Assistant Director of Special Services - Anticipated

Position Overview

The Portsmouth School Department is seeking a compassionate, knowledgeable, and equity-driven leader to serve as the Assistant Director of Special Services. The Assistant Director of Special Services is responsible to support leadership of the District wide coordination of all special services including special education, 504, homeless education, nursing and guidance. Effectively and efficiently plan, direct, manage and coordinate functions for a district wide matrixed department.

In collaboration with the Building Principals and the Director of School Counseling and Director of Nursing, will support the Director of Special Services to control, evaluate and manage the resources, activities and the assignment of special education, nursing and guidance personnel in each building. This position will be actively involved in assisting special education, nursing and guidance teams in the evaluation, IEP and placement processes of students referred or re-evaluated for special services.

The Assistant Director of Special Services will be responsible for directly managing out of district and court ordered placements. The Assistant Director of Special Services will also support buildings in all aspects of student Social Emotional Learning and MTSS-B.

• Assist the Director of Special Services in supervising the special education process throughout the district; programs and supports, and the coordination of services with guidance and nursing, including processes of referral, evaluation, identification, IEP development and placement including students placed within the District and for students in out of district placements. Resolve issues in the coordination of special services that are unusual or controversial.
• Guide school building administration on the District's initiatives for programming needs, innovation in instructional strategies, continuous improvement of assessment techniques and matters related to budget for Special Services.
• Consult with teachers and administrators regarding special education topics such as inclusion and changes in law or regulations.
• Collaborate with the building Principal in the evaluation of Special Education, Nursing and Guidance personnel.
• Represent the District or assign a designee to represent the District in cases of scheduling conflicts at juvenile and CHINS petition court hearings for special education students.
• Direct the collection, analysis, and distribution of assessment data for special education students and programs. Supervise the collaborative interaction with building level special education administrators in examining overall school findings.
• Consult and collaborate with building level administration on the professional development needs of the District for special education, nursing and guidance. As a member of the District wide professional development committee, identify training needs.
• Assist the Director of Special Services in oversight of the budget for special education, guidance and nursing services with building administration to meet short- and long-term goal planning of the District. Review the district wide budget for these services with the Superintendent, School Board and Budget Committee.
• Assist the Director of Special Services to develop and manage the IDEA grant.
• Participate in the interviewing and selection process of special services, guidance and nursing personnel. Coordinate the assignment of paraprofessionals across schools within the District. Recruit and supervise related service personnel such as speech-language pathologists, therapists, occupational therapists and school psychologists and District administrative support staff.

• Master's degree in Special Education, Educational Leadership, or related field
• Hold or be eligible for NH certification as a Special Education Administrator. Additional certifications such as Guidance Director, Principal and General Special Education.
• A minimum of seven years experience in the field of Special Education/Leadership, including teaching experience with increasing levels of administrative responsibility in Special Education curriculum.
• Demonstrated leadership skills in the areas of special program development, evaluation and improvement and guiding staff to implement individualized prescriptive programs. Handle a variety of administrative tasks simultaneously as well as supervise others.
• Strong interpersonal and verbal communication skills including the ability to effectively present information and relate to groups of individuals; parents, students, school staffing and the public who may have diverse cultural and educational backgrounds, problem solve and make sound independent judgments.
• Ability to operate personal computers utilizing spreadsheet, word processing and database and email software.
• Comprehensive knowledge of current theories, strategies and materials pertaining to the field of special education and the ability to apply them to meet the needs of the special…