<p>Preschool Special Education Teacher (.5 FTE)/Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (.5 FTE), Early Childhood Center/Districtwide, Salem Public Schools [SY 2025-2026]</p> <p>About Salem Public Schools, where belonging leads to opportunity.</p> <p>Salem is a small, diverse city with a proud maritime and immigrant history. Salem Public Schools is an urban public school district enrolling nearly 4,000 students in 11 schools. Our vision is to ensure that all students will be locally engaged, globally connected, and fully prepared to thrive in a diverse and changing world. We hold dear our core values of belonging, equity, and opportunity in everything we do. We seek individuals who are passionate about urban education and understand the urgency of improving student achievement for all students, regardless of ability, economic status, gender/gender identity, language, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, or other backgrounds. We invite you to learn more about our strategic plan and core priorities on our website at https://salemk12.org/.</p> <p>Role Responsibilities:</p> <ul> <li>Oversee programming for students in the Integrated and/or substantially separate preschool classroom </li><li>Provide specialized instruction that will allow all students to successfully engage in instruction based upon best practice standards for public preschools. </li><li>Work with the classroom support team and assigned clinical staff to develop data-taking mechanisms and analyze data to drive instruction and monitor student progress </li><li>Maintain consistent positive relationships with students and manage student behavior by implementing positive student management strategies </li><li>Work collaboratively across school settings and with parents and various community agencies to improve the quality of student outcomes and create and implement Individual Education Programs (IEPs) for students. </li><li>Demonstrate ability to write an effective IEP with SMART goals and sensible accommodations and generate progress reports using IEP software. </li><li>Demonstrate ability to administer, interpret and report findings from standardized evaluations. Able to administer remote assessments, if needed </li><li>Present evidence of student progress toward goals and objectives in a professional manner during special education meetings. </li><li>Evaluate students' abilities in preschool readiness/academics and social development using formal and informal measures. </li><li>Support and assist paraprofessionals and other school personnel in their implementation of classroom goals and IEP accommodations, modification, and goals. </li><li>Use innovative approaches and instructional strategies to increase student access to learning and confidence to learn. </li><li>Modify/adapt materials, instructional lessons, etc. to meet the specific needs of students across the school day, as identified in their IEPs. </li><li>Embed social-emotional learning (SEL) and strategies into lesson-planning. </li><li>Ability to use technology to provide access to learning and to teach in a remote learning environment, if needed. </li><li>Additional duties as appropriate, assigned by the building Principal, Special Education Supervisor or Executive Director of Special Education. </li></ul> <p>What You'll Do: Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing</p> <p>As a collaborative member of the Special Education team in Salem, this person will be a licensed (or licensable) Teacher of The Deaf and Hard of Hearing to work with school-aged students, staff, and families to provide direct services and consultation. The Teacher of The Deaf must be proficient with assessment, observation, and data collection. The candidate must be able to develop curriculum and implement IEP services that foster student success. We are seeking a team player who can multitask, prioritize, and provide meaningful instruction to children and adults. The selected individual must be able to form and maintain relationships with families, while respecting confidentiality and enforcing appropriate boundaries.</p> <p>Responsibilities:</p> <p>Skills:</p> <ul> <li>Demonstrates knowledge and skills in the areas of language development and language refinement as it pertains to hearing loss </li><li>Able to communicate effectively and to provide a complete English model for hearing-impaired children using a Total Communication approach </li><li>Possesses the knowledge and ability to implement auditory training, speech and speech reading monitoring amplification, and the use and maintenance of hearing aids </li></ul> <p>Duties:</p> <ul> <li>Provide consultation and direct services to students with hearing loss </li><li>Conduct initial and re-evaluations as part of the Special Education Team </li><li>Obtain and review available medical and audiological information pertaining to the student's school-based needs, in consultation with the school audiologist </li><li>Develop lessons plans and provides instruction to students with hearing needs in the LRE </li><li>Establish communication and regular contact with parents, teachers, and related service providers of students on caseload and keeps records of contacts </li><li>Provide support for students, teachers, and