Nature and Scope:
Beyond Housing, in collaboration with Deaconess Foundation and with support from the Berges Family Foundation, will sponsor a network of CDF Freedom Schools programs for children in grades kindergarten through five in the St. Louis region. The six-week program provides summer enrichment around five essential components: high-quality academic enrichment, parent and family involvement, civic engagement and social action, intergenerational leadership development, and nutritional, physical, and mental health. Enrichment is driven by the Integrated Reading Curriculum (IRC) which primarily focuses on literacy to curb summer learning loss and close opportunity gaps.
A key goal of the CDF Freedom Schools program is leadership development: identifying, training, nurturing, linking, mobilizing and empowering a new generation of effective, young servant leaders on behalf of children. These young leaders serve in the capacity of classroom facilitators as servant leader interns. 18 young adults will be hired, as Servant Leader Interns, who are committed to active lives of leadership and service for children.
Servant Leader Intern Position Description:
College-age young people and recent college graduates play a key role in the Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools® program as Servant Leader Interns. CDF Freedom Schools Servant Leader Interns are responsible for the front-line care and nurturing of the children. Using the Integrated Reading Curriculum, they serve as facilitators in the classroom. Servant Leader Interns have access to further leadership development and networking opportunities geared toward continued direct service and advocacy on behalf of children and families.
Responsibilities:
- Serve as a positive role model for all scholars
- Supervise and maintain safety of scholars
- Maintain a professional decorum
- Set up, manage and break down classroom space according to standards outlined by CDF and the sponsor organization
- Collaborate with staff to establish/maintain supportive and structured environment for children entrusted to care
- Serve as a Harambee! leader, afternoon activities facilitator and field trip chaperone
- Engage a maximum of 10 scholars per class in the Integrated Reading Curriculum for 6 weeks during the summer months, according to the standards developed by the Children’s Defense Fund and Deaconess Foundation
- Attend all required trainings
- Local in-person training Saturday, May 17 and 24 May 29-31, and Tuesday,June 10 to Friday, June 13, 2025 (St. Louis, Missouri)
- National in-person trainings June 3-June 8, 2025: Ella Baker Child Policy Training Institute: National Training for Site Coordinators and Servant Leader Interns (Knoxville, Tennessee)
- Work with site staff to ensure that all program components are implemented with fidelity
- Report any issues or concerns regarding program operation to the Site Coordinator
Qualifications:
- Must have completed at least one year of college in good academic standing (typical age range is 18-30).
- Ability to motivate others and work as part of an intergenerational team.
- Solid commitment to the success and well-being of children.
- Strong appreciation and understanding of individual cultural history and willingness to be open and respectful of all cultures.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Exhibit positive behavior and attitude, modeling a mature and professional demeanor.
- Provide authorization for background check for criminal and child protective findings
About CDF Freedom Schools:
CDF’s mission is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities. The CDF Freedom Schools® program is a direct service initiative coordinated nationally by the Children’s Defense Fund in partnership with local community organizations. It is an educational and cultural enrichment program that provides summer options for children and strengthens family and community involvement.
The mission of CDF Freedom Schools programs is to boost student motivations to read, generate more positive attitudes toward learning, increase self-esteem and connect the needs of children and families to the resources of their communities. The program serves children in grades kindergarten through twelfth for six weeks. The activity based Integrated Reading Curriculum (IRC), which is aligned to the Common Core State Standards, integrates reading, conflict resolution, and social action, and is designed to promote social, cultural, and historical awareness. A multi-year assessment of CDF Freedom Schools program sites continuously demonstrates the effectiveness of the IRC, which has proven to avert children’s summer learning loss in reading achievement.
Application Process:
When applying, please include 1) resume and 2) three references (name, relationship, years known, email and number), all saved as one document.
You may complete the form on this webpage or email your resume and references to the Beyond Housing CDF Freedom School email: cdffreedomschool@beyondhousing.org and hr@beyondhousing.org. Applications are being reviewed on a rolling basis.
Interview and Hiring Timeline:
Interviews will be held virtually. We are targeting a short virtual onboarding (approx. 1 hour) in the spring, 2 local training sessions in May, and the full-time in-person position will begin in June and end in July 2025.
Employment Type:
- Full-time, Seasonal, Non-exempt
Reports to:
- Site Coordinators, Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools® Program
Salary Range:
- $4,750.00-$5,100.00 stipend.
Location:
- St. Louis, Missouri. (Remote work unavailable for this position)
