Speech-Language Pathologist - Chattanooga TN - $6k Signing Bonus

Job Description

Job Description

ABOUT THRIVE THERAPIES

Thrive Therapies Group is a pediatric healthcare organization on a mission to revolutionize the care of children with disabilities and those facing barriers to access. We provide results-driven services and intelligent tools to support children’s development, well-being, and health. At the heart of this mission are the people who change the trajectories of children’s lives. We work for them.

We work exclusively in K–12 schools — because school is where clinical care becomes transformative. Roughly half of all children identified with a disability receive their services in schools, not in healthcare settings. For many of those children, the school-based clinician is the care. Thrive is built around that reality.

We work exclusively with historically under-resourced, neurodiverse K–12 communities. Equity isn’t a tagline — it’s the core of why we exist. Our school partners request Thrive by name because they want better outcomes for students with disabilities.

WHAT MAKES THRIVE THERAPIES DIFFERENT

OUR MISSION

There are organizations that place clinicians in schools. Thrive is something different. We are a pediatric healthcare organization built around a singular belief: that school is where clinical care becomes transformative — that a therapy goal in a clinic is a therapy goal, but a therapy goal in a school becomes a friendship on the playground, a kid who feels they belong, a child who gets to participate in the full arc of childhood. Everything we build — our technology, our workload model, our clinical community — exists to protect that work and the clinicians who deliver it.

THE WORKLOAD MODEL

Thrive uses a workload model that accounts for the full scope of SLP work — direct therapy, evaluations, IEP writing, meetings, documentation, and travel — and sizes your assignment to be sustainable for the long haul.

THE TECHNOLOGY

Our AI-powered tools were built by clinicians who were tired of losing evenings to documentation. They handle evaluation report generation, session notes, paperwork, and progress summaries — and they give our clinicians 10+ hours back every week. The tools are continuously improved based on clinician feedback. They belong to you as much as anyone.

THE CLINICAL COMMUNITY

You have a community here and are never alone. You have clinical supervision through a role-alike leader, quarterly professional development led by Thrive’s Senior Director of Related Services — substantive, school-based, and built for your level of expertise, and monthly role-alike communities of practice for case conferencing. You have a paid Summer Intensive that brings the full clinical team together each year. And you have peers across the organization you can reach every day.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

As a Thrive SLP in the Greater Chattanooga, TN region, you will deliver evidence-based speech and language services to students K–12 with a range of communication needs: language disorders, articulation and phonological delays, fluency, voice, and complex/AAC users. You will evaluate, diagnose, develop IEP goals, deliver direct and consultative services, and collaborate with special education teams, general educators, families, and related services providers to build inclusive, data-driven intervention plans. You are a full member of the community.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

EVALUATION & ELIGIBILITY

• Conduct comprehensive speech and language evaluations using standardized and dynamic assessment tools (CELF, GFTA, TOLD, PLS, CASL, and others) to determine eligibility for services under IDEA and applicable state standards

• Complete full psycholinguistic profiles including receptive/expressive language, phonology, fluency, voice, and pragmatics as appropriate to the referral

• Write evaluation reports that are clinically rigorous, legally defensible, and accessible to IEP team members across disciplines

• Participate in eligibility determination meetings and provide clinical interpretation of results to families, educators, and administrators

• Conduct re-evaluations (triennials) in accordance with IDEA timelines

IEP DEVELOPMENT & SERVICE DELIVERY

• Develop individualized IEP goals that are measurable, standards-aligned, and meaningful to the student’s educational and communicative participation

• Deliver direct individual and small-group therapy sessions aligned to IEP goals across articulation, language, fluency, voice, AAC, and social communication

• Provide consultative services to general and special education teachers on communication strategies, classroom accommodations, and language-based learning supports

• Participate in IEP meetings as the SLP of record, including annual reviews, amendment meetings, and manifestation determinations when relevant

• Maintain accurate, timely service logs and progress notes in compliance with state documentation requirements — supported by Thrive’s AI documentation tools

COLLABORATION & TEAMING

• Partner with special education teachers, OTs, PTs, BCBAs, school psychologists, and mental health clinicians on integrated, student-centered IEP teams

• Communicate regularly with families about student progress, home strategies, and upcoming IEP decisions in a way that is clear, warm, and jargon-free

