Director of Elementary Exceptional Student Education

Reports To: Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education 

FLSA Status: Exempt 

General Definition of Work 

The job of the Director of Elementary Exceptional Student Education is done for the purpose/s of implementing and maintaining age 3-21 Special Education programs and services in conformance to district, state, and federal objectives and laws; planning, designing, and implementing all phases of service provided by the Special Education staff; serving as a resource to patrons, school personnel, and the Board; and maintaining adequate staffing to ensure objectives of programs and services are achieved within budget. 

Minimum Qualifications 

• Master’s degree required 
• Valid SC administrative certification (or eligible with documented application to SCDE) 
• Five years of successful special education teacher experience. 
• Hold a valid special education certification 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Two years of successful principal experience or two years as District Administrator of special education with quantifiable academic, financial, and operational results. 

Additional Qualifications 

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

Salary/Status 

Director Salary Schedule/Full-Time/240 days 

Supervises 

TBD 

Place of Work 

The normal place of work is on the premises used by Rock Hill Schools. Rock Hill Schools reserves the right to require you to work at such other place(s) as it may reasonably require from time to time. 

Leadership Competencies 

• Enterprise mindset 
• Cross-functional systems leadership 
• Operational discipline 
• Executive autonomy & disciplined escalation 
• Governance fluency 
• Fiscal stewardship 
• Clear and consistent communicator 
• Customer-service orientation 
• Chain-of-command integrity 
• Aligns actions to Board Goals and Superintendent priorities. 
• Leads for the whole system success, not only a division. Makes decisions based on district-wide impact and long-term outcomes. 
• Provides sound, timely coaching and support for principals to make decisions in complex situations in alignment with legal and policy mandates.  
• Elevates appropriately, providing all information necessary for decision making in a concise manner.  
• Ensures no surprises through proactive communication. 
• Coordinates with all district offices behind the scenes so schools experience seamless, unified support. 
• Translates district and level initiatives into concrete actions, ensuring purpose and understanding with disciplined follow-through. 
• Trusts professional expertise and validates with evidence.  
• Assists principals to align resources to strategy.  
• Models integrity, transparency, and accountability. 
• Communicates clearly, consistently, and with one voice.  
• Demonstrates discretion and composure under pressure. 
• Takes initiative to promptly prevent and solve problems. 
• Balances urgency with sustainability. 
• Provides exemplary customer service__follows up, follows through, ensures schools never have to navigate misalignment. 
• Leads effectively in all directions on the organizational chart. 
• Champions district priorities with commitment and conviction, modeling and reinforcing through belief and ownership. 
• Leads with purpose in communicating rationale for changes to foster commitment, not merely compliance 
• Contributes to team dialogue and decision making fully, bringing forward all information to support sound decision making. 
• Actively supports and promotes decisions. 
• Protects school personnel’s time, attention, and investments to ensure focus on the highest leverage actions to improve student learning. 
• Adaptable in a fast paced environment, adapts to changing conditions. 
• Consistently displays leadership characteristics with exemplary initiative, professionalism, confidentiality, and commitment to student success.   

Essential Functions 

• Establishes and supervises programs to accommodate the needs of all special education students. 
• Provides for the evaluation, identification and diagnosis of referred students.  Monitors the screening, identification, and placement procedures to ensure compliance with state and federal guidelines.  Provides for reevaluation of students.  Provides for preparation and maintenance of pupil personnel files for qualified special education students.  Attends and/or provides for the attendance of appropriate personnel at meetings for students with special needs. Maintains records and documentation for each special education student. 
• Reviews applications, screens applicants, and works with principals to recommend teachers for special education classes. Supervises all related services personnel, including speech therapists, nurses, psychologists, special education administration and clerical staff. 
• Prepares and monitors expenditures of budget as defined in IDEA grant, IDEA Preschools grant, Medicaid, and all other related grant proposals. 
• Conducts reviews of equipment, materials, procedures, methods, and other aspects of special education to determine program needs and appropriate use.  Maintains inventory records of special services, equipment and materials. 
• Insures involvement of parents, professionals and community members in the special education program. 
• Plans and supervises the staff development activities of the special education faculty and staff. 
• Develops and prioritizes staff development activities to regular educators in the areas of IDEA and Section 504, including all governing federal and state rules and regulations. 
• Collaborate with other members of the Instruction Department in implementation of academic programming.  
• Willingness to perform other duties as assigned or requested. 

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities 

• Knowledge to perform basic math; read technical information, compose a variety of documents, and/or facilitate group discussions; and analyze situations to define issues and draw conclusions.   
• Specific knowledge required to satisfactorily perform the functions of the job includes pertinent codes, policies, regulations and/or laws, and current recruiting trends and practices.  
• Skills to operate standard office equipment including utilizing pertinent software applications; planning and managing projects and programs; developing effective working relationships; preparing and maintaining accurate records.  
• Ability to collaborate with families and community members of diverse cultural and educational backgrounds. Ability to manage personnel and programs; effective written and verbal communication skills; problem solving skills. 
• Ability to make independent judgments; ability to keep and maintain accurate records and to meet deadlines. 
• Ability to work independently under broad organizational guidelines to achieve unit objectives; leading, guiding, and/or coordinating others; and directing the use of budgeted funds within a work unit.  
• Ability to utilize some resources from other work units may be required to perform the job's functions.  

Special Requirements 

• Must have and maintain a valid Driver’s License or ability to provide own transportation 
• Travel to school district buildings and professional meetings 
• Prior to beginning employment, negative tb test results must be provided 

Physical Requirements/Work Conditions 

• Work requires the occasional exertion of up to ten pounds of force 
• Work regularly requires exchange of accurate and detailed information through oral and written communication 
• Constantly operates a computer and other office business equipment 
• Ability to remain in stationary position for required meetings/work 
• Ability to move to other work locations 
• Visual acuity requires preparing and analyzing written or computer data, determining the accuracy and thoroughness of work, and observing general surroundings and activities 
• Hearing is required to perceive information at normal spoken word levels, and to receive detailed information through oral communications 
• Work requires preparing and analyzing written or computer data, operating standard office equipment, and the use of advanced technology 
• Work is generally in a moderately noisy location (e.g., business office, light traffic) 
• Requires the ability to deal with people beyond giving and receiving instructions 
• Must be adaptable to performing under mild to high levels of stress 

Application Requirements 

Applicants must submit official transcripts, three professional references with at least one supervisory reference and a copy of the appropriate credentials as part of the application process. 

Pre-Onboarding Requirements 

As a condition of employment and prior to onboarding, the district will conduct a criminal history background check. The recommended candidate will be required to provide personal information necessary to complete the background check such as date of birth, gender, and race to remain in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. 

Disclaimer 

The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees in this job. Job description is sourced from employee interviews, internal documents, representative job descriptions in similar districts, and other state/federal agencies. 

Rock Hill Schools provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.