Project Coordinator, Curiosity Classrooms

About Chicago Children’s Museum: Chicago Children’s Museum (CCM) is committed to improving children’s lives by creating a community where play and learning connect. We embrace creativity and collaboration, we never stop learning, and we remember to stop and play along the way. CCM’s staff is a dedicated group of curious individuals who embrace the playful spirit of childhood. Every employee is empowered to reach their potential and be recognized for the impact they have on our organization, visitors, and the community we serve. Over its 42-year history, Chicago Children’s Museum has provided innovative exhibits, arts programs, STEM experiments, imaginative play, and more to over 11 million children and their caregivers. Located at Navy Pier, the museum is intentionally designed for experimentation, creativity, and the universal pursuits of childhood. CCM focuses on accessibility, inclusion, and learning for all children, ensuring valuable and memorable experiences for all visitors. 

General Job Function: The Project Coordinator, Curiosity Classrooms, supports the Curiosity Classrooms initiative – hands-on, multisensory STEAM classrooms developed by Chicago Children’s Museum (CCM) and installed in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). These classrooms are places where CPS students and teachers cultivate their natural curiosity and develop positive STEAM identities through playful teaching and learning. They are innovative learning environments, designed for sensory-rich, hands-on learning across common early childhood themes of investigation. They inspire children’s curiosity in the natural world, arts and literature, and are a catalyst for active learning. They encourage and train teachers to integrate similar developmentally appropriate, hands-on learning strategies into curricular units in the classroom, and engage caregivers and encourage family learning at home. The Project Coordinator participates in all areas of program development and implementation and serves as the primary liaison between participating schools and the museum team. The Project Coordinator is an energetic, process-minded problem-solver who has firsthand experience as a classroom educator, has the flexibility to manage multiple tasks simultaneously, is passionate about creating and maintaining organized systems, and is invigorated by a challenge. 

PRINCIPAL JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Serve as the primary face of Curiosity Classrooms to participating schools. Nurture and maintain relationships with key school staff members and ensure all schools have what they need to fully participate in the program. Ensure that program decisions align with the realities of being a classroom teacher. 
• Activate and lead the Curiosity Community; create informal opportunities for educators to connect with each other to enhance their teaching in the Curiosity Classroom. 
• Write and distribute newsletters and other materials to build community among both teachers and families at Curiosity Classroom schools. 
• Collaborate with CCM’s Guest Services team to plan timing and logistics of field trips to CCM, and support schools in booking field trips and bus transportation. 
• Participate in the planning, development and implementation of professional learning. 
• Participate in the planning, development and implementation of family engagement strategies with each school community. 
• Participate in the classroom design process; support procurement of classroom materials. Work closely with the Project Manager to plan and implement installation of new Curiosity Classrooms.  
• Participate in the development of a program evaluation plan. Support the evaluation by collecting data in schools as needed. 
• Contribute information, as needed, to grant proposals and reports. 
• Supports the museum’s work in diversity, equity, access and inclusion and actively ensures that DEAI principles are upheld in all work with fellow staff, visitors, community and other external partners.
• Enthusiasm for learning and mastering new skills on an ongoing basis; willingness to be informed/certified/trained through institution-offered courses and to work within Diversity, Equity, Access, Inclusion (DEAI) frameworks and actively engage in learning about these frameworks.
• Support other PSICE initiatives as appropriate and as schedule allows. 
• Maintain professional knowledge and core job skills through ongoing professional development. 
• Demonstrate the museum’s mission and vision as outlined in its foundational documents. 

PERFORMANCE MEASURES 

• Maintain clear and timely communication with internal and external team members. 
• Ensure that participating schools feel informed and engaged in the program and have what they need to fully participate. 
• Collaborate effectively with team members and external stakeholders to ensure that all aspects of the program are planned and implemented seamlessly and effectively. 
• Meet program goals as defined, and in accordance with CCM’s mission, vision, strategic framework and foundational documents. 

Requirements

POSITION QUALIFICATIONS 

• One to two years’ experience managing complex projects in a professional setting, preferably in education, the arts, or an informal/complementary learning setting 
• Two or more years’ experience as a classroom teacher in a in a primary school setting 
• Highly detail-oriented with a critical degree of accuracy regarding data, communication and logistics 
• Ability to multi-task and respond to a rapidly changing environment, including interruptions and adjustments to priorities, good sense of prioritization and flexibility 
• Proven troubleshooting and problem-solving abilities with a “can-do” attitude and a vested interest in excellence 
• Strong, energetic, comfortable communicator, capable of engaging with diverse communities, including individuals and large groups; demonstrated group facilitation experience 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; professional demeanor on the phone, email, and in person with all partners and co-workers 
• Determination, commitment and ownership of work 
• Strong organizational skills: ability to coordinate and prioritize multiple projects 
• Ability to work effectively in a multifaceted, team environment 
• Commitment to CCM’s mission and vision and possess and equity mind-set and cultural humility. 
• Excellent PC skills: Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and Asana 
• Familiarity with informal learning environments and/or program evaluation a plus 
• Spanish-speaking ability a plus 

Education: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in experience required; teaching certification a plus 

Hours: Full-time position, with an option to work either 30 hours (4 days) or 37.5 hours (5 days) per week. Occasional early morning, evening and weekend availability is necessary. 

Location: Currently hybrid; 60% onsite, 40% remote. 

Salary: $45,000 - $58,000 dependent upon weekly hours. 

Benefits: This position is eligible for very competitive medical, dental, vision, Life, Long-term Disability, and Short-term Disability insurances, 401k after six months of service with matching contributions pending eligibility, as well as PTO and Sick Days annually (accrued monthly).

Physical Requirements of the Position: Ability to lift program supplies, Bending, lifting, and reaching is required to access supplies. Push, pull and lift up to 20 pounds. Travel will be required to project partner locations throughout the City of Chicago. 

Don’t check off every box in the requirements listed above? Please apply anyway! Studies have shown that marginalized communities - such as women, LGBTQ+ and people of color - are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. Chicago Children's Museum shares an enthusiasm for learning and mastering new skills on an ongoing basis – so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to still consider submitting an application.  

Chicago Children’s Museum aims to recruit and advance qualified BIPOC/ALAANA, women, LGBTQ, persons with disabilities, and  veterans—we welcome and encourage all applicants. Our goal is for our team and culture to reflect the Chicagoland community.