Manager of Academic Programs

Lighthouse Guild•New York, NY

15d

About The Position

Lighthouse Guild is the leading not-for-profit healthcare organization dedicated to addressing and preventing vision loss. Our mission is to provide exceptional services that inspire people who are visually impaired to attain their goals. Our vision is a world in which no person is limited by their visual capacity. Our Rehabilitation Department is seeking a full time Orientation and Mobility Instructor to provide instruction and guidance to individuals with vision impairments in safely and independently navigating the home and community environments by teaching adaptive travel techniques. Job Summary: Manages the academic services programs including ESOL, ABE/HSE, College preparation and tutoring in accordance with the NYS Commission for the Blind guidelines for academic instruction. Supervises the academic instructors, conducts academic baseline assessments, manages administration of the GED exam. Writes and submits assessment reports. Receives student progress reports from instructors and incorporates into final reports. Facilitates 3-way meetings with VRC and students after completion of assessment and instruction. Provides direct instruction for ESOL classes. Manages administrative responsibilities.

Requirements

Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Excellent interpersonal skills.
Ability to maintain excellent relationships with NYSCB staff
Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
Excellent time management skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Strong supervisory and leadership skills.
Ability to prioritize tasks and to delegate them when appropriate.
Ability to function well in a high-paced and at times stressful environment.
Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite or related software.
Master’s degree in education or other qualifying professional degree as approved by the NYSCB

Nice To Haves

Preferred certification as an ESOL instructor or 3 years experience providing ESOL instruction

Responsibilities

Receives referrals for ABE/HSE, ESOL and College Preparation from Department Director and enters information in database
Provides direct supervision of academic instructors and volunteers
Assigns new cases to academic instructors
Conducts baseline assessments using NYSCB approved testing instruments (TABE) for ABE/HSE and ESOL. For college prep evaluation guidelines listed in the NYSCB approved progress report are discussed.
Writes final baseline assessment report following guidelines and arranges for 3 way meeting with the VRC and student
Requests adaptive equipment authorizations from VRC and communicates with the referral coordinator to order and distribute equipment upon receipt.
Facilitates 3-way meetings with the VRC and student to discuss outcome of baseline assessment and after the conclusion of academic instruction.
Gathers progress reports from instructors, writes and submits final reports to Department Director for review and processing.
Manages authorization requests and enters case closures in department database
Manages petty cash transportation reimbursement in conjunction with the referral coordinator
Interviews and secures volunteers to supplement classroom instruction in conjunction with the volunteer department
With Rehabilitation Department Director, manages GED test administration including obtaining documentation to apply for accommodations, receiving testing materials, submitting testing materials for scoring, providing required documentation after testing to NYSED, identifying readers/scribes for test administration.
Provides direct instruction in ESOL including completing baseline assessments, scheduling classes, assigning homework, communicating with VRC and writing final reports.
Other duties as assigned