Sr. Manager of Special Education

ABOUT ASPIRE

Aspire Public Schools operates a network of high-performing, college preparatory charter schools serving TK-12 scholars in communities across California. Founded in 1998—in an effort to transform the inequitable racial, social, and gender outcomes that our communities persist through—Aspire is one of the largest and most forward-thinking open-enrollment public charter school systems in the nation. Our purpose is to prepare our scholars for success in college, career, and life. At Aspire, we set a foundation for our scholars to gain knowledge, skills, and power to access and make choices for their families and post-secondary lives. Every day, our community of students, families, teachers, and staff comes together to learn, work, and play in an environment grounded in our values of Bienestar (Well-Being), Culture of Belonging, Community Partnership, Agency & Self-Determination, and Joy.

JOB SUMMARY

The Regional Sr. Manager of Special Education is an essential member of the regional Special Education team and will lead, develop, and focus on the instruction and Development of Education Specialists in the region. In service of supporting all schools in the region to achieve their academic targets, the Regional Sr. Manager plays a key role in the development and delivery of Special Education Professional Development and coaching for teachers. Reporting to the Senior Leader, and in close collaboration with the Aspire Special Education Team, this impactful role also supports the development of high-quality org-wide pedagogy and instructional practices as aligned to the Aspire Student Learning Framework (ASLF.)

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Management and Leadership

25% of the time is dedicated to the overall management of the Regional Special Education team and working closely with Special Populations/SPED teammates across and at all levels of the organization, vendors, families, and external stakeholders.

Support the Regional Director of Special Education by leading and managing Special Education teammates to:

• Serve as an influence and exemplar of exceptional service to Special Education teammates.
• Lead the effort to standardize SPED support practices across the regions.
• Partner with our school leadership to support the training, and evaluation of the performance of assigned staff.
• Partner with school leadership to help manage supervision of teammates within the Special Education department within a dotted line reporting structure.
• Provide leadership to the regional and school-site Special Education teams and work with teammates on their Personal Learning Plans to establish goal setting and foster professional growth.
• Analyze feedback and suggestions on regional Special Populations/Special Education events, such as Professional Development sessions and team meetings, to find areas of improvement and implement changes.
• Identify and implement new processes and tools to improve the effectiveness of the Regional Special Education team. Deliver required tools or process training to teammates.
• Research a variety of topics to include but are not limited to current case law, and evidence-based best practices, to provide information, insights, or suggestions to the Regional Special Education team or other applicable parties.
• Ensure due process requirements are met to complete the appropriate development of IEPs and provide ongoing monitoring to ensure IDEA compliance under the direction and guidance of the SELPA.

• Manages difficult cases to ensure appropriate special education services, including attending IEP meetings and parent conferences.

• Applies conflict resolution strategies with parents or other stakeholders to resolve disputes related to a student’s IEP, demonstrating knowledge of current IDEA and Aspire policy and procedures.

Pedagogy and Programmatic Leadership:

Spends approximately 60% of time supporting the regional Special Education Team and the whole region through the delivery of PDs and on-the-ground coaching and support to teachers focused on instructional best practices for our students in Special Education.

• Manages and supports instructional leaders with professional development for school leaders, teachers, Ed Specialists, and Instructional Assistants that is aligned to the Special Education vision of inclusion and addresses trends informed by data. Ensures explicit connections between coaching and professional development with the Transformational Leadership Framework (TLF) and Aspire Students Learning Framework (ASLF).
• Builds capacity through the coaching and development of Education Specialists and Special Education Instructional Assistants.
• In alignment with Aspire’s equity beliefs, works with the Regional Instructional Leadership team to provide additional resources and or support to Tier 2 and 3 schools.
• Analyzes site-level Special Education academic data to identify region-wide goals and trends. In collaboration with the Regional Instructional Leadership team, co-creates region-wide action plans to address gaps, creating opportunities to implement pedagogy and curriculum that reflect data-supported best practices from inside and outside the organization, supporting a Region-wide coherent model.
• Contributes to the development of leaders to have an inquiry and equity-based learning approach in English.

Language Development.

● Conduct needs assessments with schools through instructional walkthroughs and school site visits.

Curriculum, Instruction, Data & Assessment:

15% of the time is dedicated to region-wide R&D on pedagogy, curriculum development, and aligned ASPIRE programming.

