Special Education Compliance & Instructional Coach

Job Description

Job DescriptionCompany Description

IOTA Community Schools is a network of four public charter schools in Memphis, Tennessee. We operate both "fresh start" schools and "zoned-enrollment" turnaround schools. From 6th through 12th grades, our schools serve predominantly minority and low-income populations likely to be first-generation college attendees.

Job Description

IOTA Community School is seeking a Special Education Compliance & Instructional Coach to support our mission of providing comprehensive opportunities for each student through innovative education and sustainable pathways to economic growth. This role is essential for ensuring legal and procedural compliance for Special Education (SPED) .

The Compliance and Instructional Coach will complete internal auditing, provide training, and professional development to promote best practices and ensure compliance with all regulations. Additionally, this position serves as a key liaison between district leadership and school-based staff, ensuring timely, accurate, and high-quality service delivery for students receiving special population services. We are looking for someone dedicated to our mission and passionate about positively impacting our students' lives.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

SPED Compliance Oversight:

• Monitor and communicate compliance deadlines related to Special Education (SPED) services across all schools.
• Track and interpret updates to federal, state, and Local Education Agency (LEA) policies, sharing their implications with school-based and district staff.
• Act as the district point of contact for state, LEA, and school-level audits, reviews, and follow-up processes, ensuring a smooth and efficient compliance process.
• Maintain and own the use of Master SPED compliance trackers to effectively monitor progress across all schools, ensuring 100 percent compliance and support for our students.

File & Documentation Management:

• Conduct monthly audits of Special Education (SPED) both manual and electronic, to assess compliance, accuracy, and quality.
• Track and respond to internal and external file and documentation requests from case managers.
• Monitor the completion and quality of documentation related to services, such as classroom service logs, related services, suspension logs, 11th day service plans, and behavior tracking logs.
• Ensure the timely and high-quality completion of progress reports for SPED and by case managers.

Eligibility & Reevaluation:

• Work closely with school-level administrators to ensure that students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) are properly identified through the Child Find process.
• Responsible for monitoring prior IEP lists and guaranteeing the timely completion of evaluations.
• Ensure that all reevaluations and initial evaluations adhere to mandated timelines.
• Facilitating collaboration between Special Education (SPED) and English Language Learner (ELL) teams to effectively support students receiving services from both programs.

Professional Development & Coaching:

• Provide direct coaching and support to special education and general education cohort teachers implementing inclusive and co-teaching models
• Use a structured coaching cycle to promote continuous improvement in instructional practices and SDI.
• Provide actionable, strengths-based feedback that promotes reflection and professional growth.
• Maintain documentation of coaching sessions, goals, and outcomes to support school-level improvement and PD planning.
• Partner with academic leadership to ensure access to grade-level content and differentiated support for students with disabilities.
• Work with teachers & SPED administrators to effectively utilize compliance data and audit findings to inform the development of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).
• Provide comprehensive training on documentation expectations and compliance standards related to IEPs.
• Conduct individual coaching sessions tailored on file reviews and identified audit trends to improve practices.
• Attend IEP meetings as required, providing feedback and ensuring adherence to procedural fidelity throughout the process.
• Co-lead and support the delivery of professional development sessions in collaboration with the Special Education Program Administrator, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and compliance within the educational setting.

Communication & Coordination:

• Provide weekly updates on compliance status, summarize Child Find activities, outline audit timelines, and issue follow-up reminders to school teams to ensure accountability and clarity.
• Participate in weekly meetings with the Special Education Program Administrator to review school-level special education progress, assess data trends, and identify areas of need.
• Collaboratively develop targeted action plans and clearly define responsibilities, including individual tasks, implementation timelines, and progress monitoring protocols, to ensure effective follow-through and accountability for all case managers.
• Implement corrective action plans that arise from audit findings, ensuring that schools take appropriate steps to resolve identified issues and improve overall outcomes for students with special needs. This proactive approach will help maintain high standards of compliance and service delivery within the special education framework.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

Timeliness & Legal Compliance

• ≥ 90% of IEPs completed by due dates
• ≥ 90% of initial evaluations completed within 60 days, 100% by second year
• ≥ 90% of annual/triennial reviews completed on time
• 100% of progress reports completed by case managers are done on time and meet quality standards
• 100% of student files are found without errors during internal and external audits

Coaching Outcomes

• ≥ 90% of teachers on case load receive coaching cycles in time and with actionable feedback that is demonstratively implemented
• 100% of teachers receive targeted coaching based on observations, audit, and data
• ≥ 90% of coached staff demonstrate improvement in compliance and instructional indicators

Qualifications

• Valid TN teaching credential in Special Education required
• Bachelor’s degree in Special Education or a related field required; Master’s degree preferred
• At least 3 years of experience in special education compliance or leadership
• Strong working knowledge of IDEA, Title III, and state-specific special education laws and procedures
• Experience with auditing, file reviews, and managing corrective action plans
• Demonstrated ability to coach educators and deliver effective professional development
• Excellent organizational, analytical, and communication skills
• Proficient in special education documentation systems (e.g., TNPulse, Ellevation, PowerSchool)
• Must have access to reliable transportation to commute to and from multiple school sites across Memphis
• CPI experience preferred
• Stand, walk or bend over, kneel, crouch, reach overhead, grasp, push, and pull. Move, lift and/or carry up to 30 pounds to shoulder height

Additional Information

The starting salary range for this role is $65,000 - $75,000 based on experience. Please note that candidates who are new to their role or newly promoted can expect offers between the minimum and the mid-point of the range. To allow for salary progression over time, offers at the top of the range are rare. Individual education and experience will be considered when issuing offers.

This employer strives for a balanced, productive workforce, which is diverse in terms of age, gender, and cultural identity. We do not base hiring or promotional decisions on factors other than performance and professional growth potential. Please note that we are unable to sponsor H1 VISA applicants.