Request for Proposals and Job Announcements
Job Announcement
State Personnel Development Grant - Arkansas Department of Education - Special Education Unit
Immediate Opening Released: March 27, 2012
Literacy and/or Mathematics State Coordinator
The Special Education Unit of the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) is in Year 3 of its second five-year State Personnel Development Grant (SPDG) received from the United States Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (see our website at: www.arstudentsuccess.org. The grant is managed in the state by the Great Rivers Education Service Cooperative, which directly employs SPDG personnel.
We have an immediate opening for a SPDG State Coordinator in Literacy, Mathematics, or with expertise in both areas. This is a leadership position that will involve supervising one or more SPDG staff consultants in the literacy and mathematics areas, and coordinating SPDG professional development, on-site consultation, and technical assistance activities at the state, Education Cooperative, district, and school levels.
The Literacy/Mathematics Coordinator also will link the SPDG with the ADE and the ADE-SEU (Special Education Unit) especially as it relates to the implementation of the English Language Arts/Literacy and/or Mathematics Common Core Standards. As an OSEP-funded (U.S. Office of Special Education Programs) grant, the Coordinator will especially focus on the literacy and/or mathematical skills, progress, and proficiency of students with disabilities and other struggling student learners (preschool through high school).
More specifically, the Literacy, Mathematics, or Literacy/Mathematics SPDG State Coordinator will participate in the following activities:
• Supporting the implementation of the state’s Common Core State Standards language arts/literacy and/or mathematics program by teachers, related services personnel, special education and other administrators, and state and Cooperative consultants—focusing especially on students with disabilities and other learning difficulties and their success, to the greatest degree possible, in general education settings.
• Facilitating the improvement of general and special education teachers’ ability to effectively teach language arts/literacy and/or mathematics skills to all school-aged students, especially those with disabilities, using effective, evidence-based strategies and interventions.
• Guiding the development of strategic (Tier II) and intensive (Tier III) instructional and intervention services, supports, strategies, and programs in all areas of language arts/ literacy and/or mathematics skills for students with mild, moderate, and severe (or low incident) disabilities; as well as the development and field-testing of professional development/training materials in the same areas.
• Maintaining the SPDG’s Literacy and Math Intervention Matrix websites, respectively.
• Helping districts, schools, and staff to improve the learning and mastery of language arts/literacy and/or mathematics skills by students with disabilities such that they demonstrate proficiency on the state’s benchmark or Common Core assessments, and graduate from high school graduation ready for college or a productive career.
Qualifications. Required Qualifications: (a) a Master’s degree (or above) in education, or the equivalent; (b) experience in school-based consultation, linking assessment to intervention, and the implementation of literacy and/or mathematical interventions at the student, staff, and school levels; (c) knowledge and experience in implementing comprehensive, multi-tiered school-wide literacy and/or mathematical systems; and (d) the effective professional and personal skills needed to successfully interact with colleagues at the state, Cooperative, district, and school levels in urban to rural settings.
Preferred Qualifications: Knowledge and experience with the Common Core Standards, and in designing instruction and intervention, consistent with those standards, for students with disabilities and other students with learning challenges.
This is a multi-year, 12-month position with an excellent salary and benefits package that is regionally competitive. The position will be based in the greater Little Rock area and is available immediately. Overnight travel to participating schools and districts across the state should be anticipated. The grant continues through the 2013-14 school year, with a five-year extension anticipated. Candidates wanting to take this position “on leave” from another full-time public school, Cooperative, or state position will be considered. Supervision for this position will be provided by the SPDG Project Director.
The review of applications will begin on Monday, April 16, 2012, and the position will remain open until filled. An interview will be required. Interested applicants should apply (or direct questions) via e-mail to: Dr. Howard M. Knoff, SPDG Director at: howard.knoff@arkansas.gov.
The following application material is requested:
1. A current vitae/resume with educational background, work experience, and other relevant work information;
2. A statement detailing the individual’s professional experience, knowledge, and skills that are related/relevant to the position;
3. A salary history; and
4. Three professional references (with contact e-mails and phone numbers).
The Great Rivers Education Service Cooperative is an Equal Opportunity Employer.