School Psychologist

School Psychologist

The school psychologist role is an integral part of the Student Support team and plays a key role in evaluating students' cognitive, emotional, and behavioral functioning to support their academic success and well-being. School psychologists assess students using a variety of tools, including standardized tests, observations, and interviews, to understand their strengths and challenges in areas such as learning, behavior, and mental health.

After conducting assessments, the school psychologist makes recommendations for the school team to best support their learning profile, tailored to each student's needs. Additionally, they support the school team in determining if students meet DC eligibility criteria for special education under the designated disability classifications.

This is a full-time, fully on-site role that will support multiple campuses with an immediate start date.

KIPP DC has partnered with students, families, and the community to create joyful, academically excellent schools across the nation's capital. Today, our network of 22 schools educate more than 7,500 students in grades PreK3-12, supported by 1,500 dedicated teachers, leaders, and staff. Our work is grounded in five pillars–Academic Excellence, Joy & Sense of Belonging, Highly Effective Teachers and Leaders, Safe, Structured, and Nurturing Learning Environments, and Commitment to College Readiness–which ensure every student is equipped with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to pursue success in college, careers, and beyond.

This role is currently required to be on-site or in schools during regular work hours.

Responsibilities

Evaluation Delivery: 40%

• Provides core services including: prevention, consultation, intervention, and assessment.
• Services include, but are not limited to, conducting observations, collecting data, reviewing student records, conferring with teachers and parents, interviewing students, planning behavior interventions, and conducting in-services and professional development. These core services are adapted to the particular needs of each student, situation, and setting.
• Routinely gathers evidence of positive outcomes resulting from psychological services delivered to students, school personnel, and parents.
• Fulfills mandates of federal and state law and the expectations of the DCPS Board of Education and school system leadership.
• Receives and reviews available developmental information from school and outside resources about student behavior(s) and selects evidence-supported or evidence-based psychological interventions.
• Accurately administers, scores, and interprets psychological measures of intelligence, personality, behavior, achievement, adaptive functioning, and developmental maturity.
• Delivers crisis response and intervention services to students, families and staff, when needed.

Stakeholder Management: 30%

• Demonstrates positive, collaborative problem-solving orientation with students, parents and guardians, educators, administrators, community members, and colleagues.
• Helps all stakeholders understand child development and how it affects student performance academically and social/emotionally.
• Serves in a consultative role with designated personnel to offer prevention and intervention strategies related to learning and behavioral problems of students; and provides consultation on an on-going basis to teachers, parents, and other school personnel to resolve students' learning and behavioral problems.
• Provides oversight to social workers and supports them in writing functional behavior assessments, developing behavior intervention plans, and tracking student responses to the behavior interventions.
• Assists in identifying needed community resources for students and makes appropriate referrals to resources to facilitate educational and behavioral interventions recommended for student success.
• Participates in hearings and due process proceedings, as needed.
• Participates in disciplinary proceedings: expulsions, manifestations, and causation meetings.
• Participates in IEP meetings to communicate the results of psychological assessments to members of the team in parent friendly language.

School and Community Support: 30%

• Demonstrates strong pedagogical content knowledge
• Implements the school-wide student management policies within classrooms and everywhere on campus
• Exhibits positive rapport with students
• Creates and fosters a positive learning environment
• Establishes and maintains strong communication lines with all parents
• Available for Open Houses, Parent-Teacher Conferences and other events involving parents outside of normal operating hours

Requirements & Preferences

Required Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in School Psychology, Educational or Clinical Psychology from an accredited institution, to include forty-two (42) semester hours of graduate level coursework and five hundred (500) clock hours of satisfactory field experience in a PreK through 12 school setting under the supervision of a certified school psychologist. See DCMR 1659.1 for additional details regarding required graduate level coursework.
• Certification as a School Psychologist by the District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE).
• Commitment to working with students with limited access to quality educational opportunities

Preferred Qualifications:

• At least two years of experience as a school psychologist
• Experience working in an urban public school

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to lift 10 pounds
• Ability to stand frequently
• Ability to travel across KIPP DC schools

Demonstrated Excellence in the Following Areas:

• Commitment to Students and Schools: Demonstrates commitment to education reform, believing in every child's potential for success and prioritizing students, schools, and the essential role of families.
• Strategic Thinking and Problem Solving: Finds creative solutions to challenges that achieve broader goals of team and organization.
• Project Management: Sets a high bar for own work and supports others to achieve desired team outcomes.
• Communications and Influence: Demonstrates adept communication skills and influence to advance work by adjusting content and style.
• Teamwork: Contributes to a supportive team culture, fostering diverse work styles and maintaining a high performance standard.
• Trust and Collaboration: Establishes and nurtures effective relationships with a diverse set of stakeholders to support the best outcomes for our work.
• Cultural Humility: Advances KIPP DC's commitment to anti-racism by creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for all stakeholders.
• Continuous Learning: Commits to continuous learning through feedback, self reflection, humility, and action.

KIPP DC offers an extremely competitive compensation and benefits package:

• Related service provider salaries are exempt and start at $82,620 and increase with years of experience. Related service providers can earn up to $4,000 in renewal add-ons to their base salary each year they return to KIPP DC.
• KIPP DC offers a robust benefits package including medical, dental, and vision insurances; various voluntary benefits; and employer paid benefits such as short term disability, long term disability, life insurance, and a membership to One Medical.

KIPP DC also offers a 403(b) retirement account with a 3% employer contribution and a 3% match with vesting after three years.

Currently, individuals in this role have up to 10 paid sick days, 12 paid holidays, paid Thanksgiving week break, winter break, spring break, and summer break. This is subject to change and your exact schedule will be shared in your offer letter.

Equal Employment Opportunity Employer

KIPP DC Public Schools does not discriminate against, or tolerate discrimination against, employees or applicants for employment on any legally-recognized basis or protected class including, but not limited to, actual or perceived race, color, national origin, immigration status (except as necessary to comply with federal, DC, state, or local law), religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity or expression), marital status (including domestic partnership status), genetic information, political affiliation, pregnancy, family responsibilities, personal appearance, veteran status, uniform service member status, status of being unemployed, status of victim a survivor of domestic violence, sexual offense or stalking, matriculation or any other protected class under federal, state, DC, or local law.

Click here or here to review KIPP DC's non-discrimination policy and KIPP DC's Title IX Coordinator's contact information.

If you encounter difficulties submitting your application or fail to receive a confirmation email after applying, kindly reach out to Danica Cunningham at View email address on click.appcast.io. Please include your name, resume, and specify the role you are applying for in your email