Position Summary

The Lower School Learning Specialist is a senior learning-support practitioner and instructional leader who advances the School’s commitment to helping every young learner thrive. The Learning Specialist supports a caseload of students with learning differences and learning needs that may include ADHD, specific learning disabilities, dyslexia and other language-based learning differences, dysgraphia, executive functioning challenges, and related profiles involving attention, memory, and processing that affect learning.

The Learning Specialist delivers evidence-based, developmentally appropriate instruction and intervention through a combination of push-in, pull-out, small-group, and individual support. Equally important, the Learning Specialist partners with classroom teachers to strengthen inclusive and differentiated instructional practice, ensuring that accommodations and learning plans move from paper to daily classroom impact.

This role requires strong professional judgment, refined communication skills, comfort interpreting educational evaluations, and a collaborative, systems-oriented approach. The Learning Specialist is a member of the Student Support Team and contributes to a coordinated, student-centered model that integrates academic support with social-emotional and wellness supports.

Core Responsibilities

Student Support, Intervention, and Skill-Building

• Provide targeted intervention and strategy instruction aligned to student needs in areas such as foundational literacy and language, written expression, math problem-solving, and executive functioning (time management, organization, planning, initiation, self-monitoring).
  
  
• Support students in developing age-appropriate self-advocacy and a positive learner identity.
  
  
• Deliver support using flexible service models (push-in, pull-out, small group, and 1:1) to maximize application and generalization skills, protect core instruction, and build enduring learning habits.
  
  

Case Management and Individualized Learning Planning

Manage a Lower School caseload, including:

• Reviewing student information (teacher observations, work samples, screening/assessment data, and outside evaluation reports) to identify strengths, needs, and priorities
  
  
• Creating, maintaining, and regularly updating individualized Learning Plans/Service Plans that include clear goals, recommended strategies and accommodations, progress indicators, and review timelines
  
  
• Ensuring plans are actionable for teachers, understandable for families, and developmentally appropriate for students
  
  
• Maintaining accurate, confidential student records and documentation of services and outcomes
  
  

Screening, Assessment, and Data-Informed Decision Making

In collaboration with colleagues, support a coherent Lower School screening and intervention cycle by:

• Administering or coordinating approved academic screeners and/or diagnostic measures (reading and/or math, as appropriate to the school’s program)
  
  
• Interpreting formal and informal assessment results, including the practical classroom implications of psychoeducational/neuropsychological evaluations
  
  
• Monitoring progress frequently and adjusting intervention intensity, strategy, and/or setting based on student response
  
  
• Producing concise summaries for teachers and families that translate data into next steps
  
  
• Making recommendations for additional evaluation and/or outside services when concerns persist despite targeted intervention
  
  

Faculty Partnership and Instructional Leadership

Serve as a trusted teaching partner to faculty by:

• Coaching teachers in evidence-based differentiation, inclusive practices, and faithful implementation of accommodations and learning plans
  
  
• Modeling strategies in classrooms and/or co-planning lessons that proactively reduce barriers to learning
  
  
• Observing students in classroom contexts to understand learning demands, classroom structures, and opportunities for support
  
  
• Supporting teachers in creating learning environments that are structured, warm, and developmentally appropriate
  
  
• Providing targeted professional learning (informal coaching and formal PD sessions) connected to learning differences, executive functioning supports, and effective intervention practices
  
  

Family Communication and Relationship-Building

Partner with families through:

• Clear, timely, and compassionate communication about student progress, goals, and strategies
  
  
• Participation in parent-teacher conferences and student-support meetings as needed
  
  
• Guidance to families on understanding learning profiles and selecting appropriate external resources (tutoring, evaluation providers, therapy supports)
  
  
• Coordination with outside providers, with family permission and in alignment with school protocols, to ensure coherent supports across settings
  
  

Student Support Team Collaboration and Referral Processes

As an active member of the Student Support Team, the Learning Specialist will:

• Participate in regular Student Support Team meetings and referral processes
  
  
• Help analyze referrals, determine next steps, and coordinate follow-up actions
  
  
• Collaborate with school counselors and wellness professionals to ensure academic concerns are addressed in tandem with social-emotional and wellness factors
  
  
• Contribute to an integrated approach that recognizes learning, behavior, and wellbeing as interconnected
  
  

Community Partnerships and Systems Navigation

When appropriate and aligned to school policy, coordinate with relevant community entities and resources to support students and families, which may include cooperation with Fort Wayne Community Schools for evaluation or service coordination processes when families pursue services outside the School’s resources.

Professional Responsibilities and School Life

Uphold the professional obligations expected of independent-school faculty/staff members by:

• Attending Early Childhood/Lower School meetings, Student Support Team meetings, and Learning Support and Wellness meetings, and providing timely updates to the Director of Learning Support and Wellness
  
  
• Participating in school-wide professional development and maintaining current knowledge of learning support research and practice
  
  
• Demonstrating excellent professional ethics, discretion, and confidentiality
  
  
• Contributing positively to School culture and collaborating respectfully with colleagues
  
  
• Supporting recruitment and retention through strong relationships with students and their families

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Special Education, Learning Disabilities, Literacy/Reading, School Psychology, Educational Therapy, or a closely related field
  
  
• Significant successful experience supporting elementary learners with learning differences in a school setting, including direct intervention and collaborative consultation (minimum of 5 years; more strongly preferred)
  
  
• Demonstrated ability to interpret educational evaluations and translate recommendations into practical classroom accommodations and intervention plans
  
  
• Demonstrated experience coaching teachers and partnering with families
  
  
• Strong working knowledge of research-aligned literacy instruction for students with language-based learning differences and/or dyslexia
  
  
• Strong organizational systems, documentation habits, and the ability to manage multiple timelines and stakeholders
  
  
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a professional, student-centered approach
  
  
• Demonstrated commitment to creating equitable and inclusive learning environments for students who have a variety of learning differences
  
  

Preferred Qualifications

• 8+ years of increasingly responsible experience in elementary learning support, including program development or team leadership
  
  
• Additional credentials or training in structured literacy and/or Orton-Gillingham–aligned instruction; executive function coaching; and/or math intervention
  
  
• Experience in an independent school environment and comfort with independent-school culture, expectations, and family partnership norms
  
  
• Experience supporting students through referral/evaluation cycles and coordinating with outside providers across disciplines (OT, PT, speech and language, mental health therapy, medical)
  
  
• Fluency with common assessment tools, data tracking practices, and educational technology used to support differentiated learning
  
  

Personal Attributes and Professional Dispositions

The successful candidate will be warm, steady, and growth-oriented; demonstrate sound judgment; balance empathy with clear boundaries; and bring the confidence and humility required to lead adult learning while remaining deeply child-centered.

About Canterbury School, Inc

The mission of Canterbury School is to maximize the potential of young people by providing a challenging, enriching, and supportive learning environment in which students build the foundation for a life of purpose, passion, and meaning.

Connections working at Canterbury School, Inc