Para Special Education Low Incidence (2026-2027 School Year)

About the role

This position assists the teacher in the education of students including instructional assistance, organization, record keeping, and management of student behavior, classroom safety, and communication with students, support staff and parents.

Responsibilities

• Supervises students in class setting as directed by the teacher or other staff
• Aids in managing classroom routines and procedures
• Aids in interventions to redirect behavior, assesses crisis situations and intervenes to defuse situations, documents any occurrences, provides feedback to develop positive self-esteem of student
• Aids the teacher by supervising school activities on or off campus during the course of the instructional day
• Aids in implementing student behavior plan
• Aids students to and from assigned areas within the building to facilitate integration efforts
• Aids the teacher in the physical setup of the classroom for group instruction, projects, and activities
• Aids in integrating technology into the classroom
• Aids students in using low vision equipment
• Aids students with adaptive magnifying equipment
• Participates in effective teaming skills, collaboration, conflict resolution and communication
• Provides individual and/or group instruction which may include regular education students in academic areas after initial instruction by teacher
• Provides feedback to students and teachers
• Aids students through the use of questioning and discussion techniques
• Aids with student engagement with the curriculum
• Aids students with the integration into regular education classroom
• Evaluates student progress on work assignments and shares information with teacher
• Aids the teacher with designing and/or planning of instruction and follow through
• Aids with scoring tests, keeping records and making reports as required by the teacher
• Demonstrates knowledge of district resources
• Prepares instructional materials and/or learning centers
• Aids in planning for the Individual Education Plan (IEP)
• Maintains high level of confidentiality of information regarding students and staff information and issues
• Models appropriate behavior for students
• Develops and maintains a professional rapport with classroom teacher and other staff
• Communicates with students, parents, instructional and support staff by letter, phone, e-mail, fax or personal contact as directed by the administrator or classroom teacher
• Observes and charts student behavior and assist in discipline of student as instructed by the teacher
• Demonstrates the ability to prioritize and organize
• Attends and participates in staff meetings, PLCs and parent conferences as required
• Acquires a minimum of 20 hours of in-service annually. After 3 years a minimum of 10 in-service hours is required. (Paras are encouraged to take advantage of in-services provided by the building or district.)
• Aids students to and from buses and assisting the drivers until departure time
• Aids in the transportation of students
• Aids in caring for student's medical needs when under the direct supervision of the school nurse or other appropriate professional
• Aids students with basic needs including but not limited to self-care, hygiene, feeding, (may include tube feeding), toileting, diapering, dressing and physical transfers
• Possesses the manual dexterity, physical ability and stamina for a full day of physical activity
• Aids and supervise students to and from assigned areas
• Demonstrates typing skills
• Demonstrates the ability to interline all Braille material for tests and daily lessons
• Assists with additional duties as assigned by supervisor

Requirements

• This position may require the ability to use SMART boards and iPads in addition to basic office equipment such as computers, copiers, scanners, and fax machine.
• Must always comply with USD 259's guidelines for equipment use.
• Limited travel between schools and central offices may be required.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or GED equivalent required
• Paras working in a Title School must have a minimum of 48 accredited college credits verifiable with a transcript or pass a state approved assessment
• Must pass the Physical Capacity Test (PCP)
• Requires in-service, training or course work in first aide, symptoms of child abuse, and/or symptoms and signs of illness
• Requires knowledge and literacy of various sign language modalities, Braille, NCI (Nonviolent Crisis Intervention) and/or other special skills