Private Special Education Teacher

We're seeking a calm, thoughtful, highly relational educator to work one-on-one with a 21-year-old young adult in a deeply personalized, community-based learning environment.

This is not a traditional classroom teaching role. The right educator will help create structure, meaningful routines, learning experiences, and opportunities for growth across daily life. You'll support academics, communication, life skills, emotional regulation, community engagement, and increasing independence — while helping build a sustainable rhythm that allows the student and his family to feel more supported and hopeful.

This student has been significantly underestimated by traditional educational systems. His family is looking for someone who sees possibility where others have seen limitation — someone willing to meet him where he is, stay consistent, and thoughtfully build a program centered around dignity, growth, safety, and meaningful engagement.

This role offers unusual autonomy and the opportunity to make a profound long-term impact on both a student and an entire family system.

Student Profile

You'll be working with a 21-year-old young adult with significant disabilities and a history of epilepsy that has contributed to educational disruption over the years.

The student struggles with expressive language and does not thrive in traditional desk-based or highly academic instructional environments. He benefits most from experiential learning, consistency, relationship-based support, and activities that are meaningful, engaging, and grounded in the real world.

The family is looking for someone who can help thoughtfully structure the student's days in a way that balances:

Academics

Life skills

Vocational exploration

Community participation

Recreation and leisure

Emotional regulation

Independence-building

Healthy routines

Success in this role is not defined only by academic growth. It's about helping the student feel regulated, engaged, safe, capable, and genuinely connected to the world around him.

The family is deeply invested in their son and eager to partner closely with the right educator. Building trust and maintaining consistent communication will be an important part of the role.

What You'll Do

Build and implement a highly individualized learning and life-skills program based on the student's strengths, interests, regulation, and developmental needs

Create thoughtful daily routines and structure that support emotional regulation, engagement, independence, and safety

Support growth in areas including communication, academics, ADLs, vocational exploration, and community-based learning

Plan and facilitate meaningful activities both at home and in the community, including outings, walks, exercise, recreation, and experiential learning opportunities

Adapt instruction and pacing based on the student's energy, attention, communication, and responsiveness

Help identify leisure activities and productive uses of downtime that contribute to quality of life and long-term independence

Maintain proactive awareness around safety, regulation, and seizure-related considerations

Partner closely with parents through regular communication, collaboration, and shared problem-solving

Take initiative in shaping the program while remaining responsive to family priorities and evolving student needs

Coordinate schedules, activities, materials, and overall day-to-day organization of the student's learning environment

What Makes Someone Successful in This Role

You are calm, emotionally steady, and able to remain grounded during stressful or unpredictable moments

You genuinely enjoy working with students with significant disabilities and believe deeply in their capacity for growth and connection

You are patient, creative, and willing to keep trying new approaches when something is not working

You can balance collaboration with independence — communicating openly with parents while confidently taking initiative day to day

You understand that relationship-building, trust, consistency, and emotional safety are foundational to learning

You are adaptable and comfortable working in a fluid, highly individualized environment rather than a rigid school structure

You have experience supporting teenagers or young adults with significant disabilities, ideally in special education, transition programming, community-based instruction, or similar settings

Experience with epilepsy and seizure care is strongly preferred