Overview
Structured Literacy Specialist, Waypoint Academy – $100,000/year USD Jobs in Austin, TX at Crossover
Title: Structured Literacy Specialist, Waypoint Academy – $100,000/year USD
Company: Crossover
Location: Austin, TX
Required: Master's degree in reading instruction OR structured literacy certification (Orton-Gillingham, Wilson, IMSE, CERI, LETRS, Neuhaus, UFLI, or equivalent)
- On-site at Waypoint Academy, Dripping Springs (Austin area), TX. Relocation assistance available.
- $100,000 annual salary, paid weekly. Full health, dental, and vision coverage from day one.
- Nature-based school integrating rigorous academics with outdoor exploration
Most reading specialists work only with students who have already fallen behind. You've long believed this approach is flawed — that Science of Reading principles should benefit every child, not only those flagged for intervention. If that conviction shapes your teaching practice, read on.
Waypoint Academy is a nature-based school where mornings focus on intensive academics and afternoons on archery, survival training, and exploring the Texas Hill Country. Your role centers on the morning: delivering small-group structured literacy instruction that advances every K-2 student in phonics, decoding, fluency, and writing. You design the lessons. You analyze the data. You regroup and adjust as needed. The rest of your day involves coaching students through adaptive learning platforms, fostering the relationships that ensure every student reaches 100% of their app-based targets. No prescribed curriculum. No pull-out intervention model. You are accountable for literacy outcomes across the entire cohort.
You're joining a small, emerging school. That means you'll build the literacy framework, not inherit one. As the school expands, you'll determine how structured literacy extends to new cohorts and grade bands. If you prefer a defined position with established procedures, this role won't suit you. If you want to demonstrate that every child can learn to read more effectively when instruction is designed specifically for them, this is the opportunity.
What You Will Be Doing
- Delivering small-group structured literacy instruction: systematic phonics, decoding, fluency, and early writing for all K-2 students, not limited to those identified for intervention
- Reviewing student performance data from adaptive platforms and running records to regroup learners and modify instruction between sessions
- Providing one-on-one and small-group coaching on adaptive learning software, cultivating relationships that motivate goal attainment
- Creating custom lessons grounded in structured literacy principles, calibrated to each group's present skill level and learning pace
- Integrating outdoor or tactile activities to support literacy concepts when such methods authentically strengthen learning
What You Won’t Be Doing
- Drafting IEPs or managing pull-out schedules with classroom teachers. Every student falls under your instruction.
- Passively monitoring students on learning platforms. You actively guide them toward goal completion, not observe them navigating screens.
- Working in a conventional classroom all day. Students are outdoors in the afternoons, so your literacy instruction is condensed and intensive.
- Grading large volumes of worksheets — adaptive software tracks practice and progress, allowing you to concentrate on direct teaching.
Structured Literacy Specialist Key Responsibilities
Drive reading and writing advancement for all K-2 students using structured literacy methods and adaptive learning technology.
Basic Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in any field
- Master's degree in reading instruction OR structured literacy certification such as Orton-Gillingham, Wilson Reading System, IMSE, CERI, LETRS, Neuhaus, or UFLI. One of these credentials is mandatory, not optional.
- 2+ years of full-time K-2 structured reading instruction using systematic phonics in a school or clinical environment, completed within the last 5 years
- Demonstrated ability to design original reading lessons, and you can articulate what and how you teach without citing a commercial program
- Available to work on-site at Waypoint Academy, Dripping Springs (Austin area), TX
- Prepared to instruct all K-2 students (not exclusively struggling readers) and integrate AI-powered adaptive learning tools daily
- Authorized to work in the U.S. without requiring visa sponsorship
Nice-to-have Requirements
- Proficiency with multiple structured literacy approaches (e.g., Orton-Gillingham and UFLI) and a clear explanation of when to apply each
- Documented reading gains across an entire cohort, not solely intervention groups. You can specify the metrics and outcomes.
- Working knowledge of adaptive reading platforms (Lexia, Amira, Reading Eggs, or comparable) and leveraging their data to inform instructional choices
- Background in non-traditional educational settings: micro-schools, outdoor education, Montessori, or similar models
About Waypoint Academy
Nature-based school that blends rigorous academics with real-world challenges.
There is so much to cover for this exciting role, and space here is limited. Hit the Apply button if you found this interesting and want to learn more. We look forward to meeting you!
Working with us
This is a full-time (40 hours per week), long-term position. The position is immediately available and requires entering into an independent contractor agreement with Crossover as a Contractor of Record. The compensation level for this role is $50 USD/hour, which equates to $100,000 USD/year assuming 40 hours per week and 50 weeks per year. The payment period is weekly. Consult www.crossover.com/help-and-faqs for more details on this topic.
Crossover Job Code: LJ-5780-US-Austin-StructuredLite
