Job Description

Position summary: The Spanish interpreter is a specialized language and cultural professional who works within district schools and/or district administration offices. Their primary purpose is to remove language barriers to ensure equitable learning access, academic success, and active parental involvement. They operate in classrooms, conference rooms, administrative offices, and during school community events.

Qualification: CCSD89 adheres to Illinois Administrative Code 23 IAC 226.800(k). Under these rules, anyone interpreting for parents during Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 meetings must hold the official designation of a Qualified IEP Interpreter.

Essential duties (Other duties may be assigned.)

1. Upholds the mission and vision of CCSD 89 and works to implement the priorities outlined in the district's strategic plan and building school improvement plans.
2. Provides consecutive or simultaneous translation during parent-teacher conferences, Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings, disciplinary hearings, and guidance counseling sessions.
3. Handles real-time telephone interpretations and remote virtual platform meetings (e.g., Zoom, Google Meets) connecting school staff with Spanish-speaking households.
4. Supports translating school notices, report cards, permission slips, and district policies from English to Spanish and vice versa.
5. Dedicate preparation time to review student files before an interpretation session to accurately master specialized terminology.
6. Acts as a bridge between the home culture and the school system, helping staff and families understand cultural nuances that impact student learning and family engagement.
7. Deliver accurate language transfers while remaining completely impartial during active interpretations.
8. Maintain organized administrative records tracking completed translation files, interpretation hours, and upcoming calendar appointments across the district.
9. Develops a positive working relationship with CCSD 89 staff in order to further understand and meet the needs of our diverse community.
10. Supports families in understanding district and school policies and procedures.
11. Models conversation, manners, and listening skills for the purpose of demonstrating appropriate social and interpersonal behavior.
12. Adheres strictly to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) regulations, treating all academic, personal, and behavioral disclosures with complete confidentiality.

Supervisory responsibilities: None

In order to perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty and responsibility satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the qualifications, skills, physical demands, and work environment that may be required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Unique skills and abilities:

• Ability to impact family engagement and build relationships.
• Ability to respect, understand, and appreciate cultural differences and bring insights to inspire and engage people in solving complex problems.
• Is visible and available to others, with the ability to build/maintain trust and respect.

Skills required:

• Knowledgeable about special education
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret documents and correspondence.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all members of the school community.
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in written form, in Spanish and English. Ability to write reports as needed. The ability to effectively present information and respond to questions.
• Ability to solve problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where limited standardization exists.
• Ability to perform essential duties within school district requirements and Board of Education policies.

Physical demands:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, talk, and hear.
• The employee is required to stand, walk, operate office and computer equipment, as well as reach with hands and arms, repeating actions with the same hand, arm, or finger motion.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to adjust focus.
• The usual and customary methods of performing the job's functions require the following physical demands: occasional lifting, carrying, pushing, and/or pulling and significant finger dexterity.
• The position requires meeting deadlines with time constraints, interacting with the public and staff, and irregular or extended work hours at times.

Work environment

• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. However, on occasion, the noise level will be loud.
• Work is usually conducted indoors. This work could be conducted at any school district location.

Salary and Benefits: $35-$40 per hour

Application Procedure: Applications are considered complete when all required materials are submitted including the following: 1) an on-line application for this position, 2) a letter of interest in this position, 3) unofficial copies of all college and/or university transcripts, 4) three (3) recent letters of recommendation from past or current employment related to this position and 5) a copy of your current resume. CCSD89 uses an on-line application that is available at http://www.ccsd89.org/. All required documents should be electronically attached to your application. Internal candidates do not need to complete the on-line application or submit the documents required of all other applicants for this position, please contact our Director of Student Services.