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Job Bank Information for VI Professionals

Why include job bank information?

It can be very challenging to find a VI professional. Based on a survey of special education directors in May 1997, many districts either do not know where to look, or employ inefficient methods to find these very specialized professionals. That same survey revealed that the average length that a VI position is vacant is 8.33 months, nearly a complete academic year.

Due to the low incidence of students with visual impairments and professionals trained to teach them, it is frequently necessary to go beyond the boundaries of the district and community. Typical venues for finding a VI professional include advertisements in newspapers and professional journals; flyers at professional meetings; brochures about the district and the VI vacancy; and electronic forums, such as job banks and listservs. This resource will focus on venues other than the newspapers.

Registering with job banks with information about VI professionals can be an efficient way to inform a large number of potential applicants about your district and why it is an excellent place to live and work. It is important to remember that individuals who are VI certified and willing to relocate may receive up to 20 job offers. If you want a highly qualified person to move to your community, establish themselves in the community, and stay there, you will want your efforts to be thoughtful, thorough, and effective.

Assumptions

• Directors will utilize the professionals in the human resource office within their district.
• Directors have a network they typically use when looking for educational professionals
• Directors have the following information:
• an accurate and current understanding of their VI caseloads
• a solid understanding of the social, political, demographic, and geographic characteristics of their district
• information about the community in which the VI professional(s) will be living and working.
• Information about the vacancy will be available in multiple formats and in multiple locations.
• Having carefully considered whether they needed to "grow their own" or look for VI professionals with existing certification, the district has chosen the latter option.

What type of information is desired by potential applicants?

When a district has a vacancy it typically develops two types of information: the official job vacancy notice (JVN) and an unofficial flyer about the job. The JVN usually includes legal and practical aspects of the vacancy such as basic requirements, salary, duties, and responsibilities and contact information. Administrators have very little flexibility with the information which goes into the JVN.

The job flyer or job brochure is different. It includes the above information in a more informal format, one that is intended to encourage candidates to apply to your district. The flyer may include information about the students, community, district, and other information which might entice the potential applicant to select this district and not other districts. The flyer can be a single page, a packet of information, or a combination. Discussions with HR directors and VI professionals around the country indicate that the following types of information are desired by potential applicants.

Reminder: you will have less than 5 seconds to get the readers attention.

• Attractive visual appeal, including use of color
• Information about the community:
• People and their families move to a 'place ,' not a job.
• What is it about the community that has attracted other inhabitants to it?
• What type of information does the chamber of commerce distribute about your community?
• What type of applicant are your looking for? One who desires:
• the peaceful vistas and safety of a small community?
• the dynamic cultural activities of a urban area?
• the flexibility and accessibility of a suburban area?
• Information about other types of employment in the community (for a spouse)
• Information about the district and special education services:
• Strengths of the districts
• Dynamic new initiatives
• Salary range:
• People from other areas may be unfamiliar with the ranges in the area
• Range by level of degree is preferred.
• Characteristics of the special education program
• Information about the VI program:
• Type of certification required? Desired? Emergency permit considered?
• Students to be served
• Support for regional and statewide professional development
• Other staff members, such as a braillist.
• Powerful inducements to potential employees:
• An on-site interview including paid travel expenses
• Assistance with relocation costs; even a small amount can be very influential.
• Bright noticeable colors:
• Make sure that the background and print have a high degree of contrast
• Photos:
• Insert a picture of something which represents the job
• A photo could be inserted on flyer or used as a background. The photo should NEVER inhibit the basic readability of the printed information.
• A photo could be used to target the potential VI applicants, or a more generic photo could be used for an array of positions in the district.
• Use of colors, photos, and the size of the print job will increase the cost of the recruitment; but with thoughtful distribution, it will also increase the applicant pool.

What venues should I consider when recruiting VI professionals?

• How likely is it that a VI professional will see the information about the vacancy?
• VI-specific forums include websites, listservs, professional publications, and conferences with a focus on visual impairments
• VI professionals may not be checking generic special education venues.
• What is in the search and recruitment budget? Funds will be needed for:
• Printing attractive, colorful flyers or brochures
• Travel expenses for an interview in the community
• Travel expenses to a university VI training program to conduct interviews or sending a VI staff person to recruit new candidates
• Advertisements in job banks, professional journals and newsletters, and large city newspapers.

Which job banks can help me find the VI professional best suited to my district?

When considering where and when to post a vacancy, you must consider whether a certified VI professional is likely to see the information. Some of the information below is more generic in nature, some are focused on VI professionals. Each has its strengths. Post on as many job banks as possible.

Internet sites:

Special Education Exchange

The Special Education Exchange, also known as SpEdEx is a broad source of information in areas such as research, news and conferences, and resources. It also includes a link to Amazon.com (www.amazon.com) to assist people in ordering, specialized materials.

