[Job-Listings] Blindness Skills Instructor Vacancy in New Mexico

[Salas, James, CFB]

Greetings, 

We are recruiting to fill a Blindness Skills Instructor vacancy with the NM Commission for the Blind.  The position is in our Las Cruces office and serves the Southern/Southwestern part of New Mexico. 

The most relevant portions of the job posting are provided below my signature block.  The position is open until filled, but please apply as soon as you can. 

To reach the job posting, go to the NM State Personnel Website at 
www.spo.state.nm.us, click the link for View Job Opportunities and Apply, enter the word "blind" in the search field, and look for the Blindness Skills Instructor vacancy in Las Cruces. 

Applications are accepted through the New Mexico State Personnel Office online application system only!

Note to screen reader users: Should you experience difficulty with the application utility, please notify Ms. Andrea Rivera-Smith of the State Personnel Office at (505) 695-5606. You may request assistance with the application.  She can also confirm that your application (including uploaded transcripts, licenses, etc.) has been successfully received for consideration.

Interested individuals can contact either Mr. Juan Haro or me to discuss the position.  Mr. Haro manages the Independent Living Program on my VR/IL team and can be reached at 505.383.2245 or at Juan.Haro at state.nm.us.  

Thanks much.

Jim 

James L. Salas 
Deputy Director 
NM Commission for the Blind
Phone 505.383.2251
www.cfb.state.nm.us
James.Salas at state.nm.us

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New Mexico Commission for the Blind
Vacancy Announcement
- Job Title: Blindness Skills Instructor 

- Full/Part Time: Full-Time

- Regular/Temporary: Regular - Permanent

- Closing Date: Open Until Filled 

- Pay Grade: 65

- Salary: The salary range for this position is $34,226 - $59,553 Annually
($16.45 - $28.63 Hourly).
Offered salary will be based on education and experience.  

- Benefits: Full State of New Mexico benefits, including health insurance, life insurance, retirement, sick leave, annual leave, and ten holidays.

- Why does the job exist? Provides blindness skills training, primarily training in orientation and mobility (cane travel), personal management, assistive technology, braille, and home management to blind and visually impaired individuals. This position serves both Independent Living/Older Blind Program and Vocational Rehabilitation Program participants.

- How does it get done? Incumbent receives client referrals from medical providers, school personnel, VR counselors, friends, family members, and other sources; meets with referred individuals to determine their needs; reviews medical documentation to determine eligibility for agency services; provides core services; develops an Independent Living Plan (ILP) for individuals requiring intensive blindness skills training; manages a budget for needed products; develops lessons; schedules regular appointments to deliver needed aids, devices, technology, and skills training in order to accomplish ILP goals; manages assigned cases using AWARE case management system; and conducts regular outreach and trainings throughout service territory. 

- Who are the customers? Students and adults with blindness or severe visual impairments, family members, school personnel, employers, and Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors. 

- Ideal Candidate: The ideal candidate possesses a Bachelor's Degree with three years of related experience. Related experience would include in-depth experience with basic computer technology, assistive technology for blind and visually impaired individuals, and skills training, in addition to the ability to teach cane travel, Braille, communication skills, and other skills related to activities of daily living for blind and visually impaired individuals.

- Minimum Qualifications, including Substitutions: Associate's Degree in Education, Social Science, Behavioral Science, or related field and two (2) years of experience in a field such as orientation and mobility, vocational rehabilitation counseling, education, social work, gerontology, family and community services, child development, home economics related to families, or services for people with disabilities.  Additional education may substitute for the required experience on a year for year basis.  Experience in this job classification may substitute for the required education on a year for year basis.
                                            
- If you have indicated on your application that you have attended college, you must attach a copy of your unofficial college transcript to the application. 

Working Conditions: work requires daily visits to client homes, secondary and post-secondary schools, and employer locations; regular exposure to Visual/Video Display Terminal (VDT), personal computers, printers, scanners, and video magnifiers; and requires extensive telephone usage. Duties require lifting of typical modern desktop video magnifiers, as well as walking, standing, sitting, bending, and crawling. Regularly works with individuals with secondary disabilities, some of which resulting in challenging behaviors. Occasionally exposed to service animals.  80% of the work is performed away from the office, traveling throughout the Southern and Southwestern New Mexico service territory, including occasional overnight travel using agency vehicles. 

- Bargaining Unit: This position is covered by a collective bargaining agreement and all terms/conditions of that agreement apply and must be adhered to.

- Agency Contact Information: Ms. Annica Gonzales, (505) 476.4456

- There are also approximately ten questions addressing education, experience, and specialized qualifications. 
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