24-25 Academic and Functional Skills Special Education Teacher (Moderate-Severe Disabilities)

Job Description

At KIPP New Orleans, we see the gifts in everyone who walks through the doors of our schools. Especially our teachers. Their skill.

Energy. Love. Their determination. On the good days, and the hard ones. So we support our teachers to make the most of those gifts in order to build academically excellent classrooms and create unlimited opportunities for all of our students.

The KIPP Difference Together, a Future Without Limits

Respect : For our teachers’ innate talent and desire to learn, for their professional growth and the lives they lead beyond our walls.

Support : Our teachers always feel the KIPP Team and Family at their backs, with support to grow and opportunities to lead.

Purpose : Together, we share an ambitious mission to create a future without limits. And we need talented teachers to realize it.

As a KIPP New Orleans Teacher, your core responsibilities include :

• Plan a program of study and unit / weekly / daily lessons that meets the individual needs, interests, and abilities of the students as mapped out in their Individualized Education Plan
• Create a classroom environment that is conducive to learning and is developmentally appropriate to the maturity and interests of the students
• Employ a variety of instructional techniques and instructional media consistent with best practices, specific content knowledge, and the needs and capabilities of the individuals or student groups involved
• Develop and implement students’ Individual Education Plans and hold needed annual, re-evaluations, and requested IEP meetings.
• Assist in helping students become independent with their self-help needs (bathroom, eating, dressing, etc.)
• Implement a life skills and social emotional learning component as part of each day’s routine
• Utilize diagnostic assessment tools to identify learning strengths and needs of every student, on a regular basis, for the purpose of intervention and / or acceleration toward academic and leadership standards
• Take necessary and reasonable precautions to assure safety in the classroom and the school for all students
• Employ a variety of positive behavioral strategies as well as write Functional Behavior Assessments and Behavior Intervention plans.
• Maintain accurate, complete, and correct records as required by IDEA law, district policy, and administrative regulations
• Assist the administrative team in implementing all policies and rules governing student life and conduct
• Make provisions for being available to the students and to the parents for education-related purposes outside of the instructional day when required or requested to do so under reasonable terms
• Provide time in the evening, by phone, for questions and concerns that students and / or parents may have regarding education-related issues that could not be handled during the school day
• Maintain professional relationships with colleagues
• Actively engage in all professional development opportunities
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned

Qualifications

The following are required of all KIPP New Orleans teachers :

Bachelor’s degree

Successful completion of State and Federal Criminal Background Check

Personal affinity to our mission and vision , as well as demonstrated commitment to our 5 core beliefs - Relentlessness, Equity, Achievement, Community, and Hope

Provide documentation of either 1) received a COVID-19 vaccination or 2) have requested, and been granted, reasonable accommodation from the KNOS Director of Human Resources to be exempted from the requirements of this policy

The following are strongly preferred for all KIPP New Orleans teachers :

At least two years of self-contained teaching experience in urban, open enrollment schools

Masters or state teaching credential in Special Education

The physical demands and environmental conditions described below are representative, but not exhaustive, of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the role.

All of these physical requirements should be able to be performed with clarity, coherence and connectedness of the KNOS vision, and reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

Must be able to sit and work at a desk / computer for extended periods of time

Must be able to spend the majority of the day standing or mobile throughout the classroom, as well as talk, hear, grasp, reach and lift up to 30lbs with or without accommodations

Ability to concentrate in active and noisy environments such as cafeterias and playgrounds, to more moderate situations such as classrooms or large group professional settings

Must be able to have repetitive wrist / hand / finger movement to work on computer and / or related office equipment

Ability to handle potential high stress conditions

Additional Information

We offer a competitive compensation and a comprehensive benefits package including :

Healthcare & Wellness (health, vision, dental, life insurance, Employee Assistance Program, and short-term disability)

403(b) retirement plan with up to a 5% contribution match

Opportunities for supplemental income through stipends and bonuses

90 hours of Paid Time Off per year

Approximately 28 holidays per year including Mardi Gras, Juneteenth, Thanksgiving, and Winter Break

On-going professional development opportunities