About KIPP TEAM & Family

KIPP TEAM & Family is our network office that includes support teams - such as Leadership Development, Recruitment, Advocacy, Facilities, Finance, HR and more - dedicated to empowering our schools and ensuring the success of KIPP students throughout New Jersey and Miami. Our schools are part of the nationally recognized “Knowledge Is Power Program” network of free, open-enrollment, college-preparatory public schools dedicated to preparing students for success in college and in life. The first KIPP New Jersey school opened in Newark in 2002 and since then our school network has expanded to educate 8,135 students in grades K-12. By 2025, KIPP New Jersey will provide a world-class education to over 10,300 students across fifteen schools in Newark and five in Camden. 

In 2018, we grew our KIPP community in response to a need for high-quality school options for students in Greater Miami’s Urban Core communities. That led to the creation of KIPP Miami, which currently educates more than 1,000 students in four schools, with plans to reach 5,800 students by 2025. By offering highly effective educators with strong bonds to families, more time in school learning, services that support a variety of student needs, and a culture focused on achievement, our students in New Jersey and Miami are on the path to and through college, career, and choice-filled lives.  

Here’s what you need to know:

The Assistant Director of Special Education serves as a member of our K-12 regional Special Education team, working hand in hand with schools to execute high quality special education programming that supports all learners to achieve academic and social-emotional progress. The Assistant Director works in partnership with the Director and Managing Director of Special Education to enhance special education programming for all students enrolled at KIPP NJ through implementation of a continuum of programming, purposeful academic intervention and related services to improve academic and life outcomes for students with disabilities. The Assistant Director is responsible for increasing the leadership capacity of school-based leaders (including Heads of Schools, School Leaders, and Assistant Principals) by deepening everyone’s subject matter expertise, compliance to state and federal IDEA regulations and supporting the implementation of the Network’s vision for Special Education. 

The Assistant Director of Special Education will…

Coach and develop Special Education Leaders

• By working with special education leaders in  a caseload of schools school, build our school-based leaders’ special education content knowledge and instructional leadership capacity -- this may include engaging in walk-throughs, student work analysis protocols, coaching O3s, leading and monitoring team meetings, supporting PD implementation, and more
• Ensure that every one of our schools is creating equitable experiences for all students by increasing support at high-needs campuses when needed, and partnering with other regional stakeholders in order to drive rapid improvement in key academic systems and processes. 
• Analyze data and student work from major assessments with instructional leaders at each school and make recommendations about responding to misconceptions and implementing instructional next steps.
• Serve as a point person for the instructional, compliance, and programmatic elements of the Special Education program at your caseload of schools. 

Support the Implementation of the Network’s Vision for Special Education

• Champion the vision of inclusive education for all students enrolled at KIPP NJ. This includes supporting teams to ensure students are in their least restrictive environment and providing meaningful opportunities to engage with grade-level peers both academically and socially. 
• Monitor programs, including instruction, to ensure that students make progress towards individual and grade wide goals and make and communicate changes and improvements to content as needed.
• Monitor and support in the implementation of network wide systems and procedures to ensure compliance with NJ state law and IDEA regulations and communicate areas for improvement to teams. 
• May be asked to provide specific modifications to curriculum and assessments for students with disabilities K-12.
• Review and respond to assessment data by deploying coaching support to places most in need and/or making adjustments and modifications to curriculum materials.

Lead and Engage in Professional Development

• As a resident content expert, lead professional development for leaders and teachers in accordance with the annual professional development strategy, including AP Cohort Meetings, One TEAM, One Sound, Leading for Learning, Heartbeat Summit, etc. Note that, depending on the PD strategy, group sizes for professional development sessions may exceed 100 depending on the PD venue.
• Embrace and develop skill in a wide range and methods of professional development and coaching, including real-time feedback, co-teaching and model teaching, observation and debrief, etc.
• Support TEAM meetings, on an as-needed basis including student support team meetings, content team meetings with learning specialists and IEP meetings.
• Engage in research and professional development opportunities within and outside of the team, to continuously grow and develop our team’s knowledge based, spread best practices, and improve on our collective coaching and leadership skills. 

Serve as an Outstanding TEAMmate on the KIPP NJ Special Education TEAM 

• Collaborate with other members of the regional special education team, including Director of Social Work, Related Services lead and ELL Teammates, to engage in coherent decision-making across functions.
• Participate in routine meetings with the team, to solve tactical matters, engage in strategic work together, build content knowledge and drive program alignment, etc. 
• Participate in routine and/or schedule ad hoc meetings with regional teammates, School Leaders, and APs, to solve tactical matters, engage in strategic work together, and respond to the most pressing needs our schools have. 
• Participate in the EKG Walk-Through process, to objectively score schools on instructional practice and to generate feedback designed to move schools forward.
• Participate in teacher rubric scoring and rating, to help schools norm their scoring and calibrate the rubric scores for all teachers in a building.

Must-Haves:

• Kid- and teacher-focused: makes recommendations and plans based on what is best for kids and teachers; exhibits a front-line obsession.
• Leadership experience  --  has served as a School Leader, Assistant Principal, or network leader for two years or more. As a coach and leader for other leaders in our organization, the person in this role needs to have walked the walk. 
• Exceptional special education content knowledge and alignment to our special education vision -- knows the ins and outs of everything related to NJ Special Education Code and IDEA 
• Strong data analysis skills: can look at an assessment and data set (including sets of student work), diagnose challenges, and immediately recommend clear next steps for instructional leaders and/or teachers.
• Presence and gravitas: can command the attention of a room when delivering feedback, explaining data, or leading professional development.
• Responsiveness, service orientation, and ability to invest and inspire others -- our team exists to support and serve our schools, and so a top-down mentality will not work well.
• Big picture thinking -- can develop and drive a vision that will serve multiple schools. Does not get bogged down by logistics or uncertainty.  
• Detail-orientation -- while keeping an eye trained on the big picture, simultaneously does not let important details slip through the cracks.
• Excellent communication skills -- can speak and write compellingly about the discipline and all the nitty gritty details stakeholders will need to know in order to achieve results.
• Proactiveness – does not wait for explicit direction but rather asks the appropriate questions and self-directs; takes on additional projects without compromising the integrity of existing ones.
• Flexibility -- sees unforeseen obstacles and challenges as an opportunity to design a better solution.

Nice-to-Haves:

• An advanced degree in Special Education

In addition to a competitive salary, KIPP TEAM & FAMILY offers a full comprehensive benefits plan, including health care, retirement, an optional subsidized wireless plan through Verizon, a school laptop and transportation benefits for TEAMmates commuting into New Jersey from the New York City area. 

KIPP New Jersey | KIPP Miami is an equal opportunity employer