Special Education Teacher

Virtual Connections Academy (located in Palatine, IL) is hiring an energetic and motivated Special Education Teacher to teach in our therapeutic day school classrooms.

Virtual Connections Academy (VCA) is a therapeutic day school that provides education and therapy for children ages 6-21 with behavioral and emotional disabilities as well as those with high-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder. At VCA, we help students with school refusal avoid more restrictive placements and eventually transition back into a full-time educational setting.

We use a combination of web-based, in-home and in-building classroom education to build rapport and make learning fun again. We utilize educational, therapeutic, family and community connections to promote academic achievement and personal/emotional growth. Our staff is fully committed to helping each student make progress and develop the skills necessary to succeed at their public school and in their adult life. The environment is based on a positive nurturing model and a strength-based approach where students receive a variety of related services such as speech and language, occupational therapy, art and music therapy, substance use counseling, and nursing services.

Please visit our school website for more information (

Our organization is seeking candidates with an Learning Behavioral Specialist License. This is an excellent opportunity for those who want to gain knowledge and experience in the fields of special education and mental health with an organization that is a leader in the field. We offer a competitive salary, benefits and tuition reimbursement to further your degree.

Duties of a Special Education Teacher include:

* Interact with students through Google Apps for Education
* Provide whole classroom behavior management while also implementing individual behavior plans
* Maintain positive leadership and participation in P.E., group therapy and other activities
* Support the educational processes to meet the needs of individual students
* Help develop, implement, and monitor student progress
* Participate and contribute to staff development activities and all-staff meetings
* Initiate and/or participate in problem-solving difficult situations involving students and/or faculty
* Implement small group or individual lesson plans created by special education teacher as needed, and complete other tasks that may be requested by the teacher
* Support teachers and therapists in home visits as needed
* This position requires travel within the northwest suburbs of Chicago as well as in-building responsibilities in Palatine, IL

Qualifications:

* Learning Behavior Specialist I licensure
* Experience working with students with special education needs

About VCA:

* Service students 6th grade- 22 years with a variety of disabilities that include: Autism, ED, OHI, etc.
* Flexible approach to servicing students with school anxiety instructionally and therapeutically including the home visits, virtually, in building options
* We are a school that serves 50 students
* 1 to 5 teacher to student ratio
* Each student is assigned a team that includes a case manager and therapist who collaborate regularly.
* Highly structured (but can/ individualized based on a student needs) incentive plan in place and supported by all staff.
* Access to OT, speech, math and reading specialist, Transition and Vocational Counselor
* Room for growth in leadership
* Monthly Field Trips to encourage attendance
* Generous monthly student incentive budgets
* Generous Classroom budget
* MacBook/Chromebook and iPhone provided
* Room for growth in leadership
* Mentoring
* Gas mileage reimbursement for home visits (based on current state amount: $0.655/mile)
* Staff outings

Job details:

* Manage caseload of 5- students (all within 4 years of age)
* Collaborate with IEP team regularly
* Manage virtual classrooms
* Post assignments to Google classrooms from various educational platforms (Edgenuity, Edmentum, IXL, etc).
* Support students with post-secondary transition plans
* Responsible for one 45 min live lesson a week.
* Build rapport with students and families
* Maintain contact with home district representatives
* Write and update IEPs

Benefits include:

* Health insurance
* Optional dental/vision insurance
* Optional 401K
* Paid sick time
* Personal time
* Tuition reimbursement
* Gas mileage reimbursement
* Professional Development Assistance
* Lunch provided
* Pay scale based on prior experience and credentials

Schedule::

* Staff hours Monday to Friday 8am-4pm
* Student schedule varies based on need

VCA provides special education services to students with:

* Chronic school attendance challenges
* Autism Spectrum Disorders
* Learning Disability
* Emotional Disability
* Other Health Impairment
* Developmental Disabilities
* Traumatic Brain Injury
* Multiple Disabilities

Work Remotely

* No

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: From $58,600.00 per year

Benefits:
* Dental insurance
* Health insurance
* Life insurance
* Tuition reimbursement
* Vision insurance

Education:
* Bachelor's (Required)

Experience:
* working with special education students: 1 year (Preferred)

License/Certification:
* LBS1/Special Educator Licensure in IL (Required)

Ability to Commute:
* Palatine, IL 60074 (Required)

Ability to Relocate:
* Palatine, IL 60074: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: In person