FRAMINGHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Department of Multilingual Education

TITLE: 

Language Assessment and Family Engagement Manager

POSITION SUMMARY: 

To assist the Department of Multilingual Education to appropriately welcome, assess, and place bilingual students while guiding their families through the registration process and connecting them to appropriate community resources in order to deliver Framingham Public Schools’ high expectations for achievement, equal access to high levels of instruction, the achievement of academic proficiency for all students, and the closing of the opportunity gap among subgroups within the schools.  

OUR MISSION:

Framingham Public Schools is committed to excellence for all students. Our mission statement guides our work: Through a comprehensive education, we aim to create and empower free-thinking, responsible citizens who can participate equally in our rich and diverse community. FPS and the community stand united in our core values: Providing a safe, inclusive, culturally responsive teaching and learning environment; Engaging antiracist and responsible civic advocates; Respecting diversity of thought, learners, cultures, and community; Fostering learning and healthy growth of all students and staff; Ensuring every school will be an active, participatory, equitable community.

Diversity among teachers undoubtedly advances the academic achievement of students. Compliance obligations establish a baseline which we seek to exceed. As a district, Framingham Public Schools is committed to achieving, developing, and maintaining a workforce reflective of the rich racial, linguistic, and cultural diversity of our students. Framingham Public Schools aims to teach our children, and ourselves, to be culturally proficient and inclusive in order to live, learn, and work together in a vibrant and diverse world.  

Indeed, Framingham Public Schools is committed to inspiring our school community to be accepting and willing to learn from individuals with differing backgrounds. Our goal is to reflect the diverse community we serve and create a great place to work for everyone by embracing the individual skills, perspectives, and experiences our people bring to the workplace and harnessing these for high performance and improved service delivery. We want our employees to feel included, valued, and respected and have access to equal opportunity, which supports full participation at work. Framingham Public Schools seeks to retain the diverse talent in our workforce and support our people to maintain a long and productive working career.

Framingham Public Schools is dedicated to the goal of building a culturally diverse and pluralistic faculty committed to teaching and working in a multicultural environment and strongly encourages applications from persons with disabilities and who identify as members of historically underrepresented groups.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS:

Bachelor's Degree

Current and valid MA DESE licensure in ESL and SEI Endorsement

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE:
Experience assessing PK-12th grade English Language Learners with the W-APT, WIDA Screener, and pre-las screening tools. Must be fluent in English and Portuguese/Spanish. Familiarity with community resources available in Framingham and the surrounding area

SKILLS AND ABILITY:

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.

• Ability to effectively and confidently manage students who may exhibit behaviors such as aggression, non-compliance, disruption, inattention to a task, social deficits, safety concerns.
• Experience working with individuals from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
• Ability to take direction and feedback well and adjust practice effectively and independently.
• Collaborative.
• Ability to read and comprehend documents such as memos, safety rules, and procedure manuals; to express ideas clearly in written and oral communication; to work as a team member; to establish and maintain effective working relationships with students, parents, staff and the community; to embrace a proactive and solution-focused approach to meeting student needs; to work with students of diverse backgrounds with diverse needs in an equitable and inclusive manner, and to perform duties with awareness of all district requirements and School Committee policies.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:  

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as an illustration of the various types of work that may be performed.  The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the position. This job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee, and is subject to change by the employer, as the needs of the employer and the requirements of the job change.

Language Assessment Team:

• Coordinate and oversee the structures and systems of the Language Assessment Team.
• Coordinate, oversee and facilitate the yearly Kindergarten Language Testing.
• Oversee, manage and train regularly Language Assessment staff.
• Develop plans for student placement and share them with school leadership.
• Interview, hire, train, evaluate, and manage the schedule of the language assessors.
• Assess incoming students with the W-APT, WIDA Screener, Pre-las, and/ or additional district assessments in English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese. 
• Explain test results and different English Learner /Emergent Bilingual program options to families to assist with program placement decisions.
• Manage student placements and enter student data in the district database.
• Liaise and communicate with schools to explain and support the assignment process.
• Visit schools to follow up with students and communicate with the leadership team.
• Conduct SLIFE Pre-screener and interview with families and students.
• Design an initial identification plan for incoming SLIFE students and communicate the plan with school leaders.
• Oversee the maintenance of all documentation for students identified as English Learners records/folders. 
• Collaborate with the Department of Multilingual Education and Student Registration members to create and reinforce systems and structures. 
• Coordinate and manage the district student placement schedule with the Department of Student Registration.

