Navigator for Special Education

About Us

Founded in 2015, EdNavigator is a national nonprofit organization that helps busy parents and caregivers support their children’s success in school and beyond. We partner with leading pediatric healthcare providers to bridge the gap between a child’s health and educational needs, with a focus on children whose families face economic, cultural, or language barriers to accessing quality educational opportunities. Through these innovative partnerships, pediatricians and other primary care providers can connect families to expert Navigators who offer personalized advice and support with school enrollment, special education processes, and other education-related challenges. EdNavigator currently works in three regions and supports more than 500 families per year. In 2020, EdNavigator was named one of Fast Company’s 10 Most Innovative Companies in Education. For more information, visit www.ednavigator.org. 

Role and Responsibilities

We are currently seeking a full-time Navigator for Special Education. In this role, you will serve as a personal education advisor for families referred to EdNavigator by local pediatricians in multiple regions nationally, including many Spanish-speaking families. You will be responsible for managing referrals, connecting virtually with families to help them navigate school enrollment and special education systems, and ensuring their questions or issues are resolved in a timely manner. This is a remote, home office-based position that requires a high degree of self-motivation, creativity, persistence, and communication skill, in addition to a passion for supporting families on their educational journey. 

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide respectful, proactive, and high-impact educational guidance and support
• Communicate effectively and build strong, trusting relationships with families and schools
• Meet with families and join them by video or phone for critical school meetings (such as an IEP eligibility assessment meeting) 
• Generate practical solutions to challenges facing families and students 
• Establish effective routines and systems for managing complex student educational needs
• Keep detailed records of your work with families in EdNavigator’s data systems 
• Attend and contribute to regular team meetings and other events
• Contribute expertise and perspective to internal trainings and EdNavigator’s advocacy efforts
• Support colleagues with other facets of EdNavigator’s work as needed
• Support at least 140 families annually in successfully addressing their educational need 

QUALIFICATIONS

Qualified candidates will have a deep understanding of schools and education systems, a fierce belief in the right of every family to a great education, and a minimum of 4 years of demonstrated success working directly with students and/or families in a school setting (preferably as a classroom teacher or special educator). They will also be:

• Fluent in Spanish
• Deeply knowledgeable of special education policies and processes 
• Flexible, curious, and eager to learn and receive feedback
• Friendly, collaborative, and team-oriented
• Self-disciplined and able to work effectively in our virtual organization
• An excellent communicator who shares their message with clarity and can adapt to a variety of audiences
• Well-organized and able to balance multiple priorities, deadlines, and data tracking systems effectively
• Results-oriented and able to adapt to uncertainty or ambiguity
• A creative, persistent and effective problem-solver who consistently demonstrates a strong sense of urgency towards goal achievement
• Comfortable contributing insights and upward feedback to support our organization's mission and growth
• Eager to join a team committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Highly comfortable with technology such as Slack, Dropbox, MS Office, and Google products 
• Able to travel periodically (a few times per year for team meetings)
• Fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and willing to provide all necessary medical documentation required to work with health clinic partners

Salary and Benefits

The annual salary for this position is $78,750, with the potential for an annual, performance-based bonus of up to 15 percent. At EdNavigator, you’ll join a diverse team of talented colleagues in an innovative, mission-driven environment. We also offer a comprehensive benefits package effective on the first day of employment, including:

• A flexible, home-office based working environment, including a home office setup allowance
• Premium health, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family
• Generous paid time off each year
• A 401(k) / Roth IRA retirement savings plan with company matching
• Optional additional voluntary benefits
• Access to an annual individual professional development budget of $3,000 

Paid-leave sabbaticals of increasing duration for every five years of service. As an equal opportunity employer that supports working families of all backgrounds every day, we welcome everyone to our team. We strongly encourage parents and caregivers, people of color, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and non-binary people, veterans, and individuals with disabilities to apply. In your application, please feel free to note your pronouns (she/her, he/him, they/them, etc.). If you need reasonable accommodation at any point in the application or interview process, please let us know. For more on our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, please visit our website.  Start date July 15, 2024

• A flexible, home-office based working environment, including a home office setup allowance
• Premium health, dental, and vision insurance for you and your family
• Generous paid time off each year
• A 401(k) / Roth IRA retirement savings plan with company matching
• Optional additional voluntary benefits
• Access to an annual individual professional development budget of $3,000 
• Paid-leave sabbaticals of increasing duration for every five years of service