Happy New Year! We just had a successful first NSSLHA
meeting of the year this past Monday, featuring our guest speaker, alumna Susan
Simon, SLP and recruiter for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).
She has been working for LAUSD since 1998, and came to speak with us about the
benefits of working for a school district, and for LAUSD.
Here are some
snippets from our meeting:
LAUSD is the second largest school district in the United
States, covering about 700 square miles, and employing 450 SLPs and 25 SLPAs.
Benefits of working
with LAUSD include:
·
Caseload
variety: The 700 square miles cover schools that have inner city urban
areas, suburban areas, cutting edge and lab schools, dual language immersion
schools and special education schools. Clients range from 3 to 22 years of age.
The entire continuum of speech and language services is self-supported within
the LAUSD. You would have the opportunity to fill out surveys at the end of
each school year to request for a change of setting, thus developing and
expanding as you work with new types of caseloads.
·
Opportunities
for advancement and leadership opportunities: Besides moving horizontally
in the school-based SLP field by requesting a variety of disorder areas to work
with, you can also move vertically. LAUSD has a program on site in LAUSD
campuses to get your administrative credential through CSULA or CSUN.
·
CFY and
RPE supervision: 9 months of clinical supervision, with a supervisor
available to answer your questions during your new transition from student to
clinician.
·
New
therapist orientation and support: There is an intense training to guide
you as a new therapist, and help you with scheduling your clients.
·
District
Sponsored CEUs: The state of CA has licensed LAUSD to provide CEUs. You would
need 12 units per year, or 24 every two years.
·
Web-based
IEPs and a provided laptop: All
records for clients are now web-based, so all related professionals are going
through the same files. This benefits you with a bigger picture of the client.
A company provided laptop allows you to document daily from your site.
·
Collaboration
with other related professionals: Work with a team consisting of a teacher,
a psychologist, an occupational therapist, a physical therapist, a school nurse
and a behavioral specialist to work together and problem solve for language and
literacy prevention and intervention services.
·
The
latest therapy materials: assessment and curriculum based therapy materials
are provided, so you do not need to buy your own!
·
Competitive
salaries: scroll down for detailed salary information
·
Paid
holiday and illness leave: Sick leave is rolled over and banked when
unused. If you use them up, there are half-days available. Sick leave follows
you in the state of CA, so it will transfer with you if you relocate to another
district.
·
District
paid medical, dental and vision insurance: for the employee, a spouse or
domestic partner, and up to 25 dependents.
·
District
paid life insurance
·
State
Teachers Retirement System (STRS) membership: After 5 years, you are
guaranteed by the state of CA, a monthly income upon your retirement until
death. That amount is based on how many years you have served, your age at
retirement, and your highest salary. 8% of your salary is taken off your gross
pay, pre-tax, and placed into an account where the money is invested. This is
unlike a 401K, where the money can decrease. The money is invested so you get
interest on it. See
www.calsters.com for
more information.
·
Loan
Forgiveness Program: There is up to a $17,500 federal loan forgiveness
program in effect for those who dedicate 5 years to work in Title 1 schools.
·
Los
Angeles Teachers Mortgage Assistance Program and Credit Union
Employment
requirements:
·
Masters degree in SLP or COMD
·
Eligibility for CA SLP or SLP credential
·
CBEST
·
Successful interview
·
Health and TB clearance
·
Fingerprint clearance
·
2 sets of transcripts from each school you have
attended
·
Employment eligibility documents
·
Selection by the Speech and Language Program for
assignment
·
Letters of recommendation
Salary: for 180
work days, 10 weeks off in the summer, a winter and a spring break.
·
Starting:
$61,433
·
2nd
year: $64,000
·
3rd
year: $68,000
·
4th
year: $72,000
·
5th
year: $76,000
Additional notes and advice
from Susan:
·
Always ask about the CF year, and the salary
during your CFY to all prospective employers. Not all companies will have a
competitive CF salary.
·
Take your CBEST now! She has seen many
applicants postpone taking the exam, and end up losing their offered positions.
Take the exam as early as possible. It is not a hard exam, and it is good
forever.
·
Be aware of the differences between working with
a school district vs. an agency. School districts offer union protection to
grieve a caseload if it is over 55. Agencies do not provide this protection.
CSU Scholarship
opportunity:
Currently, they are offering scholarship stipends for
graduate students that are graduating by August 2014 a $5,000 scholarship
stipend that is tax-free. Student teaching with LAUSD is available. There is a
2-year employment commitment. Email Susan for more information.
Contact information:
Susan Simon
(213)241-6200
Links:
 |
| Early turnout, we ended up with a great crowd of about 80 students! |
 |
| Some of our favorite 2nd year Graduate SLP students. |
 |
| NSSLHA meetings make us smile! |
 |
| Susan Simon talks shop with Mr. Paulson |
Thank you Susan Simon for dedicating your time to speaking
to us!
Hope to see everyone at the next meeting.
