Job Satisfaction of Directors of Special Education

The position of Director of Special Education is an important job containing varied responsibilities and unrelenting demands. This unique position in the field of education requires that an individual balance the needs of the students with parental requests and recommendations from teaching professionals while balancing cost. The field of education is experiencing shortages of school administrators, including Special Education Directors. Poor job satisfaction can lead to high turnover rates and increased absences exasperating the predicted shortage. The purpose of this study was to examine the facets of job satisfaction, personal characteristics and district demographics in terms of their relationship to overall satisfaction. Directors of Special Education across the state of New Jersey were surveyed to determine their level of job satisfaction and what facets of the job contribute to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction.