Position Title:             Speech Pathologist

Department:              Exceptional Education

SUMMARY:   Communication specialist who works with both the general education and special education population with language disabilities, articulation deficits, dysfluencies and voice disorders.

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT:  Established by the Board of Education

EVALUATION:  The employee will be evaluated in accordance with the negotiated agreement.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:  Supervises students and may oversee paraprofessionals for instruction purposes.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:  Other duties may be assigned.

            -  Serves as a resource to school staff members in the development of a balanced program for oral                 communication and speech improvement

            -  Assists and guides teachers in observing, describing, and referring suspected and identified speech and language impairments

            - Provides a thorough assessment and diagnosis of speech, voice, and language impairments

            -  Provides screening to identify speech needs at regular intervals and at specified levels

            - Assists in proper referrals of individuals to agencies an specialists in the community

            - Provides appropriate individualized programs of therapy to meet individual students’ needs and correct existing speech or language disabilities

            -  Evaluates student progress based on therapy sessions, test scores and observation

            -  Collaborates with classroom teachers and other school staff members to implement therapy by suggestions for the student’s daily activities

            - Provides information, support, and counseling to parents and families when appropriate

            -  Provides direction for paraprofessionals

            -  May travel to meet job requirements

            -  Maintains confidentiality of all information

            -  Follows Board of Education policies

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:  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, skill, and/or ability required.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE:

            Degree in speech and language pathology and eligible for South Dakota  certification.

LANGUAGE SKILLS:

            Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.  Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals.  Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of staff, students, and the general public.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS:

            Ability to work with mathematical concepts such as probability and statistical inference, and fundamentals of plane and solid geometry and trigonometry.  Ability to apply concepts such as fractions, percentages, ratios, and proportions to practical  situations.

REASONING ABILITY:

            Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.  Ability to interpret and extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagram forms and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.

OTHER SKILLS and ABILITIES:

            Ability to apply knowledge of current research and theory to instructional program; ability to plan and implement lessons based on the needs and abilities of students to whom assigned.  Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with students, peers, parents and community; ability to speak clear and concisely in written or oral communication.  Ability to operate a computer and appropriate software.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

            When performing the duties of this job, the employee will regularly sit, and occasionally walk and stand.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision. While performing the duties of this job the employee will continuously hear conversation in a quiet and/or noisy environment.  The employee will continuously need the ability to tell where a sound is coming from and tell the difference among bells, buzzers, beeps, horns, etc.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT:  The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

            The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet to moderate.  The employee is directly responsible for the safety, well-being and work out-put of students.

The information contained in this job description is for compliance with the American with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) and is not an exhaustive list of the duties performed for this position.  Additional duties are performed by the individuals currently holding this position and additional duties may be assigned.