Interim Lead Teacher, VPA

Cambridge Public Schools Visual & Performing Arts - Cambridge, Massachusetts Open in Google Maps

This job is also posted in Cambridge Public Schools

• Job : 5813851
• Final date to receive applications: Posted until filled
• Posted: Jul 02, 2026 4:00 AM (UTC)
• Starting Date: Sep 1, 2026

Position:
Interim Lead Teacher

Visual & Performing Arts Department

Cambridge Public Schools, in partnership with our families and community, will provide all students with rigorous, joyful, and culturally responsive learning as well as the social, emotional, and academic support each student needs to achieve their goals and post secondary success as engaged community members. CPS students and staff, as members of a learning organization engaged in continuous improvement, will demonstrate a growth mindset and embrace risk taking and innovation.

About 8,000 students choose Cambridge Public Schools (CPS) each year, and our diverse student enrollment continues to rise. Over 30% of CPS students speak a language other than English at home, and over 65 languages are spoken by our families across the district. Among the most common are Spanish, Haitian Creole, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, and Portuguese. Our schools proudly embrace this diversity.

The structure of our school system supports the developmental growth of students over time. Twelve elementary schools feed into five “Upper School” programs, bringing together enough students to allow for greater choice and differentiation without sacrificing the safe feeling of a relatively small environment. The Upper Schools then feed into one high school, the eclectic and innovative Cambridge Rindge and Latin School.

The 1-year interim Lead Teacher will work under the Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) CPP–12 department and will report to the Director of Visual and Performing Arts. This position is responsible for supporting the day‑to‑day operations of the Cambridge Public Schools (CPS) arts programs, with a focus on the Visual Arts, although sharing responsibility with a team to all 4 disciplines—visual art, dance, theater/drama, and music.

This position requires nights and weekends in performance and exhibition season with flex time available. This position is a 1-year interim role.

The LT will serve as an expert resource to all faculty and staff of the Visual and Performing Arts Department. The LT will work with VPA faculty and staff to ensure consistently high quality arts experiences for CPS children, with a lens on inclusion, equity, anti‑racism, and social justice.

The LT will work with the VPA administration team, including two other Lead Teachers, a Clerk Specialist, and the Director, with planning and implementing district‑wide educational events, develop and lead professional development workshops, and encourage and support teacher‑led initiatives. They will foster and promote inter‑ and intra‑school collaborations among teachers and students, collect and document evidence of best practices that use the visual arts as a teaching and learning tool.

The LT will share expertise, instructional strategies around both arts and inclusive teaching practices, and provide support as needed to VPA faculty and staff in the classroom and at exhibition spaces.

• Support in the supervision and evaluation of CPP–12 VPA staff, with a focus on visual arts. Participate in the recruitment and hiring of staff.
• Coordinate 2 district‑wide art shows with a community partner organization for grades CPP‑8 and 9‑12.
• Coordinate the Exploratory Arts Program (EAP)—a stipend added. EAP is an inclusion arts program that runs after school featuring classes in visual arts, theater, dance, and music. The coordinator is responsible for coordination of the program including enrollment, hiring teachers, coordinating with our office of student services, and other duties as assigned.
• Work with teachers individually and in teams (modeling and co‑teaching) to support best practices in teaching the visual arts, with particular attention to strategies related to inclusion and arts integration.
• Assist arts teachers in designing and implementing…