USS Behavior Support Specialist 26/27 SY

Nimble; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Indianapolis Public Schools seeks a Behavior Support Specialist to address social, emotional, and mental health barriers to learning. You will plan, coach, and model interventions for school teams, focusing on MTSS, equitable practices, and student-centered supports.

Certification in special education or related fields is required. The role involves data-driven collaboration with teachers and administrators, delivering professional development, and linking families to community resources to

Qualifications

• Certification by Indiana DOE or ability to be fully certified.
• 5–7 years of experience in special education or related field.
• Familiar with IDEA and state regulations (Article 7).

Responsibilities

• Advocate for equitable, student-centered instruction and climate.
• Support schools in defining and measuring behaviors and implementing MTSS.
• Provide professional development on crisis intervention, restorative practices, and data-driven interventions.
• Maintain student progress records and coordinate data from multiple sources.
• Collaborate with teachers, families, and USS on interventions and transitions.

Skills

Communications

DEI mindset

Organizational agility

Conflict resolution

Data analysis

Team collaboration

Education

Indiana DOE certification

5–7 years experience in special education/related field

Knowledge of IDEA and Article 7

Job description

TITLE: USS Behavior Support Specialist

Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) is a student-focused, innovative educational organization committed to academic excellence. Our mission is to empower and educate all students to think critically, creatively, and responsibly, to embrace diversity, and to pursue their dreams with a purpose. We are a family of excellent public schools in which every student has the opportunity to succeed and the power to create their own future.

Led by forward-thinking leadership and our commitment to prioritizing students, racial equity, and authentic engagement with our families, team members, and communities, our staff have diverse opportunities to develop their careers in a challenging but rewarding environment. We are an organization for people who are passionate about education and who are committed to the Indianapolis community.

SUMMARY OF OPPORTUNITY:

The Unified Student Supports team islooking for an experienced educator with special education certification, social work or school counselor certification, or significant experience in growing teachers’ seamless application of positive intervention and behavior supports in the school setting.The Behavior Support Specialist will positively impact student success by addressing barriers to student learning, including but not limited to the social, emotional, and mental health challenges that some students must overcome with the support of skillful practitioners. The Behavior Support Specialist will recommend, plan, coach, and model interventions and supports for school team members (teachers, social workers, etc.)as dictated by students’ needs on their caseload.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

The following outlines what your core duties and responsibilities will be for this position and provides a sample overview of what your day-to-day may look like.

Core Duties and Responsibilities

• Serve as the first and strongest advocate for racial and ableness equity and student-centered approaches to instruction, intervention, and student engagement
• Demonstrate thorough knowledge of best practices relating to building positive culture and climate in the classroom for all types of learners (to include students with disabilities, students with 504 services, multilingual learners, etc.)
• Effectively support schools with defining and measuring behaviors; understanding principles of reinforcement; analyzing data to identify antecedents and functions of behavior; coaching and modeling positive strategies for weakening inappropriate behavior, and problem-solving to align resources, interventions, and supports
• Analyze data- assessments, attendance, discipline, academics, and other pertinent information - to determine appropriate interventions to reduce suspensions and other disciplinary occurrences while improving student engagement and academic achievement in the general education environment
• Collaborate with school teams during MTSS/Problem-solving meetings to identify students with the most need and recommend appropriate Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions
• Provide professional development to individual teachers, groups of teachers, and/or entire school staff on issues related to crisis intervention, learning and collaborations, restorative practices, and factors that can affect the development and implementation of interventions and/or student progress
• Maintain records of students served and their progress
• Assist in the collection and compilation of student, parent, teacher, and community data.
• Attend professional meetings
• Discusses pupils' academic and behavioral attitudes and achievements with the teacher.
• Engage in ongoing professional development to increase knowledge and skill of positive student behavior supports for all students and targeted students
• Provide assessment and instruction/intervention at the school-wide prevention level, at the targeted classroom/small group level, and at the individual behavioral/mental health level to address issues that present learning readiness
• Utilize student, school, and community data to plan, identify, and implement evidence-based, culturally competent prevention strategies to meet student needs
• Evaluate multiple datasets (including but not limited to Panorama, attendance, discipline, classroom observation, and the Thinking Skills Inventory) in order to intentionally and strategically respond to student need
• Consults with school staff and parents regarding strategies for helping students cope with personal and social concerns
• Access and link community resources to students, families, and the school in response to identified needs. (Note: To accomplish this responsibility home and agency visits are required.)
• Ability to problem-solve, support, and model behavioral systems, processes, and strategies
• Ability to work collaboratively with teachers, building leaders, and USS members
• Experience in aligning teachers’ systems and processes to student outcomes in order to translate the critical connection for teachers engaged in the coaching cycle
• Ability to relate, motivate, and inspire teachers to strive to new heights
• Provide weekly updates to USS admin on coaching data to inform systematic professional development (for the district, LC, or school)
• Communicate effectively, and in a timely manner, with school staff, parents and guardians, USS and district staff
• Support with student transitions (bridging) and transition planning
• Work with building leadership to discuss, strategize and problem solve trends in discipline and/or climate and culture classroom level data to support teachers’ use of research-based interventions and data-response
• Ensure MTSS isthe backbone of all coaching, intervention planning and monitoring, strategic data response, etc.
• Advocate for and model strong school-family partnerships to ensure students have as few barriers to achievement as possible
• Consistently contribute to a positive team culture by being direct and transparent and helpful and collaborative, while prioritizing a customer service orientation
• Other duties as assigned by the USS administrative team

