• Type: Full-Time, 10-month
• Supervisor: Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Location: Chicago, IL, on-site
• Starting Date: Mid August 2026
  

Why consider Catherine Cook School?

Cook is a vibrant and inclusive learning community where curiosity, connection, and compassion are at the heart of everything we do. We are dedicated to developing creative, collaborative problem solvers who tackle global challenges from multiple perspectives. Our dedicated faculty and staff help students from preschool through 8th grade become empowered learners and leaders.

All Cook employees are trained and supported in incorporating wellness and belonging into their work with students and adults.  Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and social-emotional learning (SEL) are the cornerstones upon which we build a curriculum and community.  At Cook, we commit to all community members being active learners, from our preschool students to us as adults. 

We invite you to consider how Cook will benefit from having you, along with your experiences in educating and learning, as a part of our community.  

How will this role contribute to the growth of the Cook community?

Catherine Cook School seeks a vibrant and innovative Behavior and Neurodiversity Specialist: R.O.A.R.S. Coordinator. This position serves as a dedicated resource from Early Childhood through Middle School, reporting to the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and working in close partnership with the Program Team and Student Support Services (SSS) Team. The specialist acts as a bridge between therapeutic insights for differentiation in daily instruction through a primary 'coach the teacher' model and is a champion for the R.O.A.R.S. core values by fostering a school culture rooted in Respect, Ownership, Appreciation, Responsibility, and Safety. While the role supports the whole school, the Specialist is anchored in Early Childhood and Lower School for daily operations, where behavioral foundational work is most intensive. In the Middle School, this role functions primarily as a consultant to the existing support team. They do not hold a standard caseload of MS students but are available to provide expert second-look observations or strategy sessions for faculty.

While working alongside the SSS Team, which consists of Learning Specialists and School Counselors, this role focuses on teacher empowerment, leading teacher training workshops, leading parent/caregiver education workshops, providing regular student progress updates to families, and the design of neuro-inclusive environments that support every student's ability to be a learner and a community member.

How will I contribute and grow personally and professionally in this role?

• Connecting with and caring for students and colleagues

• Growing as a life-long learner through active participation in meetings and professional development opportunities

• Applying skills as supported by training and protocols for proactive and responsive community building.  

• Proactively and reflectively communicating through various platforms the vision, goals, and progress of your work with both internal and external collaborators

• Growing our culture of belonging and wellness through active participation in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and social-emotional learning (SEL) efforts 

• Serving as an Ambassador for our Enrollment Management and Development efforts

• Employing Google and Outlook Applications for individual and team collaboration and communication 

What will the ideal candidate for this role embody?

Teacher Support & Skill Development:

• Instructional Coaching: Provide hands-on coaching and "push-in" support to help teachers implement behavioral strategies and neuro-inclusive modifications in real-time.

• Professional Development: Design and lead workshops for faculty on understanding neurodiversity (ADHD, ASD, sensory processing) and managing challenging behaviors.

• Strategy Modeling: Demonstrate and model specific de-escalation techniques and Social Emotional Learning (SEL)-based interventions within the classroom setting.

• Resource Curation: Provide teachers with practical toolkits, visual schedules, and sensory tools tailored to the specific needs of their current student cohort.

Collaborative Student Support Services (SSS) Team:

• Student Support Team Integration: Serve as the behavioral lead within the Student Support Services (SSS) team. In Early Childhood and Lower School, partner with Learning Specialists and School Counselors to ensure that behavioral intervention plans (BIPs) are seamlessly integrated with academic accommodations and social-emotional goals. In Middle School, provide expert consultation and "second-look" observations to support the existing Dean and SSS teams with complex cases.

• Functional Behavior Assessments: Lead the process of observing and analyzing behavior to help the team understand the "function" of a student's challenge (e.g., Is a behavior driven by a literacy struggle or a sensory need?).

