Severe/Cognitive Needs Teacher - Significant Support Needs (SSN)

Adams 12 Five Star Schools; Westminster (CO); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision and life保险

401(k), PERA retirement options

Job summary

Adams 12 Five Star Schools in Thornton, CO, seeks a Severe/Cognitive Needs Teacher (SSN) to deliver specially designed instruction for students with extensive needs. This 0.9 FTE?

1.0 position supports cognition, communication, and daily living skills in a 9-month calendar. The role emphasizes advocacy, collaboration with school specialists, and adherence to IDEA/Colorado requirements; experience with significant support needs is preferred.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher is required.
• Must be a minimum of 18 years old.
• Must possess the required license and endorsement or be in process with CDE within 30 days of hire.
• Criminal background check required for hire.
• Preference given to SSN Teaching Experience and/or ELL Training and/or ESL/Linguistically Diverse Education Endorsement.

Responsibilities

• Advocate for students with disabilities to ensure access to learning opportunities and equity in discipline processes.
• Assess and determine eligibility of students with disabilities and monitor progress of SMART goals.
• Develop and implement legally compliant, instructionally sound IEPs and ensure IEP implementation across settings.
• Identify students' current academic and functional performance levels and plan age-appropriate, evidence-based instruction.

Skills

Advocacy

Assessment

Compliance

Instruction

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher

Job description

Severe/Cognitive Needs Teacher - Significant Support Needs (SSN) JobID: 15970

• Position Type: Teaching: Special Education/ Teacher-Severe Cognitive Needs
• Date Posted: 11/2/2026
• Location: Arapahoe Ridge Elementary
• Closing Date: 11/04/2026

SALARY INFORMATION

• SALARY INFORMATION:
• SEE CERTIFIED SALARY SCHEDULE
• STANDARD HOURS PER WEEK: 40
• FTE: 1.0
• MONTHS PER YEAR: 9
• JOB CODE:174099
• POSITION TYPE: REPLACEMENT – PERMANENT/REGULAR
• LOCATION: THORNTON, CO.

Adams 12 Five Star Schools is deeply committed to a community of excellence, equity, and inclusion in everything we do. We commit to eliminate the predictability of who is included in excellence and who is not. Adams 12 Five Star Schools puts students first and supports our district's mission to elevate student success for every student every day in every classroom. Candidates who can contribute to our goal are encouraged to apply and to identify their strengths in this area.

SUMMARY

Significant Support Needs Teachers facilitate specially designed academic, social-emotional and activities of daily living instruction for students with extensive and diverse needs in the areas of cognition and/or learning, communication, movement and/or social/emotional abilities. These individuals may also have concurrent health, sensory, physical and/or behavioral disabilities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Advocacy

• Advocate for students with disabilities to ensure access to learning opportunities and equity in discipline processes
• Model and promote inclusive language
• Facilitate care and management of students' personal and medical needs
• Ensure students have access to appropriate communication resources

Assessment

• Assess and determine eligibility of students with disabilities
• Develop and monitor progress of SMART learning goals for each student
• Coordinate, schedule and monitor paraprofessionals
• Collaborate with classroom teachers, school psychologists, speech/language pathologists, school social workers and other special education service providers to develop integrated plans for students with disabilities
• Collaborate with families to ensure students' strengths, needs, services and progress are regularly communicated

Compliance

• Implement IDEA and ECEA regulations
• Develop and implement legally compliant, instructionally sound IEPs
• Ensure IEP implementation across settings
• Abide by all district/policies/procedures

Instruction

• Identify students' current academic and functional performance levels
• Implement SSN Quality Indicators
• Develop appropriately ambitious trajectories toward Colorado Extended Evidence Outcomes (EEO)
• Plan age-appropriate lessons incorporating evidence-based practices and identify resources for instruction
• Implement specially-designed instruction in a continuum of special education/general educational environments
• Understand or be willing to learn to how to plan and implement literacy and math instruction for students with Intellectual Disabilities
• Differentiate instruction for learners with diverse needs
• Demonstrate an understanding of student behavior and classroom management structures
• Participate in ongoing professional development sessions

EDUCATION AND RELATED WORK EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree or higher.
• Must be a minimum of 18 years old.

LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS or CERTIFICATIONS

• Criminal background check required for hire.
• Must possess the required license and endorsement for the position, or be able to obtain, or be in process with, the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) for a valid Colorado Educator License within 30 days of hire.

Preference given to candidates with SSN Teaching Experience and/or ELL Training and/or an ESL or (LDE) Linguistically Diverse Education Endorsement.

SALARY INFORMATION (FOR EXTERNAL CANDIDATES)

All salary placement on our Certified Salary schedule is dependent on the employees' education and/or work experience. Special programs teachers of students with significant support needs, structured learning services or affective needs, audiologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, school nurses, school psychologists, school social workers, and speech language pathologists shall receive experience credit for each full year of previous experience and are not limited to ten (10) years as described in Appendix A, Item 3. Additionally, one (1) step for each full year, as described in this Appendix, of service in the district as a contracted certified, classified, in‑building substitute, and/or administrative employee for educators beginning a new certified contract or returning to a certified contract. For further explanation of salary placement please refer to our Certified Master Agreement that can be found on our district website.

BENEFITS INFORMATION

Adams 12 Five Star Schools is committed to providing an environment that promotes a healthy employee population able to serve our students at the highest level. We offer a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision and life insurance as well as other programs for benefit eligible employees. The employee assistance program, voluntary life insurance through PERA, and 401(k), 403(b) & 457(b) plans are available to all employees regardless of hours worked and are available immediately (upon hire date). Tolearn more about our benefits including paid time off, please see our Benefits Overview.