JESS SMITH

• Designed and implemented a comprehensive therapeutic educational program serving students with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emotional Disturbance, Intellectual Disabilities, trauma histories, and complex behavioral needs within a residential treatment facility.
• Developed individualized curriculum across academic, social-emotional, behavioral, sensory, and functional life-skill domains, integrating literacy, mathematics, art, movement, music, and daily living instruction.
• Created classroom-wide systems including individualized schedules, reinforcement frameworks, crisis response procedures, restorative practices, and behavior intervention supports to increase engagement, regulation, and student success.
• Collaborated with multidisciplinary teams including clinicians, behavioral health staff, residential counselors, administrators, and related service providers to align educational programming with treatment and transition goals.
• Built a highly structured, relationship-driven learning environment that supported student growth in communication, emotional regulation, independence, academic engagement, and readiness for successful transition and discharge.

• Supported a diverse caseload of students receiving services for Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emotional/Behavioral Disorders, ADHD, and Intellectual Disabilities across itinerant, supplemental, and intensive support settings.
• Conducted Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBA) and developed individualized Positive Behavior Support Plans (PBSPs) to address academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs.
• Advocated for and developed alternative curriculum pathways for students whose academic and functional needs were not adequately addressed through traditional grade-level programming.
• Selected as a Mentor Teacher, providing coaching, instructional support, and professional guidance to new and developing educators.
• Designed and facilitated professional development for faculty and staff on de-escalation strategies, crisis prevention, reinforcement systems, behavior intervention, and special education best practices.
• Collaborated with general and special education teams to improve instructional accessibility, behavioral supports, and inclusive educational opportunities for diverse learners.

• Designed and implemented comprehensive educational, behavioral, communication, sensory, and life-skills programming for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder across home, school, community, and recreational settings.
• Delivered intensive individualized instruction for up to 4.5 hours daily, five days per week, collaborating closely with families, therapists, preschool staff, and support teams to ensure consistency across environments.
• Developed individualized curriculum targeting communication, early literacy, social-emotional development, adaptive functioning, play skills, executive functioning, community participation, and school readiness.
• Supported inclusion within preschool classrooms through co-teaching, curriculum adaptation, peer engagement facilitation, behavioral support, and collaboration with educational teams.
• Designed and implemented behavior support systems that increased independence, reduced unsafe behaviors, improved emotional regulation, and expanded participation across home, school, and community settings.
• Led community-based instruction focused on functional communication, social participation, adaptive leisure skills, travel readiness, recreational activities, and real-world life experiences.

SELECTED STUDENT OUTCOMES

• Supported a minimally verbal preschool student in developing functional communication, increasing tolerance for transitions and sensory demands, and successfully transitioning into an inclusive kindergarten classroom.
• Helped a student with significant communication and behavioral needs progress from limited functional communication and minimal instructional engagement to participating in structured academic activities, answering comprehension questions, communicating wants and needs, and accessing community experiences with increased independence.
• Collaborated with families to create individualized home environments, sensory supports, visual systems, and behavior interventions that increased safety, independence, communication, and quality of life across daily routines.