Specialist, Special Populations (Assessments)

District of Columbia Public Schools; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Accommodation support

Equal opportunity employer

Job summary

District of Columbia Public Schools seeks a Specialist, Special Populations (Assessments) to provide school-facing support for summative assessments with a focus on students with disabilities and English Learners, including alternate assessments and accommodations. The role develops and delivers trainings, resources, and guidance for schools.

You will oversee assessment logistics, participate in fidelity monitoring for MSAA and DLM, and collaborate with Central Services to align policies and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and three to five years of related work experience.
• Master's degree preferred.
• Experience in K-12 education with students with disabilities and/or English Learners preferred.
• Strong project management, organizational, and communication skills.
• Ability to multi-task and meet tight deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for school-facing supports for summative assessments with a focus on special populations and accommodations; manages logistics during assessment windows and post-assessment activities.
• Develops trainings on accommodations, accessibility features, and alternate assessments for diverse learners; delivers trainings to school staff and stakeholders.
• Gains expertise in DCPS/OSSE assessment policies, enables alignment with state/federal requirements, and ensures accurate data handling.
• Manages systems used for state and federally mandated assessments (Pearson TestNav, Quickbase, Canvas, Outlook, cloud storage, Excel) and improves usability.
• Collaborates with Central Services and school teams to ensure guidance and procedures meet student needs.

Skills

Project management

Organizational skills

Communication

Multitasking

Problem solving

Customer service

Proofreading

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Pearson TestNav

Quickbase

Canvas

Outlook

Microsoft Excel

Cloud storage

Job description

Job Title: Specialist, Special Populations (Assessments)

The mission of theOfficeofTeaching and Learning (OTL) is to provide educators with curricular resources, academic programs, and aligned professional development to ensure rigorous and joyful learning experiences foreverystudent. OTL team members support school-based staff in implementing DCPS's existing academic programs while simultaneously working to rethink and redesign school programming, academic and curricular resources, and educator professional development.

Divisions/Teams

TheContent and Curriculumdivision sets the vision for equity and excellence for each content area in DCPS schools by researching, creating, and curating curricular materials and providing aligned professional development experiences to ensure that all students have access to rigorous and joyful learning experiences every day in every content area. The division also supportsschools and develops curriculum and programming in arts, health, physical education, library programs, STEM, global programs, advanced andenriched instruction, and curriculum andassessmentinnovation.

TheEarly ChildhoodEducationdivision supports schools andfamilies in providingPreKstudents withcomprehensivelearningexperiencesthat foster confidenceand independence.Approximately 6,000 childrenagesthree to five attend early childhood classrooms in 78 elementary schools across the district, including several schools thatoffer Head Start programming.Thedivisionalso manages Early Stagesprogramming whichworks exclusively with children ages 2 years 8 months through 5 years 10 months and is responsible for meeting the District’s obligation under the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B (619) to develop a comprehensive child findsystemto identify and locate all preschool-age children in the District who have a disability.Thedivision alsomanages theimplementation ofDCPS' Head Startgrant.

TheLanguage Acquisitiondivisionwelcomes families of linguistically and culturally diverse backgrounds to DCPS, leads the process ofidentifyingMultilingual Learner students, and supports schools in developing programs that supports English language acquisition and academic growth.This includes support during the academic day and as part of ELSAP, which is a targeted summer program for ML students. The LAD also manages DCPS compliance with the DC Language Access Act, providing translation and interpretation resources to school and central teams.

TheProfessional Learning and EducationalTechnologydivision sets a vision for professional development for DCPS as well as createssystems, tools, and structures to increase the efficacy of professional learning initiatives. This work includes LEAP, cluster-based PD, districtPDand other learning opportunities. The team works across all DCPSoffices to increase the cohesion of professional development and broad sharing of knowledge, while exploring new avenues and opportunities for meaningful development and learning for our educators. The team also leads efforts to enhance alignment and cohesion of professional learning initiatives and the integration of educational technology.

The Specialized Instructiondivision works to reduce the opportunity gap between students with IEPs and their non-disabled peers; and increases equity and excellence in schools through specific academic programming, related services, professional learning, school leadership development, family engagement, dispute resolution, and community partnerships.

TheContent and Curriculumdivision sets the vision for equity and excellence for each content area in DCPS schools by researching, creating, and curating curricular materials and providing aligned professional development experiences to ensure that all students have access to rigorous and joyful learning experiences every day in every content area. The division also supportsschools and develops curriculum and programming in arts, health, physical education, library programs, STEM, global programs, advanced andenriched instruction, and curriculum andassessmentinnovation.

