Our School

LAYING THE FOUNDATION

While the delivery of new staff training differs at the Elementary•Middle School and High School, both aim to set staff up for success. All new teachers take the online course, Language-Based Learning Disabilities (LBLD): Strategies for Success, offered through Landmark Outreach. This course provides foundational knowledge upon which further training builds, as well as the opportunity for staff across campuses to connect. In addition, new teachers enroll in a fully subsidized Master of Education in Special Education from the Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. New teachers also benefit from inReach, Landmark’s professional development program.

TRAINING AT THE HIGH SCHOOL

Scott Jamieson, director of Faculty Recruiting at the High School, emphasizes the benefit of the cohort model: “New teachers are never alone. They can lean on each other as they go through the first year together.” 

The High School hires and trains about a dozen new faculty each year. The training consists mainly of an intensive three-week program in August. In the first week, new staff receive an overview of the Landmark approach as well as an understanding of student profiles and how they relate to academics and residential life. The second week focuses on the tutorial, and the third week consists of department-specific training. 

TRAINING AT THE EMS

Training at EMS begins with a basic education in the methodology and philosophy of Landmark, together with intensive training in the LiPS® Program. Following this introduction, first year teachers get their “feet wet” by teaching in the five-week summer program. Faculty Training Coordinator Deirdre Mulligan plans daily trainings for teachers. Mulligan believes this immersive experience gives new staff the opportunity to put freshly acquired skills to work. 

Training at both campuses continues well into the school year. At the high school, Jamieson primarily serves as a mentor for new staff during the first half of the year before shifting his focus to hiring the next cohort. Throughout the year, the high school layers in training. Department heads and advisors provide continuous observation and feedback. According to Jamieson, “We let the teachers take the lead, but the supports are not far behind.”

For the first half of the school year at EMS, all new faculty have a common prep period under the guidance of a faculty trainer. This invaluable daily period provides time for specific training, observations of veteran teachers, mentoring, and questions, both big and small. Additionally, first year staff receive weekly training and support from department heads, academic advisors, and the reading supervisor.

BEYOND TRAINING

Community and support is woven throughout Landmark and it certainly applies to the training model. “It’s the perfect place to come in and be a new teacher,” says Jamieson. “Our communities are built to support.”