either Humanities or STEM. Every Rocketship school is supported by leaders who provide weekly coaching and real-time feedback in the classroom to help teachers continually grow their practice. Just as our teachers invest their time and energy in the progress of their students, we invest in their professional growth through collaboration, development opportunities, and eligibility for performance-based pay tied to student growth and instructional excellence.

Rocketship’s collaborative learning environment extends well beyond the classroom. We are deeply committed to parent engagement as a driver of student success. Annual teacher home visits, monthly parent community meetings, and a vibrant parent volunteer network create authentic relationships, a rich school culture, and a devoted community that propels student achievement.

This position reports to the Principal or Assistant Principal.

Essential Functions:

- Build a classroom culture of excellence and deliver rigorous instruction by building content expertise in Humanities or STEM that is captured in units of study and daily plans.
- Engage in cycles of data driven instruction to inform planning and personalize instruction to student needs.
- Collaborate with special education staff so students identified as needing extra support are meaningfully included.
- Other duties as assigned

Student and Parent Partnership:

- Partner with all students and families through frequent communication, building trusting relationships, and embracing the knowledge parents have as their child's first teacher.
- Build authentic relationships with families beginning with home visits that form the foundation for frequent ongoing communications to support student success.
- Engage with families on academic and behavioral goals and transparently share student progress so that both parents and teachers own each child's successes and challenges.

Rocketship Professional Culture:

- Commit to doing and being their best, and to growing their skills as professionals and as individuals
- Attend all professional development meetings and opportunities
- Urgently and courageously takes actions in the best interest of students, even if they are new or unfamiliar
- Meet all professional obligations and proactively communicate when changes come up
- Exhibit a high level of honest and humble self-reflection owning good and bad outcomes
- Effectively respond to and implement constructive feedback
- Communicate effectively with colleagues and contribute to positive staff culture
- Collaborate with all staff members to ensure that all students have consistent and well-coordinated support

Required Qualifications:

- Hold a B.A./B.S. degree from an accredited institution
- Satisfaction of one of the following subject matter requirements:
- 24 semester units of coursework in Child Development or Early Childhood Education, or
- A bachelor’s degree in Child Development, Early Childhood Education, or a closely related field, or
- Beginning July 1, 2023: three or more years of full-time teaching experience in a transitional kindergarten, preschool-age early childhood, or child development program, or a combination of these experiences.
- Possession of a valid Child Development Teacher Permit or higher.
- All Rocketship teachers must hold a valid teaching credential or enroll in an accredited credentialing program during their first year at Rocketship. Rocketship partners with all teachers needing to transfer an out-of-state credential or enroll in a program to meet this requirement.
- Preferred: Prior experience in urban education.

Physical Demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions. While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk, hear, and communicate with both adults and children. The employee frequently is required to use hands or fingers, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls. The employee is frequently required to stand; walk; sit; and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds and occasionally climb ladders. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is moderate to high.

Compensation: Commensurate with qualifications and experience, plus excellent health and wellness benefits, 403b retirement plan, flexible spending account (FSA), and generous paid time off.

Rocketship Public Schools provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. Rocketship Public Schools complies with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training. Rocketship Public Schools expressly prohibits any form of unlawful employee harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status. Improper interference with the ability of Rocketship Public Schools’ employees to perform their expected job duties is absolutely not tolerated. Click here for our Sexual Harassment Policy.  For questions, concerns, or complaints, please contact Human Resources.

## About Rocketship Public Schools

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Rocketship Public Schools is a national nonprofit network of high-performing public charter elementary schools serving underserved communities, focused on closing the achievement gap through personalized learning, talent development, and community partnerships.
- **Entity Type**: Private (nonprofit charter school network; not publicly traded)
- **Headquarters**: Redwood City, California, USA
- **Founded**: 2006
- **Founders**: John Danner and Preston Smith

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: K-12 public education (charter schools)
- **Target customers**: Students and families in low-income communities (pre-K through 5th grade), B2C (publicly funded, tuition-free)
- **Mission or purpose**: "To catalyze transformative change in underserved communities through a scalable and sustainable public school model that propels student achievement, develops exceptional educators, and partners with parents who enable high-quality public schools to thrive in their community."