Crisis Intervention & Individualized Coaching

• Tier 3, Behavioral Crisis Point Person: Serve as the secondary responder for both students and teachers during high-intensity behavioral crises, providing push-in de-escalation within the classroom to maintain the learning environment. Rather than just “taking over” a situation, coach teachers in the moment of crisis by modeling regulation strategies and helping implement Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) in real time.

• Targeted Skill-Building (Pull-Out): Facilitate 1:1 and small-group sessions for neurodivergent learners to develop specific behavioral, self-regulation, and executive functioning skills identified through Functional Behavior skill-building sessions.

• Plan Development: Lead the process of Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBA), utilize the FBA data to create and oversee the implementation of formal Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs). Oversee the behavioral data collection and plan development for a specific caseload of students with intensive needs. This involves partnering with Learning Specialists - who manage the academic side - to ensure a cohesive support plan.

• Teacher Partnership: Coach for teachers in the moment of crisis, modeling regulation strategies and helping to implement behavioral plans in real-time.

Neurodiversity Advocacy & Parent/Caregiver Partnership:

• Neuro-Inclusive Advocacy: Act as the primary advocate for neurodiverse learners, ensuring their school experience is built on strengths rather than just deficit-correction.

• Parent/Caregiver Guidance: Work in partnership with the Learning Specialists to help families of neurodiverse students understand their child's profile and navigate the transition between Early Childhood to Lower School, and Lower School to Middle School expectations. 

• Parent/Caregiver Education: Design and facilitate parent education workshops and support groups focused on neurodiversity, behavioral strategies, and home to school consistency.

• Parent/Caregiver Updates: Provide proactive and regular updates to parents regarding their child’s behavioral goals, intervention progress, and strategy implementation.

• External Liaison: Coordinate with outside providers (Speech Therapists, OT, etc.) to ensure that therapeutic goals are being reinforced and practiced within the natural school environment.

Administrative Coordination:

• Team Meeting Facilitation: Schedule and lead "wrap-around" meetings involving parents, teachers, and specialists to ensure everyone is using a consistent playbook.

• Communication Oversight: Maintain consistent communication channels with families to ensure behavioral plans are understood and supported across both home and school environments.

• Student Scheduling: Manage the logistical complexity of students meeting with outside providers during the school day to minimize disruption to core instruction.

Required Background:

• Master’s degree: Special Education -Learning Behavior Specialist; School Psychology; Applied Behavior Analysis; or related degree or experience

• Years of Experience: 3+ years in a school or related field

What is the salary range for this position?

In compliance with IL’s Equal Pay Act, Catherine Cook utilizes a salary scale based on years of relevant experience and relevant degrees. An example for this position is a teacher with 0-10 years of relevant experience and a bachelor's degree would earn between $58,000 and $76,800. When extending an offer, Catherine Cook considers factors such as (but not limited to) the position's scope and responsibilities, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, and market and organizational considerations. 

Catherine Cook School is an equal-opportunity employer. We recognize that skills and insights are developed through a variety of professional and lived experiences. We seek to be more representative of the communities in which we live and who we teach.  We are intentionally seeking candidates who can demonstrate the core qualifications of this role through a combination of both non-traditional and traditional personal and professional experiences.

What else is there to know about employment at Cook?

Catherine Cook offers a comprehensive benefits package designed to support the well-being and financial security of our employees. Our benefits for full-time eligible employees include:

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage

• 403(b) plan

• 100% of the premium covered for Basic Life insurance, STD, LTD, AD&D

• HSA, FSA, Dependent Care available

• Professional Development opportunities

• Generous paid time off

• Pet Insurance

• Identity Theft Protection

About The Catherine Cook School

Mission Statement: Catherine Cook empowers students from preschool through 8th Grade to be adaptive, confident, and productive stewards of an evolving world. Our community engages in ideals of cultural competence, progressive academics, ethical literacy, and innovation designed to inspire personal excellence and compassionate leadership. Diversity Statement: Catherine Cook School is committed to creating and sustaining a diverse and  compassionate community grounded in a culture of integrity.

Connections working at The Catherine Cook School