Special Education Social Worker

Special Education Social Worker

Full-Time position for the  school year

Reports to:

Special Education Director (or designee)

Niles Community Schools is looking for a dynamic Special Education Social Worker. Highly-effective communication skills and professionalism required for daily interaction with a diverse workforce, student population, building administration and community.

Qualifications:

• Master's Degree required
• Valid Michigan Social Worker
• Full approval as a school social worker or eligible for approval

Essential Duties (non-prioritized):

• Attends Student Assistant Team meetings with general education staff and assists in creating and monitoring interventions
• Uses data based decision making to assist in a problem-solving model to deal with student academic achievement and behavior
• Reviews, analyzes, and revises implementation plans and interventions
• Performs classroom observations of student behavior
• Make home visits to facilitate completion of student evaluations
• Recommends or participates in the development of alternative academic and behavior strategies with general education staff, special education staff, and parents
• Knowledge of the individual, family, group, and community dynamics, as well as mental health concepts and behavior which result from mental, physical, sensory, emotional speech, or any other handicapping conditions
• Demonstrated competencies in the areas of interpersonal relationships, communication, and organization
• Knowledge of varying lifestyles, and their influence and counter-influence on learning and school-community relations
• Knowledge of the learning process as it relates to the developmental states of children
• Knowledge of learning patterns, including actual and potential impediments to learning
• Knowledge of research, evaluation, tests, and measurements
• Ability to recognize deficits in learning patterns and to develop plans with school personnel for alternative learning experiences
• Skill in systematic observation and assessment of the individual pupil or groups of pupils in problem situations and ability to formulate appropriate plans of action
• Skill in the selective collection of information and documentation of biological, psychological, sociological and environmental factors which affect the learning process
• Skill in identifying and assessing the social-emotional needs of pupils and the ability to design appropriate interventions to enhance the learning environment in the school
• Skill in providing appropriate direct or indirect treatment services to individuals, groups, families, and the school community
• Knowledge of legislative process and impact on state and federal laws, rules, and regulations on education
• Utilizes a variety of assessments to determine the need for special education services
• Provides analysis and interpretation of information and data in oral and written reports
• Completes diagnostic evaluations and prepares written reports
• Provide individual and group therapy/counseling as warranted
• Comply with Medicaid billing procedures (when applicable)
• Reviews, prepares, and presents student data at IEP meetings
• Assist in determining the eligibility of students for special education programs and services
• Demonstrates knowledge of disabilities and their educational implications
• Provide diagnostic reports on students
• Ability to share social work knowledge and skills with team members and professionals, parents, pupils, and others in the area of mental health, human behavior, and child management
• Collaborates with principals, staff members, and the parents/guardians to assist in developing strategies to promote effective student behavior management
• Maintains accurate and timely records regarding student contacts, summary reports, and behavior plans
• Maintain regular contact with teaching staff regarding the needs of students with emotional impairments and/or students with an autism spectrum disorder
• Provide in-service instruction to staff
• Do follow-up visits on students who have left Niles Community Schools self-contained programs
• Collaborate with other agencies to secure services for students and their parents as warranted
• Provide parents with information focusing on the dynamics of the parent/child relationship as well as typical child development in general
• Communicate with parents regularly but as necessary for ongoing difficulties or crisis situations
• Provide student progress reports as required
• Monitors assigned classrooms for compliance with local, state, and federal regulations
• Knowledge of educational organization, delivery systems, and the school as a social institution
• Knowledge of structure, function, and policy of major human services organizations
• Ability to communicate to appropriate persons, such as the school superintendent, principal, supervisor, and the educational planning and placement committee, regarding socio-developmental finds, goals, and objectives, and intervention strategies, as well as outcomes and recommendations
• Skill in identifying and developing resources within and outside a school…