Regional Director of Special Programs - Greater Houston (26-27)

IDEA Public Schools•Houston, TX

7d•$103,800 - $122,400•Onsite

About The Position

The Regional Director of Special Programs is responsible for all special programs instruction and compliance within the region of up to 15 schools in support of each student achieving their individual goals. This leader ensures the implementation of high-quality individualized student plans, oversees related services when applicable, and drives student achievement through aligned support structures and compliance. The Regional Director manages and coaches regional special programs staff, fosters strong partnerships with national and regional teams, and ensures that special programs deliver the intended impact for every student. In this document, the term “Special Programs” includes the following: special education (compliance and instruction), 504 support, English Learner/Emergent Bilingual support (compliance and instruction), dyslexia support, multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS), and Critical Student Intervention (CSI).

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required
At least 2 years of successful teacher experience or professional experience aligned with certification area (e.g., school psychologist, educational diagnostician, speech language pathologist)
Proven success with Special Education student achievement
Track record of managing compliance
Experience in instructional coaching
In-state teaching certification or certification as a School Psychologist, Educational Diagnostician, Speech Language Pathologist.

Nice To Haves

Master’s Degree preferred
Direct Instruction Decoding program knowledge preferred
State-specific certification in English as a Second Language or an alternatively appropriate certification.
ELA content knowledge a plus

Responsibilities

Build capacity in regional and school-based leaders, and regional special programs staff in their region, to ensure that each student has the support needed to meet and exceed their goals, including the development, execution, and evaluation of individualized student learning plans.
Provide training, resources, guidance, and accountability in the programs managed by the national team and in alignment with the vision and mission of special programs at IDEA Public Schools.
Provide on-going training and real-time coaching to regional and school-based leaders to increase their own skills and knowledge to effectively support diverse student needs.
Serve as the regional leader for special programs training and capacity-building for regional and school-based leaders.
Design or curate training from the national professional development catalog to deliver to staff in their region on topics including special education, 504 support, English Learner/Emergent Bilingual support, dyslexia support, MTSS, and CSI.
Train staff at strategic points before and during the school year, and hold staff accountable to implementation of their learning through in-field follow-up and overseeing documentation of all programmatic requirements.
Serve the region as the local expert on all special programs content and requirements.
Be responsive to questions, concerns, problem-solving requests, and program planning support for regional and school-based leaders and to special programs staff.
Facilitate capacity-building among staff in the region through real-time modeling and sharing resources so that local leaders are increasingly skilled in planning, executing, and evaluating programs.
Partner closely with the regional senior leadership team to define regional priorities and goals for student achievement in the annual planning process.
Monitor priority improvements, and provide the data and analysis to support course corrections or development of new strategies.
Share relevant data with the regional senior leadership team on a consistent and frequent basis, and propose action plans to improve progress toward goals.
Share regional special programs compliance data with regional leadership.
Support effective planning and use of special programs funding streams by attending budget meetings, educating regional special programs leads on allowable expenses, sharing school spending targets, and ensuring timely and accurate submission of documentation for funding and/or reimbursement programs.
Coordinate region-wide contract services by determining the need for related service contracts, vetting service providers, overseeing onboarding and training of contract service personnel, and monitoring implementation.
Provide timely, coordinated, and consistent training and real-time coaching to develop the capacity of regional leaders, school leaders, and special programs staff in the region to effectively design and manage special programs.
Design a prioritized training program for leaders in their region on an annual basis.
Prepare to execute training by developing their own knowledge and skills, and engaging in professional development provided by the national Special Programs Team.
Seek feedback on training to make improvements for future sessions.
Provide strategic guidance and oversight to regional leaders by providing timely support on instruction planning, compliance planning, evaluation, regional and campus staffing, dispute resolution, and budgeting.
Manage and coach regional special programs staff by ensuring staff are equipped to effectively execute all individualized student learning plans and utilizing proactive, individualized, and responsive coaching methods.
Monitor timelines and student-level compliance by ensuring 100% of Special Programs timelines are met for all students in the region, collaborating with the national Special Programs team to submit all state-specific required documentation, and overseeing Special Education student records compliance.
Use data to drive performance and program improvement by continuously reviewing key data points to assess for gaps in service or outcomes and leading regional and school-based teams in action planning to address identified needs.
Perform additional duties as assigned.