Outreach Constultant for Students with Visual Impairments

The Opportunity: Job Overview

The purpose of this job is to promote appropriate educational practices and interventions for children who are blind or visually impaired in Central Montana. This position provides consultation and technical assistance to education professionals, families, and other service providers about service options, resources and best practices as they relate to educating children who are blind or visually impaired.

Core Impact Areas

Provide Classroom Support, Consultation, and Technical Assistance 20%

• Improve access to instruction and environment by providing recommendations to school staff, assists in procurement of adaptive materials and equipment including needed technology and large print and braille texts, troubleshoots various issues associated with assistive and adaptive technology, works with district and company tech people to troubleshoot technology issues, conducts necessary trainings with small groups and school wide staff.

Early Childhood Education and Intervention 20%

• Collaborates with Part C to participate in intake activities, provides advising and instruction to families of children who are aged birth to three regarding child development and meeting developmental goals and other needs of children who are blind, visually impaired, or deafblind, establishes and monitors Family Advisor program including recruitment, training, mentoring, reporting, approving invoices, and general oversight.

Assessment and Evaluation (specific to Consultants of the Visually Impaired) 10%

• Assists in obtaining and interpreting eye reports from doctors, performs Functional Vision Assessments and Learning Media Assessments to describe current levels of vision, recommend appropriate instructional accommodations, and to identify and recommend appropriate reading materials for visual access, conducts ongoing braille assessments, supports braille instruction teams for both pre-braille and braille readers, Assesses student keyboarding skills and supports identifying magnification needs.

Extension Programs and Other Services 15%

• Assists in the planning, facilitation, and recruitment of families and students to attend annual Family Learning Weekends, Campus Enrichment Weekends, Summer Skills Camp, and works with the MSDB Admissions Coordinator in facilitating enrollment of students who can be appropriately served by MSDB’s on-campus programs.

Office Duties and Organization 10%

• Maintains and manages student files and data within a centralized data system, completes follow-up reports, recommendations, phone contacts, and/or emails in a timely manner, organizes and facilitates issue-specific training opportunities for students, prepares reports as required or requested, develops relationships and maintains contacts with office/school/service agencies via email and other technologies, phone contacts and maintains a record of those contacts, completes and maintains annual accounting of students served on caseload and maintains annual American Printing House accounting.