Special Education Teacher - IJLA

Institute For Latino Progress•Chicago, IL

5d•Onsite

About The Position

Instituto Justice and Leadership Academy (IJLA) is a small Options school serving 150 Latinx youth aged 16-21 from Pilsen and the surrounding community. IJLA is a second-chance high school offering a personalized, interdisciplinary, project-based academic program with strong social-emotional supports. Our educational philosophy is rooted in social justice, aiming to rebuild students' perspectives on learning for a meaningful and purposeful life. We strive to invigorate hope and restore students' hearts and minds, empowering them to reclaim their education, graduate, and become agents of change. In alignment with CPS/ISBE, IJLA provides high-quality, specially designed instructional supports and services for all students with disabilities within the least restrictive environment. We collaborate to improve academic achievement by ensuring meaningful and relevant access to grade-level core instruction. The special education teacher will deliver appropriate, effective, and culturally relevant instruction, ensuring a safe environment that supports students' social-emotional growth and individualized education plans (IEPs).

Requirements

Completion of a Bachelor’s degree in special education and/or core area content
A valid Illinois Professional Educator License (PEL) in one of the following areas: Special Education (PK-Age 21) endorsement (LBS1) or School Support Personnel endorsement with a supervisory endorsement
Five years of experience working with students with disabilities required
ICTS Basic Skills and Content Area tests successfully passed
Working knowledge of federal and state laws related to the education of Diverse Learners
Ability to maintain a high sense of confidentiality
Able to work with a wide variety of people
Team player and willing to take on multiple tasks at once and independent worker, requires minimal supervision
Exceptional organization and time management skills
Excellent oral and written communication skills
Maintain composure under pressure
Dependable and punctual
Strong project management skills, attention to detail and effective management of multiple projects at one time
Ability to adhere to deadlines, react to unpredictable events quickly and efficiently, be resourceful, manage conflict and challenges

Nice To Haves

Reading and/or ESL/Bilingual endorsement a plus
bilingual English/Spanish preferred

Responsibilities

Designing lessons consistent with student IEPs
Utilizing adaptive devices/technology to provide general curricular content access to students
Preparing and implementing IEPs (including transition plans and behavior management plans) for each assigned student based on individually assessed needs
Using appropriate assessment instruments pertinent to academic, communication, and behavioral areas
Adapting teaching materials to make it appropriate and relevant to the students’ needs
Conducts individual or group sessions to meet educational, social, and emotional needs of the students
Participates on the school-based intervention team, in-school staffing team and in the screening processes, as appropriate
Actively participates on student IEP meetings
Uploads/Updates all documentation in accordance with CPS and IJLA program compliance
Plans and implements self-care programs, including direct assistance to students (e.g., toileting, positioning, lifting, feeding, etc.)
Monitors and oversees services provided by paraprofessionals and/or other support personnel assigned to classroom and/or student in classroom
Obtains and monitors present levels/baselines of assigned special needs students
Refers those students who require further evaluation or follow-up services to the appropriate school personnel
Provides timely feedback to students, parents and administrators of student progress, expectations and goals
Includes a school-wide focus on the social/cultural domain of learning and student experience
Participates on Teacher Parents Conferences to discuss academic student progress
Contacts parents via e-mail, phone or during Parent Teacher Conferences to discuss academics and behavior on a regular basis
Willingness to sponsors extracurricular activities
Follows all IJLA’s school-wide standards regarding teacher behaviors
Adheres to all IJLA’s electronic and web-based rules and restrictions.
Follow all guidelines found in the Instituto and IJLA employee handbooks
Other duties as assigned
Identifies and participates in conferences, workshops and Professional Development sessions to keep up to date with the best teaching practices and implementing best practices in the classroom.
Works collaboratively with instructors of core subjects to identify multiple learning strategies in order to successfully teach students with varying learning styles most effectively and in an engaging manner
Work collaboratively with social workers, special education staff, and deans of students to ensure the behavioral and educational abilities of students are developed for success after high school.
Uses reflective practices to assess personal and professional growth in order to seek out opportunities to continually advance professional knowledge and skill