Manager of ARD Compliance

Job Description

The Manager of Special Education Compliance serves as a critical support to special populations, faculty and school leaders, providing guidance in the areas of IEP development, 504 plans, and compliance. This role collaborates closely with other school-based personnel to ensure the development and delivery of high-quality, individualized educational programs for students with diverse learning needs. By ensuring adherence to legal standards, and ensuring compliance with IDEA and Texas State Education Law & Regulations, Section 504 Law & Regulations, the ARD Facilitator helps advance the mission of KIPP Texas Public Schools, ensuring that every student has the tools and supportive environment necessary to thrive.

The Manager of Special Education Compliance provides leadership, coaching, and oversight to ARD Facilitators to ensure the delivery of high-quality, compliant ARD processes and student-centered IEP development. This role partners closely with campus and regional teams to strengthen procedural fidelity, promote consistency in ARD practices, and support accurate documentation aligned with federal and state regulations. By building facilitator capacity, monitoring compliance indicators, and reinforcing strong collaboration across teams, the Manager of Special Education Compliance helps ensure that students with disabilities receive the services and support necessary to meet their individual needs and thrive within KIPP Texas Public Schools.

• Strategy: Support the strategic vision to ensure that KTX school and regional teams implement the Special Education Strategic Plan and provide comprehensive improvement of school performance using a collaborative approach to clear and specific performance targets aligned to the Special Education Strategic Plan and execute, monitor, edit strategic plans, annual goals and quarterly benchmarking for departmental improvement.
• Communication: Assists the Director of ARD Facilitator in ensuring KTX special populations teams are provided excellent communication, customer service and well-coordinated support.
• Legal Framework & Compliance: Possess experience and knowledge of IDEA and Texas State Education Law & Regulations, Section 504 Law & Regulations and understanding of the essential elements of compliance.

• Compliance and Documentation:
  • Oversees and supports ARD Facilitators by ensuring that procedural elements are completed accurately and in alignment with legal requirements.
  • Monitors federal and state compliance timelines, providing coaching and corrective guidance to ARD Facilitators to ensure all evaluation requests, ARD decisions, and required actions are completed within mandated windows.
  • Reviews and provides actionable feedback on ARD documentation to ensure it meets the highest standards of accuracy, completeness, and best-practice implementation within all established departmental timelines.
  • Ensures ARD Facilitators complete all required special education documentation, reports, and supplemental forms (such as transportation requests, ESY documentation, and state reporting requirements) by guiding them on expectations and monitoring progress toward completion.
  • Supports ARD Facilitators in collecting, analyzing, and documenting required data for ARD supplements including, but not limited to, ESY regression/recoupment, BIPs, and specialized programming in the least restrictive environment.
  • Guides ARD Facilitators through state-mandated compliance and operating procedures such as state reporting requirements
  • Ensures that IEPs, ARD documents, and all associated paperwork meet federal, state, and district compliance standards through ongoing coaching, quality checks, and targeted professional development.
  • Participates in ARD meetings, parent conferences, and other stakeholder meetings as needed to provide support, ensure compliance, and model high-quality facilitation and communication practices.
• Support and Communication:
  • Ensures clear, proactive, and consistent communication with families and school leaders regarding ARD decisions, IEP expectations, student accommodations, and instructional progress, supporting transparency and informed decision-making.
  • Builds and sustains strong, professional relationships with families and school leaders to foster trust, collaboration, and a shared commitment to achieving high-quality outcomes for students with disabilities.
  • Provides targeted coaching and guidance to school leaders and special education managers on effective family engagement, ARD facilitation, and compliance expectations to strengthen leadership capacity and student support.
  • Supports school leaders and families in navigating Special Populations compliance, ensuring policies and procedures are followed with fidelity while promoting equity, responsiveness, and student-centered practices.
• Data Analysis and Improvement:
  • Analyzes regional-level data, including 504 and ARD compliance metrics, to identify trends, gaps, and…