Position Summary

The Curriculum, Instruction, & Assessment Specialist (CIA) plays a pivotal role in shaping educational success at The Linwood School. The CIA collaborates closely with teachers, guiding and supporting them in implementing Maryland State Department of Education standards and effectively using both formal and informal assessments to ensure IEPs are tailored to each students’ needs. With a focus on students with autism and related disabilities, the CIA champions research-based, individualized, and differentiated instruction tailored to each student’s unique needs. Working alongside the Assistant Education Director and Education Director, the CIA oversees curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices across the school, ensuring alignment with state learning goals, COMAR regulations, and local school system guidelines. This position is ideal for a candidate passionate about making a lasting impact in special education.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provides training to special educators on how to utilize informal and formal assessments in developing appropriate IEP goals, objectives, and related areas on the IEP.
• Conducts a variety of formal and informal assessments on student skill levels and produce the corresponding reports and documents as needed.
• Edits and provide feedback to teachers on writing progress reports and annual IEPs.
• Instructs, train and monitor special educators on data collection procedures as related to IEP academic goals and objectives.
• Works collaboratively with behavior staff, related service providers, and Local School System representatives.
• Provides on-going training to special educators on curriculum development and implementation.
• Provides special educators ongoing constructive feedback related to lesson plans, instructional techniques, and classroom management that adheres to state standards and IEP implementation
• Assists special educators in creating a classroom schedule that meets the needs of their students and adheres to expectations from the MSDE and LSS’s.
• Provides individual, classroom, and community-wide trainings regarding learning strategies effective for students with autism and related disabilities (e.g., reinforcement schedules, prompt hierarchies, and general classroom management techniques)
• Conducts ongoing observations and provide ongoing training and feedback to staff based on the observations.
• Coordinates individual, classroom, team, and community-wide meetings as needed to discuss programming, student needs, and other important information.
• Provides educational support to classroom staff in the absence of a classroom teacher.
• Works in conjunction with the Assistant Education Director, Transition Specialist, and classroom teachers to develop Community-Based Instruction.
• Works in conjunction with the Assistant Education Director on on-boarding new staff to Linwood School.
• Provides training to and mentor new special educators to Linwood School.
• Serves as the school testing coordinating (STC) for the required Maryland State Assessments to adhere to all regulations and rules, by attending trainings, organizing and implementing school wide state testing.
• Collaborates and engages with school leadership and administration team to improve school efficiency, maintain department compliance and ensure students’ successful mastery of targeted IEP goals and objectives
• Adheres to Linwood School policies and procedures
• May perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• A Master’s Degree in Special Education, Psychology, or a related field.
• A valid Maryland professional teaching license in special education.
• Must have at least three (3) years’ experience as a special educator
• Linwood provides CPR training. The employee must achieve and maintain certification
• Linwood provides Professional Crisis Training (PCM) The employee must achieve and maintain certification at the Basic Practitioner level (or higher).

Abilities:

• Demonstrates knowledge of the IEP process
• Demonstrate a strong knowledge base in curriculum and educational techniques.
• Must possess the ability to train others.