“Day In the Life” Overview

On a regular day, as the Behavior Support Specialist, you might:

• Review referrals for student support and facilitate a student observation
• Make immediate recommendations on classroom-based interventions or practices that support the referred student
• Work with the Equitable Supports Coach to support teacher developmentif the lack of effective classroom systems and processes are impeding more than the referred student’s ability to productively engage in rigorous instruction
• Engage with the school-based team members and parents of a referred student to ensure the behavior intervention plan process fosters student and family voice and buy-in
• Collect and review multiple datapoints to identify underlying need or the impact of recommended interventions for students on the caseload (i.e. attendance, discipline, classroom observation, grades, assessment, etc.)

WHAT YOU’ll BRING: SKILLS AND MINDSETS

As an ideal candidate for this role, you will be able to achieve the following:

• Highly-developed communications skills (written/verbal) and interpersonal savvy
• Results/action-orientation; project management skills
• Racial equity mindset and other critical indicators related to DEI
• Organizational agility; developed negotiation skills
• Unquestionable personal code of ethics, integrity, diversity and trust
• Able to successfully navigate within varying degrees of ambiguity in a fast-paced environment
• Strong strategic analysis skills
• Ability to be creative in developing alternatives to meet students’ iInstructional needs
• A track record of developing and maintaining strong working relationships with and among a diverse group of actors
• Close attention to detail coupled with the ability to exercise good judgment
• Proactive nature; able to anticipate conflicts before they arise
• Ability to work well independently as well as collaboratively
• Ability to execute meetings, calls and emails with professionalism, courtesy and accuracy
• Personal qualities of maturity, humility, strong work ethic, sense of humor, and diligence
• Ability to effectively allocate and prioritize time to several tasks to ensure completion of all

EDUCATION, CERTIFICATION, AND LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS

• Certification or ability to be fully certified by the Indiana Department of Education
• 5 to 7 years of experience as a skillful practitioner and evidence of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to execute this role at a high level
• Working knowledge of federal and state special education and 504 laws, rules, and practices including IDEA and Article 7

FLSA CLASSIFICATION:

Exempt

ELIGIBILITY FOR REMOTE WORK:

Not eligible

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

The physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to finger, handle, or feel; talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to stand and walk. The employee is occasionally required to sit; reach with hands and arms; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

EEOC STATEMENT:

Indianapolis Public Schools, in accordance with its nondiscrimination policies, will not discriminate in its programs, facilities, or employment or educational opportunities on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry, sex, age, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, veteran or military status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, familial status, domestic violence victim status, homelessness or any other legally recognized protected basis under federal, state or local laws, regulations, or ordinances. Indianapolis Public Schools does not tolerate any form of retaliation or bias-based intimidation, threat, or harassment that demeans individuals’ dignity or interferes with their ability to learn or work.

DISCLAIMER:

Essential functions, as defined under the Americans with Disabilities Act, may include any of the above representative duties, knowledge, and skills. This job description is illustrative only, and is not a comprehensive list of all essential functions and duties performed by the occupant of this position. Factors such as regular and punctual attendance are not routinely listed in job descriptions, but are an essential function.