families to promote understanding of, and coping skills for, the social-emotional and academic impact of children's hearing loss </li><li>Develop IEP goals and complete related progress reports using IEP software </li><li>Attend IEP meetings </li><li>Maintain a consistent schedule, be punctual, meet assigned responsibilities and deadlines </li><li>Work as a part of a multi-functional team and demonstrate the flexibility needed to work in a school environment </li><li>Routinely consult with the District's contracted audiologist </li><li>Conduct off-site observations and/or evaluations, as needed </li><li>Perform additional duties as required by the District and/or Executive Director of Special Education </li></ul> <p>What You'll Bring:</p> <p>We are looking for candidates who have diverse backgrounds and experiences, are inspired by our mission and are highly motivated to change children's lives through education. You'll be right at home here if you are a reflective practitioner who values collaboration with colleagues and pushes yourself, your work and the people around you to the next level. We expect our SPS employees to:</p> <ul> <li>Hold a deep commitment to students and families and value diversity - The SPS community is vibrant, diverse in background, ethnicity, language, and perspective. You embrace and affirm the backgrounds of all members of the SPS community and view our diversity as a powerful resource that supports us each in learning and doing our best work. </li><li>Hold high expectations for yourself, students, and colleagues - You see potential in all, especially our SPS students, and maintain high expectations for achievement, while providing the support necessary to meet that bar. You hold yourself to high expectations, modeling SPS values and seeking opportunities to continuously improve. </li><li>Build authentic, caring relationships with colleagues, students, and families - You build strong relationships across students, families, and colleagues that are collaborative in nature and contribute to the individual and collective success of SPS. You partner with families and colleagues to make decisions in the best interest of students and learning. </li><li>Embrace feedback - You are a reflective practitioner who learns from mistakes and challenges and uses them as opportunities for professional development. You model persistence and growth mindset and thrive in a culture of feedback. </li></ul> <p>Job Requirements:</p> <ul> <li>Bachelor's Degree Required; Master's Degree preferred </li><li>Required Massachusetts teaching certification/licensure in Special Education (Moderate Disabilities licensure). Intensive Disability License preferred but not required and Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing licensure </li><li>Dual Certification (content area) a plus </li><li>Sheltered English Immersion (SEI) Endorsement (Required within 1-year of start date) </li><li>Safety Care trained or willing to be a trained (District provides) </li><li>Ability to meet the expectations of the Massachusetts Standards and Indicators of Effective Teaching Practice </li><li>Proficiency with technology (blended learning, teacher/family communication suites (Remind preferred), Google G-Suite Apps, etc.) desirable. </li><li>Maintain professional competence through in-service education activities provided by the District, and/or in self-selected professional growth activities. </li><li>Second language (Spanish and/or Portuguese) proficiency a plus </li><li>Bilingual, candidates of color are strongly encouraged to apply </li><li>Current authorization to work in the United States </li></ul> <p>The Preschool Special Education Teacher is considered part of the Salem Teachers Union. The position is a school-year position, with the opportunity to work in the Extended Year (summer) Program. Salary is commensurate with Collective Bargaining Contract. The Preschool Special Education Teacher reports to the Special Education Supervisor, ECC Principal, and the Executive Director of Special Education.</p> <p>Work Year: Teachers in Salem Public Schools work a 185 day school year (180 student contact days plus 5 professional development days. Please click here to view the 2025-26 district and/or school calendars.</p> <p>Salary: Teacher salaries in the Salem Public Schools are determined by the Salem Teachers Union collective bargaining agreement (see new 2024-27 language with updated salary information here).</p> <p>Benefits: The City of Salem offers Group Insurance Commission (GIC) benefits to all full-time employees. Click here for more information about our health benefits.</p> <p>Equal Opportunity Employer</p> <p>Salem Public School District is committed to maintaining a work and learning environment free from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, pregnancy, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital/civil union status, ancestry, place of birth, age, citizenship status, veteran status, political affiliation, genetic information or disability, as defined and required by state and federal laws. Additionally, we prohibit retaliation against individuals who oppose such discrimination and harassment or who participate in an equal opportunity investigation.</p>