Substitute Paraprofessional (Intensive Instructional Paraprofessional, Special Education), Salem Public Schools, Salem, MA [SY 2025-2026]

Substitute Paraprofessional (Intensive Instructional Paraprofessional, Special Education), Salem Public Schools, Salem, MA [SY 2025-2026]

About Salem Public Schools, where belonging leads to opportunity.

Salem is a small, diverse city with a proud maritime and immigrant history.  Salem Public Schools is an urban public school district enrolling nearly 4,000 students in 11 schools. Our vision is to ensure that all students will be locally engaged, globally connected, and fully prepared to thrive in a diverse and changing world. We hold dear our core values of belonging, equity, and opportunity in everything we do. We seek individuals who are passionate about urban education and understand the urgency of improving student achievement for all students, regardless of ability, economic status, gender/gender identity, language, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, or other backgrounds. We invite you to learn more about our strategic plan and core priorities on our website at https://salemk12.org/.

What You’ll Do: 

Paraprofessionals will assist teachers and/or other certified personnel in providing an innovative, high quality education program designed to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities in the Salem Public Schools. Paraprofessionals will work with school staff to create an educational environment in which quality and continuity are key factors. In addition to sound reasoning and good organizational skills, paraprofessionals are expected to contribute to positive school culture and climate. Paraprofessionals are district-wide employees and subject to the negotiated Paraprofessional Contract, as well as the rules and regulations of Salem Public Schools

The position may include some personal care, lifting, feeding, academic support, behavioral interventions and the use of technology. The right person for this position is eager to work with middle school children, is dependable, organized, flexible and willing to learn through hands-on experience, reading and workshop trainings and also through consultation and observation with clinicians and specialists.

Role Responsibilities:

• Demonstrate an understanding of assigned students profile and learning needs, read student IEPs and engage in related PD
• Support and collaborate with the general education and special education teachers on an ongoing basis
• Reinforce lessons with individual or small groups of students
• Assist with classroom management & supervision
• Administer behavior modification programs/point systems, including data taking and discrete trials under the direction of the classroom teacher
• Assist teacher in implementing accommodations and specialized strategies for instruction and skill reinforcement
• Cover classroom during teacher absence
• Facilitate play and social interactions and model language between peers
• Escort and assist students as needed throughout the building, on community-based experiences, during lunch/recess and on/off the bus
• Follow direction of supervisor and assure safety of students at all times
• Assist with acclimating students to technology and personal learning devices to enable them to access remote instruction.
• Other duties as prescribed by building administrative staff and PPS Executive Director, as described within the Paraprofessional contract
• Attend district and building professional development and training

What You’ll Bring:

We are looking for candidates who have diverse backgrounds and experiences, are inspired by our mission and are highly motivated to change children’s lives through education. You’ll be right at home here if you are a reflective practitioner who values collaboration with colleagues and pushes yourself, your work and the people around you to the next level.  We expect our SPS employees to:

• Hold a deep commitment to students and families and value diversity - The SPS community is vibrant, diverse in background, ethnicity, language, and perspective. You embrace and affirm the backgrounds of all members of the SPS community and view our diversity as a powerful resource that supports us each in learning and doing our best work.
• Hold high expectations for yourself, students, and colleagues – You see potential in all, especially our SPS students, and maintain high expectations for achievement, while providing the support necessary to meet that bar. You hold yourself to high expectations, modeling SPS values and seeking opportunities to continuously improve.
• Build authentic, caring relationships with colleagues, students, and families – You build strong relationships across students, families, and colleagues that are collaborative in nature and contribute to the individual and collective success of SPS.  You partner with families and colleagues to make decisions in the best interest of students and learning.
• Embrace feedback – You are a reflective practitioner who learns from mistakes and challenges and uses them as opportunities for growth. You model persistence and growth mindset and thrive in a culture of feedback.

Position Expectations Therapeutic Program Paraprofessionals

• Safety Care Trained or willing to be trained (training provided by District)
• Must be physically capable of and willing to engage in restraint, bending, and lifting as required to meet unique student needs
• Assist in toileting and Activity of Daily Living (ADL) skills, if needed and as determined by student need

The selected candidate must have the skills, abilities and aptitude to meet all unique needs of their assigned students.

Job requirements:

• High School Diploma or GED
• Forty-eight (48) Credit Hours of College Coursework or an Associate’s Degree, or a passing score on one of the two following Formalized Standardized Assessments: ParaPro Assessment (http://www.ets.org/parapro/) or WorkKeys
• Safety-Care Trained or willing to be trained (District will provide training)
• Minimum of one year experience working with elementary-aged children
• Experience with ABA techniques advantageous, but training provided
• Second language (Spanish and/or Portuguese) proficiency a plus
• Bilingual candidates and candidates of color strongly encouraged to apply
• Current authorization to work in the United States

Paraprofessionals report to the building principal, special education supervisor, students’ assigned classroom teacher(s) and Executive Director of the Special Education Department. 

Equal Opportunity Employer

Salem Public School District is committed to maintaining a work and learning environment free from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, pregnancy, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital/civil union status, ancestry, place of birth, age, citizenship status, veteran status, political affiliation, genetic information or disability, as defined and required by state and federal laws. Additionally, we prohibit retaliation against individuals who oppose such discrimination and harassment or who participate in an equal opportunity investigation.