Clinical Director – School Year 2020-2021 (12 months)

The Foundation Schools is a special education day school which delivers innovative school programs and support services for children and adolescents with emotional disabilities, autism spectrum disorders and other learning challenges.

For over 40 years, the combination of academic support and therapeutic services has given our students a chance to reach their full potential.

The Foundation Schools has schools in Gaithersburg, Largo and Landover, Maryland that serve over 200 students in grades K-12.

We are currently accepting resumes for Clinical Director candidates for our Landover location for School Year 2020-2021 (12 months position) The mission of The Foundation Schools is to provide a highly specialized educational and therapeutic program for students preparing them to be productive and successful in their future academic and career paths.

The Foundation Schools employs special education strategies and techniques to provide quality instruction that results in the students’ mastery of approved curriculum and that promotes social, emotional and cognitive learning.

We effectively manage student behavior through implementation of behavior management systems, school rules and policies.

Our Core Values’ provide a strong foundation for our programs, are integrated into our positive behavior intervention system, drive our actions and guide our staff and students daily to TWIRL (Teamwork, Work Ethic, Integrity, Respect, and Leadership).

We offer a supportive working environment with small class sizes and excellent resources.

The Foundation Schools offers a comprehensive benefit package including tuition assistance and a generous retirement package.

Visit our website at www.foundationschools.org for more information.

Education, Experience and Certification Master’s degree or higher in social work, psychology, counseling, psychiatric nursing or other related field is required Current Maryland clinical license (LCPC or LCSW) is required Five years successful clinical experience in child, adolescent, group, and/or family counseling required Supervisor experience preferred Demonstrated knowledge of DSM and IDEA, and their specific applications to educating students with emotional disabilities and other disabilities required Bilingual (Spanish/English) abilities are a plus KEY JOB FUNCTIONS: Assess, supervise, coach, and counsel program therapists to ensure they employ clinical strategies and techniques to provide appropriate therapeutic interventions to assist students to be school ready Ensure related services are provided to maintain 100% compliance with students’ IEPs and services are rendered as prescribed on the IEPs; review documentation to ensure compliance of required content and by the required deadlines.

Provide support and direction to all related services providers regarding documentation for Medicaid billing if applicable; ensure that permission forms are submitted annually Conduct regularly scheduled department meetings, supervision sessions, and therapeutic professional development for the clinical staff to enhance their effectiveness in the program; report to management team areas of concern Review in-take information on new students, and make appropriate clinical assignments Demonstrate knowledge and supervise the conducting of student functional behavioral assessments Oversee the assessment and completion of emergency petitions Serve as liaison to contracted related service providers (SLP, OT) to ensure services are provided to maintain 100% compliance with students’ IEPs and services are rendered as prescribed on the IEPs; review documentation to ensure compliance of required content and by the required deadlines Ensure students’ case management is provided and documented by program therapists as assigned; collaborate with parents, guardians, and outside agencies to make appropriate referrals for needed services, and look for new resources that support students’ social and emotional growth Provide direction to staff during crisis and non-crisis situations to assist staff with improving behavior management skills and decision making skills; manage the need for additional staff in crisis situations and direct staff back to other duties when appropriate; when appropriate facilitate debriefing sessions with staff to review incidents and identify people responsible for completing required documentation Follow suspension determination protocol and notify the appropriate staff of suspension determination Demonstrate knowledge of current special education laws and regulations including IDEA, FERPA, COMAR, and DCMR; monitor staff compliance with laws and regulations Participate and contribute to the management team by actively participating in management meetings; share information and observations to improve school programing Work with other members of the management team and school staff to determine the student and/or program needs, and adjust interventions and practices to best meet those needs; work with team to develop interventions and/or incentive plans when appropriate Assist with the interviewing, hiring, supervision, coaching, progressive counseling, and termination process for program therapists and other assigned support staff; complete performance evaluations and individual goal creation for assigned staff Demonstrate an understanding of how our students’ disabilities impact their behavior and ability to learn; display knowledge of students’ diagnoses and adapt intervention strategies accordingly to meet the requirements of the students’ IEPs and BIPs Effectively manage student behavior through the implementation of the behavior management system, school rules, policies, and procedures; model appropriate behavior for the students during the school day Proactively identify behaviors among all students that could lead to a crisis, an unsafe situation or disrupt the learning environment; use effective behavior management techniques to address these behaviors in order to limit the severity and length of disruptions Proactively provide supervision of students to ensure the safety and security of the school program at all times Maintain student confidentiality in accordance with The Foundation Schools Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest Statement and student record confidentiality procedures Demonstrate appropriate use of verbal de-escalation skills to manage student behaviors; utilize the behavior continuum in order to use or consider the use of the least restrictive behavioral interventions necessary; use effective, appropriate, and approved strategies during a crisis including the participation in seclusions, therapeutic holds, escorts, and student restraints when necessary; consistently and appropriately utilize and model TACT 2 techniques or classroom behavior management strategies Actively participate in committees, meetings, supervision, and professional development activities Consistently model and implement the organization’s core values to drive actions and to guide our students to incorporate Teamwork, Work Ethic, Integrity, Respect, and Leadership into positive behaviors Comply with all of The Foundation Schools’ policies, rules, protocols, and procedures Complete other duties as assigned Additional Duties as assigned