Director of Special Education

TITLE:  DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL EDUCATION

QUALIFICATIONS:  The director shall possess a current District Leadership license (Pre-K-12) through the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE).

REPORTS TO:   Board of Directors

EVALUATOR:  Board of Directors

SUPERVISES:  Assistant Director, teachers, paraeducators, support staff, volunteers, and students.

JOB GOAL:  To manage, develop, and facilitate appropriate special education services to the Three Lakes Educational Cooperative service area.

MANAGEMENT TEAM:

1. The Director shall be the chief Executive Officer of the Board.  He/she shall exercise general supervision over all the Three Lakes Educational Cooperative programs and all Three Lakes Educational Cooperative employees shall be directly responsible to him/her.  The Board, the Director, and the Assistant Director are the management team with respect to the Three Lakes Educational Cooperative.  In event of negotiation procedures with certified or non-certified employees, the Board expects these administrators to act and think in this capacity.

ATTENDS ALL BOARD MEETINGS:

1. The Director shall attend all meetings of the Board and keep the Board informed of conditions of the cooperative.  When his/her own salary or re-election is being considered, the Board may request the Director to leave the meeting.

RECOMMENDS APPOINTMENT FOR ALL EMPLOYEES:

1. He/she shall make recommendations for appointment, promotion, demotion, and discharge of all Three Lakes Educational Cooperative employees in conjunction with evaluations from supervisory personnel.  No vacancy will be filled without his/her recommendation.  Local applicants or those with local connections will be hired by Board of Directors action and approval of the Director.

SUSPENSION OF EMPLOYEES:

1. He/she may suspend employees for cause.  Such suspension shall be immediately reported to the Board.  No employee shall be recommended for discharge until the Director is convinced that the efficiency of the said employee cannot be sufficiently improved.  Employees may be discharged by the Board for inefficiency, immorality, insubordination, violation of Board regulations, cause shown, and necessary reduction or changes needed within the staff content.  Due process shall be given to all employees.

ASSIGNMENT OF PERSONNEL:

1. The Director shall make such assignments, reassignments, and transfers as are, in his/her professional judgment, necessary to secure the highest efficiency of the entire staff.

CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION:

1. He/she shall transmit all communications from the Board of Directors or its committees to members of instructional, administrative, supervisory, and non-certified staff, and he/she shall transmit all communications from them to the Board of Directors.

CLASSIFICATION AND PROMOTION OF PUPILS:

1. He/she shall be responsible for the proper classification and promotion of exceptional pupils.

STUDENT PLACEMENT:

1. He/she shall monitor student placements and special education programs and report findings to cooperating districts.
2. He/she is responsible for the development and supervision procedures for proper student placement making sure that placement meets state and federal guidelines.

OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF COOPERATIVE:

1. He/she shall have charge of the operation and maintenance of the building and equipment of the Cooperative.

PREPARATION OF BUDGET:

1. He/she shall prepare the budget annually for the consideration of the Board of Directors.
2. He/she shall administer the budget as enacted by the Board acting at all times in accordance with state and federal legal requirements and adopted policies of the Board.

PURCHASING AGENT:

1. He/she shall be the purchasing agent of the Board and shall have authority to purchase supplies and equipment under the regulations of the Board.

PROPOSE POLICIES:

1. He/she shall propose new policies to the Board of Directors for adoption as the necessity for such arises.

RULES AND REGULATIONS:

1. He/she shall make rules and regulations regarding routine matters which have not been specifically provided for in the rules and regulations of the board.

COOPERATIVE BUILDING CONSULTANT:

1. He/she shall be responsible for carefully studying the needs of the Cooperative offices, and for recommending to the Board of Directors plans adequate for meeting those needs.
2. He/she shall assist the architect employed by the Board in drafting plans and specifications for construction work.

EMERGENCY AUTHORITY:

1. In the absence of specific rules and advice of the Board, he/she shall assume any authority or perform any duty which any particular situation, unforeseen and suddenly arising, may demand, subject to later consideration of, and action by, the Board.

INTERPRETATION OF COOPERATIVE TO COMMUNITY:

1. It shall be a responsibility of the Director to interpret the philosophy, aims, and objectives of the special educational teaching programs for the cooperative to their communities, with the assistance of the professional staff.

APPRAISAL OF TEACHING:

1. It shall be a duty of the Director or designee to appraise the quality of teaching of the instructional staff with a view of increasing its effectiveness.

APPROVE COOPERATIVE COMMITTEES:

1. The Director shall approve the appointment of cooperative committees that may be required for the execution and establishment of education practices and policies.

