The Crowden School

The Crowden School is a small independent day school in Berkeley, California, serving fewer than 100 students across elementary and middle school grades. Music is not an elective here — it sits at the center of daily academics from the earliest grades alongside a French language program.

Teaching at The Crowden School means music and classroom instruction shape each other every day. Class sizes are small enough that faculty know each student by name and by instrument. Teachers adjust instruction in real time, and no student gets lost in the crowd.

Every hire carries unusual weight at a school this size. Teachers span instruction, advising, and informal mentorship rather than a single narrow role. This is a day school with no residential duties, but the small scale creates deep daily involvement with students — closer to a boarding school's relational dynamic without the live-in commitment.

The school holds roughly $11 million in net assets against annual revenue near $3.8 million. Bay Area salaries are high relative to most of the country, and Berkeley's cost of living is steep. Candidates should ask directly about base salary, health benefits, and professional development funding. Recent fundraising has been flat, so getting clear on the full compensation package before accepting an offer matters.

Open positions at The Crowden School typically include classroom teaching jobs, music instruction roles, and administrative support. Faculty searches are most active ahead of the academic year. At a school this small, each teacher shapes curriculum and culture in ways that rarely happen at larger institutions — a real draw for candidates who want that kind of influence.