Director of Special Education

Position Type:
Administration/Director

Date Posted:
4/29/2026

Location:
District Office

Position Title:

Director of Special Education

Payroll/Personnel Type:

12 Month

Job #:

360

Reports to:

Assistant Superintendent of Student Success and Diverse Programs

Shift Length:

8-Hour Day

Union Eligibility:

not eligible

Starting Salary

Commensurate with experience

Position Summary:

The Director of Special Education provides oversight and strategic support for our Special Education and 504 services. The Director collaborates with schools to ensure students with IEPs and 504s are provided access to grade level instruction through high quality individualized services.

A Director serves three core functions:

1. Lead the development, implementation, and evaluation of all programs serving students with IEPs/504s in alignment to state and federal guidelines

2. Instructional leadership by providing data-driven and research based professional development on best practices for students with IEPs

3. Program and student advocacy.

The Special Education Department is one of four departments in the district's Student Services and Diverse Programs team. The Director of Special Education is a member of the Superintendent's Executive Leadership team and directly supervises and develops a Coordinator, Instructional coach and three clerical support staff.

Core Functions:

Function 1:
Program Development, Implementation and Evaluation

Key Activity

Activity Description

Program Entry

Assessment

Program Design

Assess the current state of the program (compliance; District culture; outcomes; instructional practices, staffing, professional development) to identify priorities, inform continuous improvement planning and recommendations.

Define/align program objectives and supporting frameworks, models, guidelines, resources and professional development strategy around writing, implementing and assessing high quality Individualized Education Programs for students;
Codify Special Education standards and procedures for quality control and the development of school leadership capacity

Program Evaluation

Establish a continuous improvement process and systems of accountability to determine program impacts on student learning and consistent implementation of Special Education standards and procedures

Program Coordination / Implementation

Align department team members and resources to program objectives to ensure efficient and effective delivery of services;
Create and maintain an observation strategy to support the implementation of continuum of services guidelines, frameworks and resources to support school leadership development and implementation of high quality, standardized Special Education and 504 practice

Student Placement

Oversight

Guide screener and assessment administration and use data to inform placement, program decisions, and reclassification.

Development and

Evaluation of Direct

Reports

Set and maintain high standards for professional practice. Facilitate consistent opportunities for team development through practices such as standing department meetings around coaching and collaboration; regular observation of practice, feedback; facilitate annual performance evaluation process grounded in continuous improvement cycles of practice

School Support Strategy

Design and implement a tiered school support strategy for school leadership teams

Staff placement

Provide recommendations for staffing allocation and strategic district wide placement for special education personnel; provide consultation to principals on school-based assignments

Interdepartmental

Collaboration

Facilitate collaborative work, as needed, with other departments to manage areas of convergence, intersection, and avoid contradiction or redundancy to ensure focused attention and support for students with IEPs and 504s

Federal and State

Reporting, Compliance and Grant Management

Oversee all required reporting and data preparation to ensure full compliance with federal and state regulations;
Grant writing aligned to program priorities

Function 2:
Instructional Leadership

Key Activity

Activity Description

Professional

Development for School Leaders

Design and facilitate professional learning to develop Assistant Principals…