Speech Language Pathologist - Provincial School Outreach

Position of Special Responsibility

Mountainside Secondary School

Start Date: January 1, 2025

End Date: June 30, 2026

FTE: 0.5

NATURE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Provincial School Outreach is a program that is funded by the Ministry of Education and is hosted by North Vancouver School District at Mountainside Secondary School. The program provides specialized in-person and virtual supports and services to school districts across British Columbia, especially those located in rural and remote regions of the province. The programs outreach consultants travel on an ongoing basis to schools throughout BC to provide in-person assessments, planning, and support to students with disabilities and diverse abilities. Consultants remain virtually connected to school and district personnel between in-person visits to provide ongoing consultation and support.

The program is hiring full-time and half-time specialists. Consultants who hold a full-time assignment travel twice per month (every second week) to provide in-person support to schools throughout the province. The remainder of their assignment is dedicated to providing virtual-educational support from the programs office at Mountainside Secondary in North Vancouver, or an alternate location if the consultant resides outside the Lower Mainland. Consultants who hold a half-time position travel one week per month and provide virtual-educational support for the equivalent of a second week each month. Because the program receives referrals on an ongoing basis the travel location for in-person support is not typically confirmed until three weeks prior to departure. Due to limited flight availability to rural and remote communities, outreach may occasionally involve travel on a weekend or holiday. Consultants who work half-time for Provincial School Outreach may maintain an assignment with another school district as long as they are able to fulfill the one week per month travel requirement of the program.

Specialist consultants place primary emphasis on serving the immediate needs of schools with priority given to providing direct and indirect service to students and families in whatever capacity is needed. Consultants use their specialization to provide support based on the unique context of every situation. In this regard, the position is quite different in nature from a conventional specialist assignment at a school. Flexibility and innovation are essential as consultants can expect circumstances at the school to change at the last minute due to any number of factors, including staff shortages. This will result in occasions when consultants need to adapt how they support students and the school during their visit. For instances in which a student is not attending school for whatever reason, PSO consultants will discuss with families the possibility of visiting the home to provide support and/or carry out an assessment. The essential service that the program provides is making its support felt by a school community through building strong relationships with students, families, and staff during in-person visits. This position involves and requires collaborative innovation and learning, to build and maintain purposeful connections and relationships across British Columbia. The successful applicant understands the unique context of working in remote and rural regions of the province and meaningfully supporting students and families of Indigenous ancestry.

NECESSARY QUALIFICATIONS

A Master's Degree in Speech and Language Pathology.

Registered membership with the College of Speech and Hearing Health Professionals of BC (CSHHPBC).

Ability to conduct assessments and design interventions for a wide variety of speech and language services

Successful experience working with children who require significant level of support in communication.

Successful experience establishing strong home-school partnerships to support students and their families.

Successful experience in assisting with the development and implementation of Individual Education Plans.

Strong communication skills as evidenced with parents, teacher and other School Based Resource Team members.

Experience developing online resources to support students.

Experience working in remote and rural communities and supporting Indigenous students and families.

Ability to take a trauma informed approach to supporting students and their families.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Successful experience in the use of augmentative and assistive technologies, including SETBC applications.

Knowledge of the K-12 curriculum and successful experience working in the public school system. GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS, ATTRIBUTES and EXPERIENCE

Strong commitment to excellence in supporting students with disabilities and diverse abilities.

Demonstrated ability to design and implement a variety of assessment practices to measure and monitor student progress effectively.

Strategies to identify learning difficulties and implement effective intervention to maximize academic success.

Demonstrated experience supporting the success of all learners in an inclusive environment.

Strong organizational skills.

Excellent oral communications, written communication, and group facilitation skills.

Superior work ethic and social emotional competencies, excellent reflective judgement, and commitment to building effective learning communities.

Comprehensive understanding of curriculum.

Confidence and proficiency in using instructional organizers, concepts, and strategies that actively engage all students in learning.

Ability to positively influence instruction, curriculum, assessment, and social-emotional learning practices in a collaborative environment.

Knowledge and understanding of the application of relevant computer technologies to teaching and learning.

Willingness to be involved in professional development, with an ongoing commitment to learn and implement new methodologies and strategies.

Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with students, parents, and staff to enhance the school as a learning community. CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

A member of the North Vancouver Teachers Association and the BC Teachers Federation.