Background: I am the parent of a child with special needs (she has no diagnosis, just “developmental disabilities”). In 2005 I was asked to speak to a group of representatives from agencies that serve children with developmental disabilities about the roles that parents play in obtaining and maintaining services for their children with special needs. As a handout I developed the “Employment Opportunity” below for the position of “parent of child with special needs”. It shares my perspective on what it is (in part!) to be the parent of a child with special needs, and I have found that it speaks quite strongly to other parents of children with special needs. In fact, one of those parents passed the information about your book on to me and suggested I submit my “job announcement”. So here it is…..
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
POSITION: Parent of child with special needs
EMPLOYMENT STATUS: Permanent, full-time
SALARY: None
FRINGE BENEFITS: There are no retirement benefits associated with this position because retirement from this position is not an option.
EXAMPLES OF DUTIES:
1. Assume lifetime responsibility for the care and support of a child with special needs, i.e. a child who has or is at high risk for physical, developmental, behavioral, emotional or learning problems and requires types or amounts of services beyond those required by typical children of the same age.
2. Assume primary responsibility for leading the child through development. (NOTE: Typical children generally lead their parents through development; the opposite is true for children with special needs.)
3. Accept responsibility for helping to identify the child’s medical, developmental and educational needs and for ensuring that the child receives all services necessary to promote his/her health, welfare, development and independence.
4. Accept responsibility for helping to locate programs and services, for evaluating them to determine if they are appropriate for the child’s needs and for monitoring the child’s participation and progress.
5. Schedule and coordinate educational programs, auxiliary services (e.g. physical, occupational & speech therapies), medical care, childcare, recreational & social activities.
6. Assume responsibility for clearly articulating the child’s special needs, strengths, weaknesses, successes and problems to service providers and everyone else.
7. Maintain records, process paperwork and develop an information archive related to all of the child’s programs, services, assessments and medical records.
8. Provide continuity of information about the child through program and service transitions(e.g. early intervention / school district services) and through changes in medical, social service, educational and childcare professionals and other service providers.
9. Work effectively and amicably with professionals from many fields, e.g. child development, education, social services and medicine (including private and government-funded medical insurance programs), and act as the liaison among them.
10. Participate in on-going “professional” development (e.g. training related to specific types of disabilities, special education and disability law, financial planning).
11. Volunteer in advocacy and parent support activities.
EMPLOYMENT QUALIFICATIONS (DESIRABLE):
1. Ability to communicate clearly and effectively both orally and in writing; English, while not required, is recommended.
2. Strong foundations in child development and human biology including anatomy, physiology, behavior and nutrition.
3. Training in medical specialties including, but not limited to, developmental pediatrics, genetics, neurology, cardiology and ophthalmology; a medical degree, while not required, is recommended.
4. Training in education theory and best practices including educational assessment, program development and inclusion; a college degree with a major in special education, while not required, is recommended.
5. Training and experience in physical, occupational, and speech therapies.
6. Ability to work cooperatively and effectively as the coordinator of a team of professionals including, but not limited to, medical, developmental and educational specialists, service providers, school district staff and administrators, and staff from agencies with responsibilities for serving people with disabilities.
7. Training in assertiveness, public speaking, effective meeting management, and discussion facilitation.
8. Training in advocacy and dispute resolution.
9. Training in disability rights law and special education law; a law degree, while not required, is recommended.
10. Experience in telemarketing or comparable on-the-job training in telephone skills, making cold calls, dogged persistence and coping with rejection.
11. Ability to organize records and manage complex scheduling tasks while negotiating intricate automated phone menus, searching the internet for information and juggling ten objects with one hand.
12. Ability to run faster than a speeding bullet and leap tall buildings in a single bound.
FOR INFORMATION REGARDING THE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THIS POSITION, CONTACT: Other parents of children with special needs
NON-DISCRIMINATION AND EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POLICY:
This position is open to anyone regardless of race, color, ancestry, national origin, ethnic group identification, religion, age, gender, marital or domestic partner status, sexual orientation, disability or medical conditions.
THIS EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY WAS POSTED BY:
Deborah L. Penry
CARE Parent Network