Family Engagement:

• Coordinate community-based support and services for bilingual families, including the Bilingual Parent/Family Advisory Council and the Dual Language Advisory Council.
• Present/arrange with community groups to present to families on topics of interest.
• Performance of other job-related duties as assigned, as assigned by the Director of Multilingual Education.

PHYSICAL WORKING CONDITIONS:

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.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to move about to provide services and may be required to occasionally traverse throughout the school building and/or go outside. While performing the duties of this job, the employee will have essential duties requiring him/her to work in a classroom with the ability to sit, stand, walk, kneel, crouch, stoop, squat, bend or twist at the neck and trunk. The employee must frequently use hands and/or fingers to handle and/or feel objects and/or tools. Workday may include providing limited personal care to students. The employee must also occasionally lift or position students to provide services. The employee occasionally operates a computer and other office productivity machinery (i.e., a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer). The employee must be able to read material from a computer monitor as well as handwritten or printed matter with or without visual aids. The employee must be able to communicate effectively with students, parents and other staff members in person, via email, and on the telephone. The employee may be exposed to volatile and assaultive behavior and/or speech and, as such, may receive injuries from aggressive students In the classroom, the employee must be able to see and hear on a continuous basis in order to ensure the safety of students as well as speak frequently to assist with providing instruction. On rare occasions, it may be necessary to move quickly across even or uneven surfaces. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms and sit, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.  The employee is expected to lift at least 20 lbs (i.e. books, school supplies, etc.) and maybe asked to operate machinery, tools, or equipment with prior training. The employee should be able to stand, walk and/or push a wheelchair for extended periods of time as well as provide assistance and personal care to students. The employee may be asked to assist with toileting, depending on a student's needs. The employee may be transferred to a different school depending on students' needs and fit in the best interest of children.

The employee will be working in a normal school environment with an acceptable level of noise. The employee interacts with students, parents and other staff members and occasionally must meet multiple demands from several people. While the majority of the workday is spent inside, the employee must spend time outdoors for recess, fire drills, and special activities.  May be exposed to bodily fluids, disease, or pathogens.

Position can require some degree of physical interaction with students who have difficulty controlling physical behavior. Sometimes strenuous physical requirements are necessary to safely and effectively perform assigned duties, including lifting 50 pounds on a regular basis and periodically lifting in excess of 50 pounds with assistance. May be required to accompany students on field trips, which may require maneuvering into awkward positions or in narrow bus aisles. Must be able to lift and physically restrain students at times, to take appropriate action in emergency situations, and follow procedures in a calm, responsible manner. Must be able to communicate and exchange information, effectively discreetly, and accurately in a high activity environment with staff, students, parents, and individuals who may have limited expressive and receptive conversational capacities. Must be able to detect visual and non-visual warning signs of developing physical or emotional situations that may require attention from staff. Must be able to prepare and monitor legal and educationally appropriate special education documents including IEPs and behavior plans. Must be able to express yourself effectively verbally and non-verbally in the classroom with staff, students, and parents. Must be able to discern visual and non-visual signs of physical and non-physical issues that may negatively affect the learning environment. Must be able to monitor students and staff visually and non-visually to effectively manage an orderly and safe learning environment. Must have normal vision, corrected or uncorrected. May receive intentional injuries from aggressive students

The physical demands and 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. This job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee, and is subject to change by the employer, as the needs of the employer and the requirements of the job change.

REPORTS TO:  

Director and/or Assistant Director of the Department of Multilingual Education 

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Oversees and Evaluates the Language Assessment Team members

FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT (FLSA) CLASSIFICATION:

This position is classified as Exempt (Professional).

Covered under the Framingham Teachers Association (Unit A) Contract. Please note that the District reserves the right to transfer all personnel among buildings on an as needed basis to serve the best interests of all students as long as this does not conflict with the Framingham Teachers Association (Unit A) Contract.

 TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT:

Covered under Framingham School Committee Policy.

Framingham Public Schools provides equal employment. opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Framingham Public Schools complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the District has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training. Framingham Public Schools expressly prohibits any form of workplace harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, ancestry, marital status, or veteran status.

The Framingham Public Schools prohibit sex discrimination in any education program or activity that it operates.  Individuals may report concerns or questions to the Title IX Coordinator.  The notice of nondiscrimination is located at the Framingham Public Schools School Committee website.

Rev. 2024