About this role
Employment Term: 200 days Salary: Based on the FY'27 EPIC Professional Salary Schedule with years of verified related experience and education Qualifications:
• Bachelor Degree preferred
• Effective interpersonal communication skills that promote relationship-building with interns, families, host business staff, Project SEARCH team members, and other community agencies
• Organizational ability, self-directedness, and initiative when given a variety of responsibilities and assigned tasks
• Ability to make decisions and problem-solve within a team
Please note: Applicants who have been dismissed or who have had their contracts non-renewed for cause by any school system, who have recent unsatisfactory evaluations by any school system, who demonstrate unsatisfactory interview performance, and/or who receive unfavorable reference recommendations by any school system will not be eligible for consideration for employment with EPIC. Position Summary: Under the direction of the administrator and in accordance with established policies and procedures, the Project SEARCH Instructor, will help develop and coordinate the Project SEARCH program and provide instruction for students enrolled. The Project Instructor delivers the employability skills curriculum and works with each intern's team to reach the goal of competitive employment. Main Duties and Responsibilities:
• Work with Special Education Teacher to recruit appropriate students with disabilities for Project SEARCH program.
• Attend IEP meetings for possible student recruits.
• Work with Special Education Teacher/Special Education Director to help connect students to appropriate community services such as State Rehabilitation Services or local Developmental Disabilities agencies through referral and eligibility processes.
• Work with host business to identify internships that build a repertoire of marketable skills that lead to competitive, integrated employment.
• Ensure that internships include measureable skills gain that is assessed according to productivity, quality, and safety benchmarks.
• Work with Special Education Teacher/Special Education Director to facilitate regular Employment Planning Meetings with interns, families, and agency personnel to determine career interests, specific job preferences, skills, and abilities to design an individualized approach to job development.
• Identify and problem solve solutions for challenges that interfere with completion of Project SEARCH and gaining and maintaining employment.
• Use universal design concepts to design and implement accommodations and adaptations needed at the internship sites.
• Use VocFit and other assessment tools to evaluate intern progress, communicate with the team, and identify additional skill/task development.
• Assess intern progress frequently, communicate that progress regularly to the Special Education Teacher/Special Education Director and make instructional and training adjustments and provide interventions for interns who are not making progress.
• Develop resumes/portfolios for each intern that document measurable skills gain, internship experiences, any certifications gained, recommendations, etc.
• Provide Project SEARCH employability skills curriculum in the classroom and reinforce in the internships to develop skills, knowledge and work habits leading to successful employment.
• Continuously update the Member Portal to maintain records of staff changes, interns' internship experiences and employment outcomes including jobs gained, wages, hours worked per week, benefits taken, etc.
• Actively participate in Project SEARCH Steering Committee and onsite team meetings.
• Coordinate travel training (when appropriate) through public transportation or other available transit methods.
• Other duties as assigned.
Working Conditions: Pleasant environmental conditions. The nature of the interns being taught requires sound judgment to maintain a safe educational environment. This program will be housed off-site at a host business and may require travel. The preceding data is intended to convey information about the job and its responsibilities, and is not an exhaustive list of skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities, and working conditions associated with it. The information contained in the job description is for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and is not an exhaustive list of duties performed by this position. Additional duties may be assigned by the Head Start Director, EPIC Administrator and/or their designee. Reports To: Special Education Director; EPIC Administrator Conditions of Employment: Recommended by the EPIC Administrator; Confirmed by the EPIC Regional Council The Eastern Panhandle Instructional Cooperative is an Equal Opportunity Employer.