Special Education Teacher

Position DescriptionA Rocketship Special Educator, known as an Education Specialist, is a full time position that reports to the Principal. The Education Specialist will work with one or more school sites, and will be responsible for managing the IEP caseload for Rocketship students who require special education services as outlined in their IEPs. The role of the Education Specialist is to improve student outcomes through targeted academic and behavioral support.

Rocketship's collaborative learning environment reaches well beyond the classroom. Annual teacher home visits, monthly parent community meetings, and a vibrant parent volunteer network create solid relationships, a rich school culture and a devoted community that propels student achievement.

Special Education Teachers report to their Principal or an Assistant Principal.

Our Ideal Candidate:

• Resilient and flexible to meet the needs of our students and families
• Commitment to the mission and vision of Rocketship Public Schools
• Coachable and open to feedback to help with growth
• Partner & collaborate with multiple stakeholders to work towards eliminating the opportunity gap
• Believe that this work is hard, but worth it

Essential Functions:

• The essential functions of this position include, but are not limited to the following:
• Ensure that all students realize rigorous academic goals outlined in their IEP along with our core content. Our goal is that each Rocketeer grows at least 1.5 years.
• Collaborate with school team, families, and related service providers for the purpose of improving the quality of student outcomes, developing solutions and planning curriculum.
• Provide one-to-one or small group instruction, direct services and push in or pull out instruction as required by IEP
• Co-teach with general educators and related service providers to ensure inclusive education practices for all students
• Coordinate referral and assessment procedures and facilitate the coordination of IEP team meetings and the implementation of special education services (Speech, Occupational therapy, etc.)
• Evaluate students’ academic abilities for the purpose of collaboration with team members to create and implement the best educational program like the diagnosis of learning disabilities, development of intervention plans for foundational needs and/or student progress
• Collaborate with Psychologists and Related Service Providers for evaluations and when needed, administer academic assessments. Review and interpret the results to determine our learners’ strengths and areas of need for initial, annual and triennial IEP meetings.
• In collaboration with general educators, provide accommodations and/or modifications to learners with disabilities to provide access to grade level content and demonstrate her or his true understanding on assessments as determined by the IEP team

Student and Parent Partnership:

• Instruct students for the purpose of improving their success in assigned basic academic subject areas of reading, writing and/or math
• Draft and write professional and compliant IEPs,facilitate IEP meetings and ensure our online IEP system and school based files are compliant and reflect a Rocketeer’s Individual Education Program
• Develop Behavior Support Plans (BSPs) or Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) as needed
• Manage student behavior for the purpose of providing a safe and optimal learning environment
• Engage with families on academic and behavioral goals and transparently share student progress so that both parents and teachers own each child's successes and challenges.

Rocketship Professional Culture:

• Collaborate with General Educators to engage families and school communities through various meetings (IEP, Parent Conferences, In Service Training, Staff Meetings etc.)
• Provide leadership for ensuring full compliance with legal requirements as prescribed by federal law under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act 1997) and IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities in Education Improvement Act, 2004) as well as state laws and regulations
• Collaborate with families as educational partners and provide ability awareness as needed
• Meet all professional obligations and proactively communicate when changes come up
• Exhibit a high level of honest and humble self-reflection owning good and bad outcomes
• Effectively respond to and implement constructive feedback
• Communicate effectively with colleagues and contribute to positive staff culture
• Collaborate with all staff members to ensure that all students have consistent and well-coordinated support

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree
• Preferred: knowledge of curriculum, education code and special education law/policies