Special Education Teacher, Social Communications Program

Special Education Teacher

Hermiston School District is seeking a full-time, Special Education (Social Communications) teacher for grades K-5. The successful candidate will be properly licensed or have the ability to obtain licensure prior to the start of the school year, and possess the ability to teach elementary school level, Special Education in a Social Communications classroom. Position begins August 2026.

The Special Education model, in the Hermiston School District, focuses on the strengths of the individuals. The district has facilitators whose strengths are organization and paperwork, they write the IEPs. The district has teachers whose strength is teaching and working with students. The teachers attend the IEP meetings and provide input, but they do not write IEPs. The district also has School Psychologists, Speech Language Pathologists, and Bilingual staff that all fill roles to support the IEP qualification process.

Philosophically, the Hermiston School District intends to put teachers (Special Education and otherwise) in classrooms to impact students positively. There are currently five comprehensive elementary schools (K-5) within the Hermiston School District, ranging in size from 460-600 students. Loma Vista Elementary School, the district's sixth elementary school, is scheduled to open Fall 2022, with the capacity to serve 600 students.

Each elementary campus has the supports of a Principal, Dean of Students, a School Counselor, and a range of classified staff. Our goal is to support teachers in providing a premier education.

The Hermiston School District is the largest district in eastern Oregon, exceeding 5,600 students in grades kindergarten through 12, with the mission of serving the needs of all children with rigorous program choices, high expectations, mutual respect, and excellence. The school district includes a 9-12 senior high school, two 6-8 middle schools, currently five K-5 elementary schools, six with the addition of LVES, and a robust online learning program option for students and families.

Support for the school district has been strong from the community. In 2019 voters approved an $82.7 million building project, which includes replacement of Rocky Heights Elementary, construction of an additional elementary school (Loma Vista), and a multi-classroom annex of the high school, along with various district-wide renovations. The voters also approved a $69.9 million bond in 2008. which served to replace Armand Larive Middle School, West Park Elementary, and Sunset Elementary schools.

The District employs over 630 full time staff that includes approximately 365 teachers and over 265 classified, support, and supervisory personnel, making it one of the largest employers in the city of Hermiston. A nationally-recognized community that embraces its diversity, the district serves some 28,000 residents, where one-third of the population is Hispanic.

The school district prides itself on the academic achievement of its students, successful athletic programs, nationally-recognized club and activity organizations, and its exhaustive list of academic and elective opportunities available to students. The District's partnership with community organizations has been central to its continued success, highlighted by support groups who have provided nearly a half a million dollars to assist students and programs through such venues as the Hermiston Sports Booster Club, Hermiston Education Foundation, Band Boosters, FFA Alumni, and the community sponsorship of the student homebuilding program, to name a few.

The city of Hermiston is a vibrant and growing community of approximately 18,000 residents located at the crossroads of the Pacific Northwest, situated near the intersection of I-84 and I-82, just minutes from a Columbia River port and 30 minutes from the Tri-Cities in Washington. Hermiston and the entire Umatilla County area have excellent potential for growth in commercial, industrial, agricultural, as well as residential development.

Hermiston boasts over 100 acres for community use, volleyball courts, soccer fields, baseball diamonds, children's play areas, barbeque and picnic…