Career Opportunities

Additional Information:

As a Specialized Support Worker, you have the opportunity to transform a child's educational experience and life trajectory. You'll join a collaborative, multidisciplinary team dedicated to creating an inclusive and successful school environment for students with complex behavioral and developmental needs. This is more than a job—it's a chance to build deep, trusting relationships and empower young people to build resilience, develop self-regulation skills, and thrive academically and socially.

The Wetaskiwin Regional Public School requires a temporary full time Specialized Support Worker who will work within our school division supporting students. This position is a key member of a multidisciplinary team and will report to the District Psychologist. This position will work within the school environment to provide supportive services to students with complex needs for the purpose of assisting their success in school. These students generally have severe and complex learning, medical, psychological, psychiatric, social and emotional challenges. The ideal candidate will be able to establish both trust and confidence of both the students and their families.

Primary Responsibilities (not limited to this list):

• • Develop a supportive and collaborative working relationship with Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) members.
  • Provide observations and reports to support MDT assessments.
  • Debrief reports with MDT members to inform school learning teams.
  • Develop a supportive and empathetic relationship with students, maintaining clear boundaries and providing emotional, social, and cognitive support with therapeutic value.
  • Develop and assess strategies for targeted behaviors to reinforce student growth and extinguish inappropriate conduct.
  • Implement strategies to encourage student self-regulation and decision-making, anticipating difficult circumstances and intervening proactively.
  • Intervene throughout the escalation/de-escalation cycle when behavior is disruptive, threatening, or unsafe.
  • Participate as a professional member of the school’s Learning Team, providing and debriefing reports summarizing targeted behaviors and emerging concerns.
  • Utilize ABC charting to diagnose behavior causes and identify appropriate interventions.
  • Develop strategies compatible with classroom expectations and practices.
  • Support teachers in following through with academic expectations, developing shared responsibility for students.
• Communications
  • Liaise with parents, social service and other agencies in order to exchange information 
  • Participate in case conferences and parent-teacher interviews as required
  • Attend meetings, conferences and other educational gatherings for the purpose of maintaining an up to date understanding of issues relating to speech and language disorders; conveying and implementing relevant information   
  • Continually promote and foster the inclusion of students with speech and language disorders within the classroom and school environment 
• Reporting and documentation:
  • document formal and informal findings for students and family records
  • Prepare evaluations and reports for each student 
  • write reports and other required documentation in a timely manner

Qualifications:

• Diploma in related fields such as Child and Youth Care, Social Work
• Minimum two (2) years’ of experience in related field
• Current knowledge and understanding of ASD and other complex disorders and the impact on learning, communication and social engagement
• Experience working directly with students with complex needs
• Work collaboratively and effectively within a team
• SIVA and/or Non Violent Crisis training
• Current Certification in First Aid (willing to obtain)
• A combination of experience and education may be considered
• Previous experience working with children is considered an asset 
• Ability to think critically to make sound, independent decisions under difficult and stressful situations 
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and organizational skills
• Valid Alberta driver’s license (to facilitate travel between schools) and own transportation is required
• Ability to deal with people sensitively, tactfully and professionally at all times
• Highly flexible, with solid interpersonal, prioritization and organizational skills that allows one to work effectively in diverse working environments and effectively accommodate unexpected urgencies 
• Commitment to the Health and Safety Program and training as prescribed by the Board
• Experience with Google email, apps and other emerging technologies

If you are a compassionate, skilled professional driven by a desire to help children succeed, we encourage you to apply. Join our team and help us build a more inclusive and supportive community, one student at a time.

Interested applicants should include a covering letter, resume and the names of three references, one of which must be your last Supervisor (please include your written consent to contact references).

We thank all those who apply for their interest but only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

Employment is dependent on satisfactory completion of criminal records/vulnerable sector check.