How to hire a special needs teacher

How to hire a special needs teacher, step by step

Here's a step-by-step special needs teacher hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a special needs teacher job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new special needs teacher
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a special needs teacher do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The special needs teacher hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a special needs teacher to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a special needs teacher that fits the bill.

   This list presents special needs teacher salaries for various positions.

   Type of Special Needs Teacher	Description	Hourly rate
   Special Needs Teacher	Special education teachers work with students who have a wide range of learning, mental, emotional, and physical disabilities. They adapt general education lessons and teach various subjects, such as reading, writing, and math, to students with mild and moderate disabilities... Show more	$16-31
   Teacher Internship	Teaching interns are individuals who assist teachers and educators in the classroom. The interns are instructed to fulfill the tasks set out and provided by the supervisors for them... Show more	$16-32
   Learning Support Teacher	Learning support teachers focus on offering out-of-school education to pupils who need additional help. Their duties include planning and implementing constructive teaching policies as well as collaborating with parents, other relevant professionals, and personnel... Show more	$11-23

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Autism
   • Behavioral Issues
   • Mathematics
   • Language
   • Learning Environment
   • IEPs
   • Language Arts
   • CPR
   • Developmental Disabilities
   • Classroom Management
   • Applied Behavior Analysis
   • Behavior Management
   • ASD
   • Behavior Analysis

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead debates with advance students on topics including globalization, economics, and political history.
   • Work with preschool children with various special needs such as autism, down syndrome, ADHD, cerebral palsy, etc.
   • Tutor elementary school children with learning disabilities, mood disturbances, and ADHD in all school subjects.
   • Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects including English, mathematics, and social studies.
   • Develop individual educational plans (IEP) design to promote educational, physical and social development.
   • Train in CPI and paraprofessional.

   More special needs teacher duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the special needs teacher job description is a good way to get more applicants. A special needs teacher salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a special needs teacher in Arizona may be lower than in Alaska, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level special needs teacher. Additionally, a special needs teacher with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average special needs teacher salary

   $47,334yearly

   $22.76 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level special needs teacher salary

   $34,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average special needs teacher salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$69,172	$33
   2	Maryland	$65,942	$32
   3	New York	$62,856	$30
   4	Massachusetts	$62,066	$30
   5	Pennsylvania	$55,479	$27
   6	Washington	$54,277	$26
   7	Colorado	$49,728	$24
   8	Illinois	$49,607	$24
   9	Texas	$48,878	$24
   10	Ohio	$46,533	$22
   11	Virginia	$44,746	$22
   12	Georgia	$44,147	$21
   13	Florida	$43,797	$21
   14	Wisconsin	$42,287	$20
   15	Arizona	$38,591	$19

   Average special needs teacher salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	San Mateo County Office Of Education	$53,868	$25.90	2
   2	CARE	$52,575	$25.28	2
   3	The Arora Group	$52,555	$25.27
   4	Hemet Unified School District	$52,054	$25.03	29
   5	Broward County Public Schools	$51,524	$24.77	55
   6	Andover Public Schools	$51,049	$24.54	17
   7	Minnesota State Fair	$49,740	$23.91	5
   8	Shillington Education	$47,062	$22.63
   9	HealthPRO	$47,054	$22.62	7
   10	The MED	$45,580	$21.91
   11	SunnyvaleSD	$45,312	$21.78	16
   12	Voices College-Bound Language Academies	$43,823	$21.07	3
   13	Prestonwood Baptist Church	$43,608	$20.97	9
   14	Paradise Valley Unified School District	$42,402	$20.39	21
   15	Nevada Joint Union High School District	$41,913	$20.15	1
   16	Albany Unified School District	$38,906	$18.70

4. Writing a special needs teacher job description

   A job description for a special needs teacher role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a special needs teacher job description:

   Special needs teacher job description example

   This job posting is for the following areas: visual arts, music, band, drama, world language, etc. It is not for physical education, elementary science, or world cultures which also serve on the specials team but have a separate job posting. Please note that all of the specials positions do require teacher certification.
   
   KIPP Jacksonville Public Schools seeks inspiring, certified specials teachers for our K-8 schools. Specials teachers should have a clear vision for their subject that includes students engaging in culturally appropriate and fun learning. This full-time position works closely with the existing specials departments. These departments vary by school. As a specials teacher, they would likely see students across all grade levels and be responsible for creating a positive classroom environment, implementing curriculum, assessing students, collaborating with their team, building relationships with families, and other duties as assigned. Full teacher responsibilities are ultimately outlined by their school leader.
   OUR CURRENT MODEL
   The specials schedule is subject to change and can vary from school to school. The specials team consists of up to seven teachers for the entire school, depending on the size of the school. Each specials teacher instructs students across multiple grade levels.
   
   Depending on the specials area subject, the teacher may travel to classrooms or have students transition to their own classroom space. Class size is typically ~26 students and typically a teacher will see a class about once per week in a given rotation.
   
   COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
   Our current compensation and benefits structure is very competitive and is commensurate with experience.
   
   Our current starting salary for a first-year lead teacher is $50,000
   
   Free individual health benefits (including medical, dental, and vision)
   
   Free individual short-term and long-term disability insurance
   
   403(b) retirement program with a company match
   
   To support teacher practice and their growth, all lead teachers receive individualized coaching and professional development.
   
   This offering is subject to change each school year. Terms would be outlined in an offer letter, if issued.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find special needs teachers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any special needs teachers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level special needs teachers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your special needs teacher job on Zippia to find and attract quality special needs teacher candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as k12jobspot, learn4good, serious teachers, teachingjobs.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with special needs teacher candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new special needs teacher

   Once you've decided on a perfect special needs teacher candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new special needs teacher. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a special needs teacher?