2024-2025 Elementary Advanced Academics Specialist/Gifted and Talented

Reports To: Principal of Assigned School

 

FLSA Status: Exempt 

 

Compensation: 001 (Salary determined by experience)

 

Work Days:     181

 

FTE: 1.00

 

 

 

Elementary Advanced Academics Specialist

 

Position Summary:

 

Work collaboratively with district- and site-level staff to support and facilitate gifted and Talented programming to ensure students' instructional needs are met and maintain compliance with federal, state, and local regulations. Extending beyond gifted and Talented students, engage all students in the school with enriched learning experiences through the use of the STEAM rooms. Coordinating and facilitating Botball activities and challenge days for interested students is also required.

 

Essential Duties:

 

Gifted and Talented

 

• Develop and implement lesson plans that fulfill the requirements of the gifted and Talented program
• Plan a program of study that meets the individual needs, interests, and abilities of gifted students based on the district's goals and objectives
• Organize and facilitate the Gifted and Talented School Site Committee
• Coordinate the ongoing identification of the gifted and Talented students at the school site and communicate with parent(s)/guardian(s) about their child's individual programming options 
• Organize documentation and collection of data related to services provided to the school's gifted populations
• Work with the Planning, Research, and Evaluation (PRE) Department to ensure identified gifted and Talented students have been marked in the school information system (SIS) with correct category classification
• Assist instructional staff in developing and providing gifted and Talented students with appropriate learning activities and experiences 
• Advocate and dispel misconceptions related to giftedness and cultural implications on giftedness
• Participate in all district-level gifted and Talented education meetings throughout the school year and disseminate essential content specific information and expectations from gifted and Talented education meetings or emails in staff meetings and professional learning communities (PLCs) 
• Facilitate gifted and Talented professional development, as needed, to instructional staff
• Maintain and improve competence through participation in professional learning
• Perform other duties as assigned

 

STEAM Rooms

 

• Attend and participate in district professional development relative to STEAM
• Participate in all district-level STEAM innovator meetings throughout the school year and disseminate essential information and expectations from STEAM innovator meetings or emails in staff meetings and professional learning communities (PLCs) 
• Create an environment of curiosity, creativity, collaboration, and innovation using STEAM room products and technology that encourages students to be actively engaged in the learning process
• Design and facilitate instruction that incorporates elements from each discipline of STEAM - science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics that is inquiry-based and promotes hands-on learning through exploration
• Oversee the organization, inventory, and cleaning of STEAM room products
• Maintain equipment and supplies in the best possible condition and promote those same attitudes in students
• Provide regular professional development to school staff for STEAM integration into core classroom instruction
• Perform other duties as assigned

 

Botball

 

• Participate in professional development experiences allowing for observation, evaluation, and application of the use of technology (robotics) to support the implementation of the botball curriculum
• Organize, supervise, and conduct regularly scheduled meeting times for students to participate
• Model and deliver the student-centered botball lessons that lead students to problem-solve coding errors and meet the different robotic challenge lessons
• Maintain equipment and supplies in the best possible condition and promote those same attitudes in students
• Work with students, parent(s)/guardian(s), and both site- and district-administration to attend challenge day(s) with a group of students representing the school
• Perform other duties as assigned
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Job Specifications:

 

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required. 

 

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and/or Abilities Required):

 

• Bachelor's in education or a related field
• Oklahoma Teaching Certification in Elementary Education or Alternative/Provisional Teaching Certification as approved by the Oklahoma State Department of Education
• Oklahoma Teaching Certification in Gifted and Talented (or ability to obtain certification by the time of starting the position)
• Highly effective communication, listening, collaboration, and interpersonal skills both verbally and in writing
• Must possess the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with students, staff, parents/guardians, and the community
• Ability to work cooperatively and collaboratively with others, demonstrate self-discipline and initiative, follow state and district guidelines
• Ability to prioritize and meet deadlines while complying with established policies and procedures
• Knowledge of curriculum design and implementation
• Deep knowledge of content standards, effective instructional strategies, and assessment driven instruction
• Ability to develop and deliver training to adult learners  
   

 

Preferred Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and/or Abilities):

 

• Advanced degree from an accredited college or university
• Expert level of technology and 21st-century learning understanding and application
• Strong Google Apps for Education skills (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Sites, etc.)
• Experience or familiarity with tools such as, but not limited to Botballs, 3D printing, Makey-Makey, littleBits, Ozobot, ROK Blocks, Snap Circuits, Code Hopper, Squishy Circuits, and BeeBots
• Knowledge of statutory and regulatory requirements of gifted and Talented students 
• Knowledge of the educational needs, strategies, and materials for serving gifted and Talented students 

 

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements: 

 

The working conditions and physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

 

• May require some physical exertion
• Able to sit and/or stand for extended periods of time
• Exhibit manual dexterity to enter data into a computer
• Ability to see and read street signs and printed material with or without vision aids
• Hear and understand speech at normal classroom levels, outdoors, and on the telephone
• Speak in audible tones so that others may understand clearly in normal classrooms, outdoors, and on the telephone
• Physical agility, able to bend, stoop, sit on the floor, and climb stairs, walk, run, and reach
• Ability to lift, push, and pull up to 50 pounds
   

 

This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. The employee will also perform other reasonably related business duties as assigned by the supervisor or appropriate administrator. Oklahoma City Public Schools reserves the right to, update, revise, or change job duties as the need prevails. This document is for communication only and is not intended to imply a written or implied contract of employment. The Board of Education and Superintendent may approve alternatives to the listed qualifications.