• Provide observation and feedback on the curriculum implementation for students in Special Education.
• Identify and participate in regional and school progress monitoring systems, data analysis, and adjustment of strategy and supports to meet Special Education performance targets.
• Analyze data on assessments for students with disabilities to identify goals and trends.
• Support the implementation of alternate curriculum for students that meet this criteria.
• Supports the vision and development of Co-Teaching practices, where applicable.
• Works closely with the Regional Instructional Leadership Team to interrupt inequities in the Special Education Program.
• Is a collaborative member of the Regional Team and works on org-wide and region-wide initiatives and priorities.
• Regular collaboration with the Regional Special Education Team and Regional Leadership Team.
• Keep up-to-date on special education research and best practices

Additional:

• Demonstrate knowledge of and support, the Aspire Public Schools mission, vision, and value statement including antiracism, policies and procedures, operating instructions, confidentiality standards, and the code of ethical behavior.
• Actively seeks to improve and simplify Aspire’s approach to particular job functions.
• Comfortable with the utilization of technology in a remote environment.
• Perform other related duties as required and assigned.

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS

Competencies:

• Expertise in applicable grade-level Common Core State Standards and Academic IEP goal development for a range of needs ranging from least intensive to most intensive.
• Experience in schools with adult learning and professional development.
• Knowledge of the models of co-teaching and serving students with disabilities in an inclusive model.
• Knowledge of teacher and leader development frameworks and ability to co-develop aligned content and systems.
• Instructional leadership and teaching experience: proven results in student learning as both an instructional leader and a teacher.
• Ability to design and launch data-driven systems for standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessments.
• Ability to coach others, improve their practice, and bridge and enhance cooperative working relationships.
• Ability to manage projects including development, implementation, and evaluation.
• Ability to communicate proactively, and effectively and provide and act on feedback.
• Ability to demonstrate creative and flexible thinking.
• Ability to learn quickly and to be effective in a fast-paced, dynamic, entrepreneurial environment: able to work autonomously and thoroughly with independent self-reflection, as well as take direction as needed.
• Demonstrated educational philosophy and methods that encourage the development of active and lifelong learning.
• Strong time and task management skills, enabling multiple projects to be completed on time.
• Strong problem analysis and problem resolution skills using an inquiry framework and equity lens.
• Alignment to and urgency around Aspire’s mission, vision, and values.
• Excellent team player: always puts the team’s goals first and works to support and motivate peers.
• Ability to move comfortably between high-level strategic thinking and intricate details.
• Excellent ability to drive change and build buy-in through relationship-building.
• This role may require travel up to 80% time to schools across the region and may require some periodic travel to all Aspire regions and/or other locations for conferences/professional development.
• Comfort with engaging in conversations that might push people out of their comfort zones, especially regarding discussions about race and educational equity.

Minimum educational level & Certifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required, with relevant degree and/or content expertise;
• Master’s degree preferred.
• Clear, Special Education Teaching Credentials (Mild-Moderate Support Needs extensive support Needs), required.

Experience required:

• 5+ years as a Special Education Teacher, required
• 2+ years working as a leader in the special education department, preferred

Physical requirements:

• Moving self in different positions to accomplish tasks in various environments including tight and confined spaces.

• Remaining in a stationary position, often standing or sitting for prolonged periods.
• Moving about to accomplish tasks or moving from one worksite to another.
• Assessing the accuracy, neatness, and thoroughness of the work assigned.
• Communicating with others to exchange information.
• Repeating motions that may include the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.

Work authorization requirements:

• Clear the Department of Justice background screening.
• Authorized to work in the United States.
• Provide health (TB) clearance (most update every four years).

Work Environment:

The work environment characteristics are representative of those in a normal office, classroom/school setting which one might encounter while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• Work indoors in a standard office environment, computer lab, and classroom environment.
• Work is performed in indoor and outdoor environments.
• Exposure to dust, oils, and cleaning chemicals.
• Some exposure to childhood and other diseases in a school environment.
• May be required to work outside of typical work days and office hours to meet operational deadlines.

Benefits

Aspire Public Schools has equitable and transparent salary schedules that are based upon years of relevant work experience for each role. The salary schedules generally range from 1-15 years of experience, but may also range up to 30 years of experience. The highest salary posted for this role is only available for individuals who meet the maximum years of work experience.