Summary

School psychologists provide direct and/or indirect support and interventions to students, consult with teachers, families, and other school-employed mental health professionals (i.e., school counselors, school social workers) to improve support strategies, work with school administrators to improve school-wide practices and policies, and collaborate with community providers to coordinate needed services.

Description

School Psychologist

**$5,000 signing bonus provided**

Location: Chisago Lakes High School

Position Purpose            
School psychologists provide direct and/or indirect support and interventions to students, consult with teachers, families, and other school-employed mental health professionals (i.e., school counselors, school social workers) to improve support strategies, work with school administrators to improve school-wide practices and policies, and collaborate with community providers to coordinate needed services. Through their work, school psychologists help SCRED member districts and buildings successfully implement a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework in order to: improve academic achievement, promote positive behavior and mental health, support diverse learners, create safe, positive school climates, strengthen family-school partnerships, improve school-wide assessment and accountability, and monitor individual student progress in academics and behavior.

Essential Duties

  • MTSS Implementation
    • Promote and assist in effective and efficient school-wide implementation of an MTSS framework for both academics and social emotional learning, in partnership with building administrators and teams
    • Facilitate the problem solving team (PST) in each building, ensuring that each PST is:
      • using standard data for decision making
      • defining problems in observable and measurable terms
      • collecting sufficient information for intervention planning
      • developing detailed intervention plans
      • evaluating integrity of implementation
      • supporting classroom teachers or interventionists in data collection activities
      • graphing intervention effectiveness
    • Participate in various data team meetings within each building
    • Provide consultation to parents and/or teachers regarding social emotional learning and/or academic difficulties, utilizing the SCRED 5-step problem-solving model: Problem Identification, Problem Analysis, Plan Development, Plan Implementation, and Plan Evaluation
    • Assist in conducting needs assessments to support various resource allocation and/or programming decisions
  • Special Education Leadership
    • Facilitate Student Support Team (SST) meetings
    • Attend special education department meetings
    • Serve as a liaison between SCRED and its member districts, in promotion of a positive, collaborative culture
    • Provide consultation on special education due process to staff and parents
    • Assist in the improvement of special education services (e.g., program evaluation, evaluation/service process, resource allocation, transitions), under the direction of SCRED Administration and the principal
    • Facilitate the child find process by assisting in responding to referrals for initial special education evaluations for students suspected of having disabilities
    • Assist in coordinating the reevaluation process for students receiving special education and related services
    • Administer and interpret intellectual ability tests, social behavior assessments, and adaptive assessments as part of comprehensive evaluations for current and potential special education students when necessary
    • Assist in the planning process for the provision of Extended School Year (ESY) services in building(s)/district of assignment
    • Assist with facilitating transition planning, including attending IEP meetings (as needed) for children moving from ECSE programs to kindergarten, elementary to secondary, or between buildings and programs
    • Support special education staff in reviewing progress monitoring data on IEP goals and designing appropriate interventions
    • Assist with state compliance review activities, including the implementation of any resulting corrective action plans
    • Serve as an active member of the SCRED Implementation Team (I-Team)
    • Plan and implement professional learning opportunities at SCRED and building(s)/district of assignment
  • Academic Assessment and Services
    • Support building-wide academic screening processes
    • Complete diagnostic assessments in reading, math and written expression, as deemed appropriate by the Problem Solving Team or Student Support Team
    • Develop, implement and monitor the fidelity of academic interventions, as requested
    • Assist in ensuring compliance with child find requirements related to the implementation of Scientific Research-Based Interventions
  • Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Assessment and Services
    • Provide direct SEL services to individuals, small groups, classrooms or school-wide, as requested
    • Provide direct counseling services to individuals or groups, as requested
    • Complete mental health screenings and assist students,  families, and school staff in determining appropriate mental health supports, both internally and through outside agencies
    • Complete function-based behavior assessments (FBAs), when deemed appropriate by the Problem Solving Team or Student Support Team
    • Assist in the development of Behavior Support Plans (BSPs), in collaboration with special education staff to write Behavior Support Plans, and track BSPs data with integrity checks
    • Gather and organize data to assist teams in making manifestation determination, when needed
    • Provide behavior consultation services to general education and special education staff
  • Crisis Response Services
    • Facilitate crisis response procedures and participate in the school’s crisis team at the discretion of the building principal
    • Provide consultation in crisis prevention and response
    • Complete student risk assessments when necessary
    • Assist in completing student threat assessment activities when necessary
    • Provide an immediate response to students, families, and school staff in crisis situations and determine when a referral to an outside agency is needed
  • Other Duties
    • Perform other duties as assigned

Education & Training

  • Minimum: Master’s Degree in School Psychology (internship year)
  • Education Specialist or Doctorate in School Psychology (all other candidates)

Work Experience
Preferred: Three or more years working in a related position.

Licensure/Certification

  • Minimum: MN Teaching Licensure in School Psychology or ability to obtain licensure
  • Preferred: Nationally Certified School Psychologist

Personal Skills

  • Ability to work collaboratively on a team
  • Organizational skills to manage multiple projects independently
  • A passion and willingness to learn and help others learn
  • Strong oral and written communication skills
  • Adaptability based on changing needs
  • Solutions-focused problem-solving skills
  • Adept in using and learning new technology

Physical Demands

  • Travel within assigned district; occasional travel to the SCRED office and outside of the SCRED member districts
  • Frequent computer use including long periods without movement
  • The use of physical restraint with students demonstrating behaviors that constitute an emergency