Founded in Houston in 1994, KIPP has become a national leader in partnering  with families and communities, to create joyful, academically excellent schools that prepare students with the skills and confidence to pursue the paths they choose — college, career, and beyond — so they can lead fulfilling lives and build a more just world.

In 2018, KIPP schools in Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio joined forces to become KIPP Texas Public Schools, a nonprofit public charter school network, accelerating student academic outcomes and impacting more students across Texas. As a unified, statewide organization, KIPP Texas can more effectively leverage the talent, resources, instructional expertise, financial strength, and advocacy in the public charter school movement, in order to have an even larger impact with educationally underserved communities across the state.

In the 2020-2021 school year, KIPP Texas Public Schools will educate more than 31,100 students in 59 schools, placing the district among the top 50 largest in the state. KIPP Texas will continue to prove what is possible for its students, communities, and state, with a goal of growing to educate 100,000 students and achieving a 75% college graduation rate for alumni.

The mission and vision of KIPP Texas is grounded in five Core Values as its cultural North Star:

As a Team & Family, we:

• Champion Equity
• Chase Excellence
• Persist with Purpose
• Bring Joy
• Rise Together

KIPP Texas is part of the national KIPP network of 255 college-preparatory public charter schools educating early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students. KIPP schools are part of the free public school system and enrollment is open to all students. Nationwide, KIPP students complete four-year college at a rate of 36 percent, comparable to the national average for all students and approximately three times higher than the average of students from low-income families.

The Special Education Coordinator is a school-based role responsible for ensuring that all special education students receive comprehensive, compassionate and equitable services in order to achieve breakthrough academic achievement and character development.  The Special Education Coordinator will serve as an intervention specialist to assist special education and general education teachers in helping every child meet grade level goals and will oversee the program and systems for all students who receive special education services. All KIPP Texas - Austin staff has a responsibility for ensuring that every KIPP Texas -  Austin student achieves the academic skills, intellectual habits and character traits necessary to succeed in the nation’s top colleges and universities.
 
RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serve as the manager of special education teachers and paraprofessionals
• Lead special education and general education teachers to develop effective whole group practices, small group interventions, and individualized learning activities
• Assist special education teachers to create data-tracking systems to determine the effectiveness of interventions
• Lead professional development for special and general education teachers at the school
• Utilize eSped (special education paperwork management system used at KIPP Texas Austin) to produce high quality, error-free IEP paperwork
• Collaborate with teachers so that they provide instructional support that leads to dramatic academic gains for students
• Manage additional resources and support (OT/PT, etc.), where necessary
• Monitor and lead all IEP evaluation and processes; serve as lead communicator with teachers and principal
• Maintain all documentation and records for individual students; ensure confidentiality in reporting
• Monitor for compliance with state and federal laws, ensuring consistent, fail-safe and quality documentation; provide comprehensive, work with staff to provide holistic reporting of student performance data to principal; serve as lead contact for authorized visits
• Advise teachers and principal on accommodation processes for state and school-wide assessments
• Oversee case management of a cohort of students with Individual Education Plans (IEPs)
• Support teachers in providing classroom accommodations and modifications, as well as in implementing other requirements of the IEP
• Promote a growth mindset, supporting staff and students in practices that lead to dramatic academic gains
• Some positions may require the employee to be able to stay with excessively disruptive or aggressive students during which time the employee may need to restrain, hold, lift, apply physical management techniques, and crisis intervention techniques on the student

 
 OUTCOMES:

• Increase student growth and achievement
• Meet desired goals/benchmarks on Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and district-wide, state, and national assessments and measures of growth
• Ensure growth, development, and demonstration of character traits and KIPP Austin values

QUALIFICATIONS:

• At least 5 years of experience working as a special education teacher (preferred) in an urban school (preferred)
• Experience with and strong knowledge of local and national special education laws and mandates
• An active, valid Texas Standard Special Education certification or Probationary Special Education certification
• Bachelor’s degree (required); Master’s degree (preferred)
• Experience leading a team of special education teachers or paraprofessionals
• Spanish bilingual a plus

COMPETENCIES:

• Unwavering commitment to KIPP Austin’s mission, students, families, and community
• Strong record of helping students achieve academic success, primarily with minority and low-income students
• Strong desire to teach an academically intense curriculum and commit to an extended school day, week, and year
• Desire to continuously learn and increase effectiveness as a teacher and professional; offer and receive constructive feedback
• Willingness to be flexible and to go above and beyond to meet the needs of KIPP Texas Austin students

Compensation and Benefits:

In addition to a competitive salary scale, a part of KIPP Texas’ competitive benefits options, KIPP offers all employees an $0 HMO plan for the employee only. In addition to our $0 plan, KIPP provides a $600 employer contribution towards a Health Savings Account and a variety of other supplemental benefits such as Dental, Vision, Short and Long-Term Disability, Pet Insurance, Life, etc.