ATTEND PROFESSIONAL MEETINGS:

1. The Director shall attend state, national, and regional conferences as directed or approved by the Board of Directors.

SANCTION REMOVAL OF SCHOOL PROPERTY:

1. Removal of school furniture or equipment from the building for private use shall be only on the direct authority of the Director or his/her designee.

PUBLIC RELATIONS AGENT:

1. The Director shall be the direct liaison between the school and the press.
2. He/she shall promote public relations by public recognition of persons who have given service to the school system and be responsible for releases of news concerning school business or activities.

VACATIONS:

1. The director will receive twenty (20) days vacation.  Such vacation will be taken at a time which is most convenient to the operation of the cooperative.  This flexibility is necessary because of the timing of board meetings, various state and federal reports, and budget planning which occur at odd times during the year.
2. In-service training, professional meetings, legislative activities and holidays approved by the Board of Directors are not counted as vacation time.

MAY REQUIRE REPORTS:

1. He/she shall have authority to require reports from all employees as he/she may desire.

IN-SERVICE GROWTH OF TEACHERS:

1. He/she shall be charged with the responsibility of all measures for the improvement of teachers in-service.
2. With the aid of his/her assistant, he/she shall from time to time issue bulletins, circulars, courses of study, and curricular material for the improvement of student support.

RECOMMENDS SALARY SCHEDULE:

1. He/she shall recommend a schedule of salaries to the Board for its consideration.  Such schedule shall provide minimum and maximum salaries, annual increments, and other items pertinent to a salary schedule.  Salaries negotiated by certified personnel and the board will be presented to the board by its negotiation team for approval or non-approval.

CURRICULUM IMPROVEMENT:

1. He/she shall direct studies to determine the adequacy of the curriculum and recommend to the Board new courses of study if improvements in the organization of the curriculum are needed.
2. He/she shall provide leadership to the staff in developing curriculum and procure current research and program information for the use of the special education staff.

EDUCATIONAL FIELD TRIPS:

1. Well planned educational field trips are encouraged as an integral part of the educational experience in Three Lakes Educational Cooperative.  Such field trips must be of specific areas of the educational curriculum that teachers are responsible for.  Reasonable driving time and distance must be considered in making selections of field trips.  In all cases a letter of permit for each child to go on the field trip must be on file in the Directors office one day prior to making the trip.
2. Local field trips are encouraged to cut down time away from school. The prime selection factor for field trips must be how will this experience expand and enrich the educational program more than if the experience had not happened.
3. Teachers are advised to plan specific educational goals and objectives to submit with their request to the principal and Director.

FINANCIAL CAPABILITY OF COOPERATIVE DISTRICTS:

1. He/she shall stay informed about the overall financial capability of the cooperative districts and communicate the educational needs of the students with the Tlec board of Directors and district superintendents.

ALTERNATIVE FUNDING:

1. He/she shall seek alternative funding sources for cooperative programs and USDs.

CONFIDENTIALITY OF RECORDS:

1. He/she shall assure the confidentiality of all records that contain personally identifiable information.

ANNUAL PLAN TO MEET DISTRICTS NEEDS:

1. He/she shall present to the cooperative districts, annually, a plan or plans to meet the special education needs of the students of the districts.

SECURING SPECIAL SERVICES:

1. He/she shall make all necessary arrangements for securing special services needed but not provided by the cooperative program.

INSTRUCTIONAL SPACE:

1. He/she shall arrange for necessary instructional space with the administration of the various local school districts.

FEDERAL AND STATE MANDATES:

1. He/she shall stay informed on all federal and state mandates concerning special education and inculcate such material in proposed special education plan.

PREPARE REPORTS:

1. He/she shall prepare monthly Superintendents Council meetings, agendas, and reports and monthly Board of Directors agendas and reports.

STAFF EVALUATION PROGRAM:

1. He/she shall develop and maintain a staff evaluation program involving building principals and other concerned staff.

DUE PROCESS HEARINGS:

1. He/she shall assist the districts in determining if due process is advisable and prepare for due process hearings.

APPROVE PURCHASE ORDERS AND MILEAGE CLAIMS:

1. He/she shall approve all purchase orders and mileage claims by signing them.

APPROVE TEACHER SCHEDULES:

1. He/she shall approve itinerant teacher schedules, field trips, professional leaves, and discretionary leaves.

DELEGATION OF DUTIES:

1. He/she may delegate any of the above items to other staff members.

OTHER DUTIES:

1. The Director shall perform other duties as assigned by the Board of Directors in reference to his/her responsibilities.

CONTRACT:

1. The Director shall be issued a twelve (12) month contract.