## Products & Services
- **Public Charter Elementary Schools**: A network of high-performing, tuition-free public elementary schools (pre-K to grade 5) operating in California, Wisconsin, Tennessee, and Washington D.C. The model includes personalized learning, content-specialized teachers (STEM/Humanities), Learning Lab (adaptive technology), enrichment classes, and family engagement. [rocketshipschools.org](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/about/our-mission-and-model/)
- **Teacher Residency & PD Launchpad**: Professional development programs offering real-time coaching, instructional frameworks, and dedicated weekly PD for teachers. [rocketshipschools.org](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/join-our-team/)
- **Career Pathways**: Clear advancement opportunities from teacher to school leader, with roles in integrated special education, school support, leadership, and network support (HR, IT, finance, strategy, etc.). [rocketshipschools.org](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/join-our-team/)

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not applicable (nonprofit organization)
- **Key Metric**: 33,567 total lifetime students served (as of 2023-2024); network of 23+ schools across four regions
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Not publicly listed as a funded startup; funding comes from public per-pupil revenue, grants, and philanthropic donations. The network is recognized as a "gap busting" charter network by the Stanford CREDO study (2023).
- **Growth Signals**: The 2023 Stanford CREDO study found Rocketship students gained the equivalent of 5–7 months of additional learning in a single school year; expansion beyond California into Wisconsin, Tennessee, and Washington D.C.; ongoing hiring for 2026-2027 school year with signing bonuses (e.g., $5,000 for 5th Grade Math Teacher). [rocketshipschools.org](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/) and [jobs.lever.co](https://jobs.lever.co/rocketship)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proven academic impact**: Data from Stanford CREDO shows outsized learning gains for low-income students, positioning Rocketship as one of the charter sector's most effective networks.
- **Specialized teacher model**: Teachers focus on either STEM or Humanities, enabling deeper expertise and collaboration, unlike traditional elementary generalist model.
- **Strong family engagement**: Home visits before each school year, parent input on school naming and enrichment, and a culture of partnership that increases accountability and support.
- **Personalized learning at scale**: Combination of whole-group instruction, small-group tutoring, and adaptive online learning, driven by real-time data on student mastery.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scaling model**: Expanding to serve more students across current regions and potentially new markets, while maintaining high fidelity to the Rocketship model.
- **Talent development**: Investing heavily in teacher coaching, residency programs, and clear career ladders to retain and grow educators.
- **Community power**: Deepening parent and community organizing to advocate for high-quality public school options and policy change.
- **Whole-child education**: Integrating social-emotional learning, character values (persistence, empathy, responsibility, respect), and enrichment classes alongside core academics.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-driven culture**: Join a team committed to educational equity in low-income communities, with a strong sense of purpose and partnership among teachers, parents, and leaders.
- **Career growth**: Clear pathways from teacher to school leader, with internal promotion and support for leadership roles; network support roles offer diverse functions (HR, IT, finance, strategy).
- **Professional development**: Weekly coaching, real-time feedback, instructional frameworks, and dedicated PD time through programs like Teacher Residency and PD Launchpad.
- **Exceptional benefits**: Competitive health, dental, and vision coverage; retirement plans; signing bonuses for certain roles (e.g., $5,000 for 5th Grade Math Teacher in Tennessee).
- **Work environment**: Hybrid/onsite roles depending on position (e.g., school-based roles are onsite; some network support roles may be hybrid). Emphasis on collaboration, data-driven instruction, and a supportive school community.
- **Locations**: Schools in California (Bay Area, Sacramento), Wisconsin (Milwaukee), Tennessee (Nashville area), and Washington D.C.

## Sources
1. [rocketshipschools.org - Join Our Team](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/join-our-team/)
2. [rocketshipschools.org - Homepage](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/)
3. [rocketshipschools.org - Mission & Model](https://www.rocketshipschools.org/en/about/our-mission-and-model/)
4. [jobs.lever.co - Rocketship Careers](https://jobs.lever.co/rocketship)

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