• Consult with classroom teachers on language-based learning challenges, vocabulary development, reading comprehension, and written language supports

• Contribute to RTI/MTSS Tier 1 and Tier 2 language screening and progress monitoring at the universal level

• Coordinate with outside providers, medical professionals, and community agencies when clinically appropriate

AAC & SPECIALIZED POPULATIONS

• Evaluate for and implement augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems — including high-tech devices (Proloquo2Go, TouchChat, LAMP) and low-tech supports — for students with complex communication needs

• Train classroom staff, paraprofessionals, and families on AAC implementation and aided language stimulation strategies

• Serve students with a range of diagnoses including autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, developmental language disorder, and acquired communication disorders

• Implement evidence-based approaches including PROMPT, Lidcombe, DTTC, PECS, social thinking frameworks, and language experience approaches as appropriate to each student’s profile

QUALIFICATIONS

REQUIRED

• Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from a CAA-accredited program

• Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) from ASHA, OR active Clinical Fellowship (CF) with CCC-SLP supervision provided by Thrive

• Active state SLP license in good standing, or documented initiation of licensure transfer prior to start date

• Knowledge of IDEA, IEP process, eligibility criteria, and special education law as it applies to SLP services in K–12 settings

PREFERRED

• 1+ years of school-based SLP experience (CF year in a school setting counts)

• Experience with AAC evaluation and implementation

• Bilingual (Spanish) — bilingual SLPs are strongly encouraged to apply; additional compensation applies

• Familiarity with RTI/MTSS frameworks and universal screening protocols

• Experience serving students with autism, complex communication needs, or significant cognitive disabilities

COMPENSATION STRUCTURE

Compensation is paid over 10 months, aligned to the school-year calendar. All figures below reflect the Greater Chattanooga, TN market.

Base Compensation

W-2 Base Salary

$58,000 – $70,900,based on experience

A salary that reflects the expertise you bring. W-2 employment means full benefits, paid time off, retirement match, disability coverage, and malpractice insurance — all on us. Your total compensation is built to reflect what this work is worth.

1099 Contractor Rate

$43-$53/hr/hr

If flexibility is what fits your life, we built that in. Our 1099 option puts you in control of how you work — with a competitive hourly rate, full professional supports, and your career mobility fully intact.

Additional Earning Potential!

Sign-On Bonus

$6,000 —paid 25% at 30 days,25% at 90 days,50% at 6 months

Our sign-on bonus is a signal: we’re committed to you from the moment you say yes, and we want you to feel that.

Longevity Structure

Up to $2,000 —paid after completing your first full school year

We’re building Thrive around the people who commit to this work and to each other over the long haul — because that’s who our kids and schools depend on. Every year you come back, we reward it. And it grows with you.

CEU Stipend

$750 your first year →growing up to $2,000after five years

Your practice is the whole thing. The more you grow as a clinician, the better the care our kids get. We put real dollars behind your continuing education, and it grows with your tenure. Investing in your expertise is investing in our mission.

Performance Bonus

Paid annually afterexceeding performancemetrics

When you go above and beyond for students, we notice. Our performance bonus is how we say we see you, we value what you’re doing, and this work matters.

BENEFITS OFFERINGS

HEALTH COVERAGE — AT NO COST TO YOU (W-2 Employees Only)

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance — Thrive covers 100% of employee premiums

• Coverage begins day one

• Choice of HSA-eligible high-deductible plan or traditional PPO; nationwide PPO network

• Dependent and family coverage available

• 401(k) with up to 5% company match

• Optional voluntary benefits: supplemental life, accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity, and FSA

TIME OFF & SCHEDULE (W-2 Employees Only)

• School-year calendar — school holidays off, amounting to 30+ paid days annually

• 3 PTO and 3 Sick days

ADDITIONAL PROFESSIONAL SUPPORTS (All Employees)

• Malpractice and professional liability insurance — fully covered by Thrive; no personal policy required

• Quarterly professional development led by clinical leadership — school-based, substantive, and paid

• Paid Summer Intensive — pre-year clinical PD that brings the full Thrive team together annually

• No non-compete agreement — your professional mobility is yours to keep

• Tennessee SLP licensure renewal and ASHA dues reimbursed annually; CCC-SLP exam and renewal fees covered

• CF supervision provided by in-house CCC-SLPs for Clinical Fellowship year clinicians

APPLY TODAY

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