The Specialist, Special Populations (Assessments) is responsible for school-facing support for summative assessment administration in DC Public Schools with a focus on special populations (students with disabilities and English Learners) assessments, alternate assessments, accommodations, and accessibility supports, and collaboration with project owners within Central Services who manage other special populations supports. The Specialist develops and executes summative assessment trainings for school staff, develops assessment-related resources and communications, manages support systems for schools including test plan reviews, alternate assessment eligibility and participation processes, and testing accommodations verification, oversees day-to-day logistics during assessment windows, and post-assessment activities. The Specialist will work closely with the members of the Assessments Team in supporting the fidelity of administration of standardized summative assessments, including the Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA) and Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM), in all DCPS schools and other special settings (including but not limited to Non-Public placements) with a focus on training, information dissemination, cross-functional collaboration, and developing and implementing resources and guidance for schools.

This position has been designated as Protection Sensitive. Pursuant to section 410 of Chapter 4 of the D.C. Personnel Regulations; in addition to the general suitability screening, individuals applying for or occupying protection sensitive positions are subject to the following checks and tests: Criminal background check; Sex Offender Registry check; Traffic record check (as applicable).

The Specialist, Special Populations (Assessments) will report to the Director, Assessments.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The below statements are intended to describe the general nature and scope of work being performed by this position. This is not a complete listing of all responsibilities, duties, and/or skills required. Other duties may be assigned.

• Responsible for school-facing supports for summative assessments with a focus on special populations assessments and accommodations; develops and executes summative assessment trainings for school staff, develops assessment-related resources and communications, manages support systems for schools, oversees day-to-day logistics during assessment windows and post-assessment activities, including support for alternate assessments, alternate assessment eligibility processes, accommodations verification, and compliance monitoring.
• Develops a strong grasp of accommodations, accessibility features, alternate assessment eligibility requirements, and administrative considerations available to students with disabilities, students with 504 plans, and English Learners. Develops and delivers innovative in-person and virtual training throughout the year to various audiences on special populations assessments, alternate assessments, accommodations, and related policies and procedures.
• Develops an excellent grasp of protocols and policies in DCPS and OSSE associated with assessments, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), alternate assessment participation criteria, accommodations policies, and vendor requirements for assessment administration; ensures alignment with state and federal requirements and policies.
• Responsible for developing and updating systems and platforms used to implement state and federally mandated assessments administered in DCPS, including but not limited to Pearson TestNav and other assessment vendor platforms, Quickbase, Canvas, Outlook, cloud storage, and Microsoft Excel. Oversees system performance, supports accommodations verification processes, and makes improvements to ease of use for school-based staff.
• Collaborates with project owners and stakeholders across Central Services teams that support students with disabilities, English Learners, and other special populations to ensure assessment guidance, testing procedures, accommodations policies, implementation practices, and instructional programs are aligned and in the best interest of students.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and three to five years of related work experience.
• Master's degree preferred.
• Experience in K-12 education sector with students with disabilities and/or English Learners preferred.
• Exhibits strong technical skills especially in project management; possesses exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to multi-task and produce outcomes under tight deadlines and competing priorities.
• Ability to solve problems and produce quality outcomes in challenging situations and a constantly changing environment.
• Exhibits strong customer service skills and a focus on solutions.
• Possesses effective communication skills both orally and in writing.
• Possesses strong proofreading skills, including reading documents for content and context.
• Ability to read, understand, and present qualitative and quantitative data to various audiences.
• Ability to operate independently with minor supervision.

DCPS Values

• STUDENTS FIRST: We recognize students as whole children and put their needs first in everything we do.
• COURAGE: We have the audacity to learn from our successes and failures, to try new things, and to lead the nation as a proof point of PK-12 success.
• EQUITY: We work proactively to eliminate opportunity gaps by interrupting institutional bias and investing in effective strategies to ensure every student succeeds.
• EXCELLENCE: We work with integrity and hold ourselves accountable for exemplary outcomes, service, and interactions.
• TEAMWORK: We recognize that our greatest asset is our collective vision and ability to work collaboratively and authentically.
• JOY: We enjoy our collective work and will enthusiastically celebrate our success and each other.

We are an equal opportunity employer and are committed to creating an inclusive, accessible workplace. We welcome and encourage applications from individuals with disabilities. Accommodation and/or application assistance is available upon request at all stages of the application and employment process. To request accommodation, please contact [e-mail].