Extended School Year (ESY) Special Education Instructional Aide

Job Description

Title: Special Education Instructional Aide

Division: Special Education 

Reports To: Extended School Year (ESY) Program Coordinator and ESY Teacher

Status: Part-time, Non-Exempt, CalSTRS Retirement Eligible

Salary: $25.00/hr

2025 Schedule:  June 23 - July 21, 8:00AM - 1:30PM (and Professional Development on June 18)

Summary

Under the supervision of the Extended School Year (ESY) Program Coordinator and ESY Teacher, the Special Education Instructional Aide will assist with instruction and support of designated Special Education students by performing a variety of instructional support duties to individuals or small groups of students within the special education setting or regular classroom summer school setting. These duties shall be designed to complement the instructional program to maximize the learning opportunity and academic progress of students. The Instructional Aide will also assist in the establishment and implementation of appropriate classroom and MWA school-wide behavior norms, expectations, and practices. 

Essential Functions

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

Instruction

• Work with students in small groups or individually to tutor, reinforce, or follow up learning activities in core academic, language, and/or specialized subject areas.
• Prepare and set up instructional materials and/or equipment for use in classroom activities; maintain instructional material and equipment.
• Provide support to classroom teachers to create curriculum modifications for students, based on observations.
• Assist in establishing and maintaining a clean, safe, and cooperative classroom and learning environment. Use data to help inform discussions about student learning and progress with staff.
• Assist in the implementation of behavior intervention plans which may involve use of approved positive reinforcement strategies, behavior modification, other skills or knowledge to establish and maintain appropriate behaviors.

Collaboration

• Facilitate and support social interactions and foster the development of positive relationships between students with disabilities and their non-disabled peers.
• Assist all students by modeling appropriate behavior and attitudes and providing emotional support and general guidance.
• Support students to be active participants on field trips and community building experiences. 
• Support communication home to families of student progress during summer programming. 
• Collaborate and communicate frequently with the ESY Teacher and summer school general education teachers and staff. 

Mission Alignment

• Demonstrate knowledge and support of Making Waves Academy’s mission, core values, standards, competencies, and code of conduct outlined in the Employee Handbook.
• Participate in the school community – attending school competitions, performances, assemblies, and extracurricular activities. 
• Participate in required campus supervision duties as needed.

Work Environment

• This job operates in an office and school environment and routinely uses standard office equipment.
• Some travel required for MWA related events, such as workshops or conferences.

Physical Demands

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be regularly required to move around campus, stand, sit, talk, hear, reach, stoop, kneel, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer, phone, and keyboard.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision requirements due to computer work.
• Light to moderate lifting may be required.

Work Environment

This job operates in a classroom environment. This role routinely uses standard classroom equipment such as laptop computers, photocopiers, whiteboards and Chromebooks.

Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be required to sit or stand for long periods of time, and lift items more than 10 lbs.

Qualifications

Education and Experience

• Associate’s degree desired and experience working with special education students in an educational setting. Previous mentorship experience is desirable. Teaching experience is very desirable
• Understanding of and ability to implement restorative justice practices
• Experience working with students and families from historically underserved communities 

Skills and Abilities

• Ability to work collaboratively and effectively 
• Comfortable learning and using the digital tools MWA uses, and willing to try out new technologies and work tools
• Excellent communication (written and verbal) and interpersonal skills. Ability to teach and build relationships with students and their families. Spanish language proficiency preferred but not required
• Highly organized, goal-oriented, and focused on outcomes. The ability to be proactive and meet strict deadlines
• Willingness to model, uphold and reinforce school policies and procedures
• Professional orientation – appearance, communication, organization, and attitude
• Strong problem-solving skills 

Licenses or Certificates 

• Employment eligibility will include fingerprints/Live Scan, tuberculosis (TB) screening, and other employment clearance
• Current Paraprofessional Certification

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Reasonable Accommodation
Consistent with its obligations under the law, MWA will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of his or her job.

Equal Employment Opportunity Is Our Policy

Making Waves Academy is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of the School to afford equal employment and advancement opportunities to all qualified individuals without regard to their perceived or identified: race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and hairstyle, including but not limited to braids, locks, and twists); color; gender, (including gender identity, gender expression, and transgender identity, whether or not the employee is transitioning or has transitioned); sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and medical conditions related to such); religious creed (including religious dress and grooming practices); marital/registered domestic partner status; age (forty (40) and over); national origin or ancestry (including native language spoken and possession of a driver’s license issued to persons unable to prove their presence in the U.S. is authorized by federal law); physical or mental disability (including HIV and AIDS); medical condition (including cancer and genetic characteristics); taking of a leave of absence pursuant to the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”), Pregnancy Disability Leave (“PDL”) law, Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”), the Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), or laws related to domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking laws; genetic information; sexual orientation; military and veteran status; or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy extends to all job applicants and employees and to all aspects of the employment relationship, including the hiring of new employees and the training, transfer, promotion, discipline, termination, compensation and benefits of existing employees. For a full copy of our non-discrimination policy, visit: https://bit.ly/mwapublicnotices