Behavior Support Specialist

Laura Baker Services Association; Northfield (MN); Hybrid; USD 52,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

Laura Baker Services Association is seeking a Behavior Support Specialist to help persons with IDD through assessments, planning, and collaborative support across settings. You will engage with clients, families, and care teams to tailor practical, person-centered strategies that improve stability and quality of life.

The role emphasizes observation, intake conversations, and translating insights into Behavioral Support Plans, with documentation and supervision as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in social work or related field.
• Two years of professional assessments experience with clients.
• Clear verbal and written communication.
• Passion for helping people with IDD reach goals.

Responsibilities

• Observe clients directly or indirectly in homes, programs and community settings.
• Lead intake conversations with clients and primary caregivers.
• Review assessments from outside providers and coordinate with case managers.
• Develop Behavioral Support Plans used across settings.
• Document clearly and communicate reliably; seek supervision when needed.

Skills

Verbal and written communication

Client assessment experience

Collaboration with multidisciplinary团队

Person-centered approach

Education

Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or related field

Master’s level program completion with internship in IDD

Job description

Turn Understanding Into Opportunity

At Laura Baker Services Association (LBSA), we believe every person deserves the opportunity to be understood and supported and empowered to build a meaningful life. Our mission is to support the life choices and dreams of people with IDD and help them reach their goals. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and licensed 245D provider, we have advanced that belief since 1897, when Miss Laura Baker founded her group home residential school based on the then-radical idea that people with disabilities could learn, grow, contribute, and thrive. One year later, she brought the school to Northfield, Minnesota, where it became The Laura Baker School.

Today, LBSA carries that vision forward through education, 24 hour supported housing, music and art therapy, in-home services, respite events, Family Navigation, and Behavioral Support Services. Across every program, our focus remains the same: helping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities flourish in the places and relationships that shape their daily lives.

Whole-Person Support, Grounded in Partnership

Behavioral Support Services begins with a vital understanding: people with intellectual and developmental disabilities may also experience mental and behavioral health needs—and meaningful progress comes from seeing the whole person, not simply a diagnosis or behavior. As part of this growing LBSA program, you will collaborate with clients, caregivers, and support teams to strengthen stability, improve quality of life, and uncover what behavior may be communicating.

The work happens where life happens. You will travel to client homes, day programs, schools, workplaces, and other community settings throughout portions of southeast and south-central Minnesota, including Scott, Dakota, Rice, Olmsted, and Goodhue counties.

Your Role and Impact

As a Behavior Support Specialist, you will get to know people with IDD and their support systems so you can pair thoughtful assessment with practical, person-centered action. You will observe clients directly or indirectly across the environments they navigate each day, lead intake conversations with clients and primary caregivers, and review assessments from outside providers, partner with case managers and multidisciplinary teams. Along the way, you will maintain clear documentation, communicate reliably, and draw on supervision when complex challenges call for additional perspective.

Your work will connect the dots. By bringing together interviews, records, observations, strengths, needs, environments, and goals, you will create a fuller picture of each person and ensure that support circles have access to the tools that will help them be successful. You will then translate that understanding into service recommendations and practical Behavioral Support Plans that can be used across settings, equip caregivers and support teams, and help others recognize behavior as meaningful communication.

You will also help shape the future of a developing program. Working with Behavioral Support Services and LBSA leadership, you may create program resources, strengthen service approaches, and develop presentations for community partners and professional conferences. Your ideas will help expand understanding, build community capacity, and open more pathways to effective support.

Services are delivered in person, virtually, and through other technology-based communication. This hybrid position offers flexibility to respond to client needs and requires at least two days each week in the Northfield office for documentation, collaboration, and supervision.

What You'll Bring

• Bachelor’s degree in social work, Psychology, Sociology, Special Education, or a related field

• At least two years of professional experience conducting assessments, working directly with clients, and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams

• Clear, professional verbal and written communication skills

• A passion for ensuring that people with IDD can reach their goals and dreams.

What Will Help You Stand Out

• Direct experience supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and partnering with their caregivers

• Strong organization, sound time management, and a reliable record of meeting deadlines

• Knowledge of the systems that shape life in the IDD community and a commitment to thoughtful advocacy and positive change

• Creativity, adaptability, and practical problem-solving when developing support strategies

• Cultural humility and the ability to honor each stakeholder’s language, values, beliefs, and cultural needs in conversations, reports, and plans

• Genuine curiosity and a drive to help every client feel seen, understood, and equipped to thrive

• Completion of a master’s-level program in one of the fields listed above, along with internship experience in the IDD community

Additional duties may be assigned with clear communication, preparation, and appropriate support.