The SpEdEx site includes an active job bank for organizations with vacancies. It does not include a resume service for individuals looking for a new position. The SpEdEx web address is www.spedex.com/jobs/jobs.htm

Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

The TSBVI job bank has a resume service for VI professionals and links to sites which post vacancies. The VI Job Bank page is located within the Administrator and Program Resource of the website (www.tsbvi.edu/program). Consider posting a vacancy on a job bank site AND checking the TSBVI site for people who are looking for jobs.

Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)

CEC maintains a website that includes information for both job seekers and employers (www.cec.sped.org/cc/job.htm) Job seekers can search for vacancies using several categories, including job description, location, setting, area of expertise and age of students. For information about posting a vacancy or resume information contact CEC Career Connections at (614) 923-0600, ext. 339 or jweston@resume-link.com. There is a small fee for CEC's services.

Texas Council of Administrator of Special Education (TCASE)

TCASE is currently re-structuring their website. It is intended to include job bank information. For more information, call (512) 474-4492, or visit their website at www.tcase.org.

Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA)

TASA maintains the Educators Job Bank which is located on their website (www.tasanet.org/EducatorsJobBank/ejbdescription.html) This organization and website focus is on issues related to educational administration. The website includes the opportunity to post in an array of areas; by region, educational speciality, and district. It also includes links to other job related sites. These include: professional organizations, the Texas Education Agency, and other statewide and national links. VI-specific information is not included on this website.

Print resources:

Job Exchange - Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AERBVI)

AERBVI has two job-related member benefits. The Job Exchange is a listing of vacancies. This is a monthly publication available to members upon request. Organizations with vacancies place an advertisement. A classified type ad is $30 per month. If an organization wants a larger ad, the monthly rates are $300 for a full page, $250 for a half page, $200 for a quarter page. Deadline for all ads is the 20th of the month. A copy of the form is included in this section.

The other member service is the AERBVI Job Network. This is a listing of members who are looking for a new position. The Job Network includes basic demographic information. It is available to directors for $30. If an advertisement is also placed with the Job Exchange, the Job Network information is free.

For more information, or to place an advertisement contact:

Journal of Visual Impairments and Blindness (JVIB)

This is the only peer-reviewed journal with a focus on visual impairments. As such, it is widely read by VI professionals. JVIB accepts both classified advertisements and print advertisements. For more information contact:

Re:View

Re:View is a professional journal distributed to AER members and focused on practical application and information. For information about placing an advertisement, time lines and cost, contact Grant Williams at (800) 365-9753.

Regional Education Service Centers

Typically, the VI professional(s) at your regional ESC serve(s) as an informal job bank. For more information about your region, contact your VI consultant(s). A list of the consultants at each ESC is included in the Resource section.

Universities

Universities maintain offices which assist students to find jobs. Additionally, most VI programs also maintain notebooks of information about vacancies in various places. Students have regular access to both of these resources. By including those universities which have VI training programs (VI teacher and O&M specialist) in your search, you may find new candidates. A list of universities with full time training programs in visual impairments is included in this section. Or you can visit the listing on the AERBVI website at www.aerbvi.org/certification/universities.htm. A copy of this listing is included in the Training Options section.

Additionally, Stephen F. Austin and Texas Tech Universities are conducting distance education training programs. Much of the training is conducted at regional service centers via the TETN system. Directors looking for a VI professional may want to visit a TETN class session.

Listservs

Listservs are composed of people with a common interest who share information and resources via email. All subscribers get any messages generated by members who post questions, comments, or information. You can post information directly by subscribing, posting the message, and requesting that people respond to you privately. You may unsubscribe to the list at any time. This can be an excellent way to reach a broad array of individuals. While there are many listservs in visual impairment, the Orientation and Mobility and the AER listservs are possibly the most widely used.

AER

The Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) sponsors a listserv known as AERnet. Approximately 500 VI professionals subscribe to this listserv. Although valuable for both professions, this listserv is primarily used by VI teachers and related professionals. For subscription information see http://dil.sched.pitt.edu/aernet/. To send messages to the list write aernet@list.pitt.edu.

Orientation and Mobility

The Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) sponsors a listserv known as OandM. Although valuable for both professions, this listserv is primarily used by O&M specialists and related professionals.

If you wish to subscribe to the OandM listserv, please send an email to listserv@list.msu.edu containing this command in the body of the message: SIGNON OandM

What can I do to make sure that my information is read?

• You have approximately 5 seconds to get and keep someone's attention; use them well.
• Post your job information in as many places as possible.
• Distribute your information where VI professionals are likely to read it. These may be different locations than your district typically uses.
• Don't underestimate the power of bringing the applicants to your district for an interview and tour of the district or co-op.

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