Special Education | Manager

The Special Education Manager is responsible for the development and implementation of a comprehensive system to provide services to all eligible children and families as required by the Individual with Disabilities Education Act. Focusing on the required processes and transactional procedures of the department, the Manager is integral to compliant (and legal) operations.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Primary functions may include the following duties, responsibilities, skills, abilities and other characteristics. This list of tasks is ILLUSTRATIVE ONLY and is not intended to be a comprehensive listing of tasks performed by all positions within this classification.

Creating the Culture

•  Find and keep the best professionals to serve students
• Special Education recruitment, selection, placement, progressive discipline, professional evaluation of classified and certified staff
• Collect staff and student information to determine Special Education teacher staffing recommendations made to the Chief Financial Officer
• Assure compliant operation of department functions in an inclusive and collaborative way
• Monitor and direct Special Education programs and services for students of all disabilities while maintaining time lines and service provisions to ensure compliance with state and federal laws, codes, rules, regulations, policies, and procedures
• Monitor IEP compliance in the 52 different buildings within the district

Accountable for Results

• Evaluate and provide recommendations for enhancing educational opportunities available to students
• Compile information and prepare documents related to state filed complaints, mediation, and due process requests
• Participate in formal proceedings as scheduled to resolve parent and/or district filed mediation and due process requests
• After the proceedings, monitor that agreements are upheld with fidelity

Managing Resources

• Collaboratively manage budgets for Special Education programs and services
• Assist with the data collection, professional narrative, and submission of the two Special Education Federal Grants
• Attend bi-weekly and monthly budget meetings to monitor the disbursement of grant-related funds
• Assist with the school-based Medicaid Reimbursement program training and monitoring

Professional Development

• Plan, develop, and organize the scheduling and development and implementation of all training and professional learning delivered for department staff, district staff, and administrators concerning special education programs, services, instruction, curriculum, and procedures
• Prepare and orient required team members to deliver professional learning
• Opportunities occur bi-weekly for department staff, monthly for district staff, and as needed for administrative staff
• Provide new paraprofessionals to special education their state-mandated training

Communication and Support

• Assist with directing the overall Special Education operations
• Support the development and implementation of Special Education programs, services, schedules, goals, objectives, plans, strategies, standards, projects, processes, and procedures
• Respond to many daily emails and phone calls with professionalism and tact
• Interact with virtually all District teams with sensitivity and student-focus.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

Knowledge

• Knowledge of modified day procedures, 1:1/adult procedures, and extended school year procedures
• Knowledge of manifestation determination conference procedures
• Knowledge of technology and software used to manage IEPs, learning management systems, PowerSchool functions, and online curriculum delivery
• Knowledge of federal and state special education law 
• Knowledge of people practices that promote an inclusive workplace and high-performance teams
• Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects
• Knowledge of human behavior and performance

Skills

• Skilled in understanding the myriad audiences impacted by special education services
• Skilled in determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes
• Skilled in identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system
• Skilled in using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems
• Skilled in understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents
• Skilled in giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times
• Skilled in monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action
• Skilled in communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience
• Skilled in understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problemsolving and decision-making

Abilities

• The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events)
• The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense
• Abilities that influence the capacity to manipulate and control objects with fingers, hands, or limbs
• Abilities that influence visual, auditory, and speech perception
• Abilities that influence the acquisition and application of knowledge in problem solving

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Master’s Degree
• Valid educator licensure from the state of Indiana
• Valid driver’s license
• Up to five years’ experience in Special Education, be it as an educator, administrator or outside agency service-provider

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORKING CONDITIONS

• Physical Demands – Must be able to push, pull, lift and carry over 25 pounds on occasion.
• Working Conditions – Generally acceptable working environment with limited exposure to disagreeable elements. Exposure to such conditions may make working environment disagreeable or cause discomfort occasionally but has minor impact on personal safety and/or mental wellbeing.
• Driving Requirement – This job description does not require the incumbent to drive; however, any employee who chooses or is asked to drive an FWCS vehicle for work related community business must receive written annual authorization to do so.

The physical demands described here are a representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Salary : $78,353 - $107,790