Arizona Department of Education

School Safety Program Unit

Phoenix Location

Salary: $70,000 - $72,000 

Grade: 21

Closing Date: 03/26/2026

• The Comprehensive School Safety and Wellness Specialist works with the School Safety Unit to support, promote, and enhance safe and effective learning environments through the emotional, mental, and physical health and safety of students, staff, and the school community. This position supports school safety through suicide prevention and early intervention, building and expanding school mental health systems, partnership and collaboration through national, state and local organizations, and through a comprehensive array of prevention activities.
• Frequent in-state and out-of-state travel is required for this position.

The Arizona Department of Education currently utilizes a hybrid work environment, with up to two days of remote work (contingent upon business needs). Candidates should apply with an ability and willingness to work in-office up to five days per week as business needs necessitate.

• Develop and manage the implementation of annual work plans and allowable activities to achieve program deliverables and agency goals; evaluate and report on program activity progress, quarterly budgets, and continuous quality improvement and sustainability efforts
• Develop and revise guidance documents and resources and ensure agency web page(s) are up to date with best practices in school safety prevention, mental health, emergency planning, preparedness, response, and recovery
• Coordinate and facilitate training and workforce development; support state cadres of trainers; disseminate relevant surveys and report data collection for continuous training improvement; submit proposals to prepare and deliver presentations at national, state, and local school safety, mental health, and related events
• Manage and monitor grant programmatic and evaluation activities; report regularly to supervisor and submit annual state and federal reports; collaborate on grant fiscal planning
• Collaborate with internal and external key partners to lead multi-disciplinary cross-functional school safety outcomes
• Respond to technical assistance requests on the development and implementation of effective comprehensive school safety practices
• Research and identify grant opportunities to sustain comprehensive school safety systems; write and submit grant applications to federal and state systems

Knowledge in:
• Laws and policies pertaining to school safety, school mental health, and related topics in school safety, health, and wellness
• Program development, administration, implementation, and evaluation
• Adult learning techniques, methods, and instructional strategies for in-person and virtual trainings
• Evidence-based practices in comprehensive school safety to include prevention, intervention, response, and recovery strategies
• Community health and wellness resources
• A Bachelor’s degree in public health, mental health, student services, other education related school safety and wellness field of study, or equivalent experience to substitute for the degree, is required

Skills in:
• Public speaking
• Effective written and oral communication
• Planning and conducting training and workforce development for adult learners
• Facilitating in-person and virtual meetings with diverse stakeholders
• Project leadership
• Grant management
• Fiscal oversight
• Building partnership networks to magnify efforts and reduce duplication of efforts
• Intermediate skill in using Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel

Ability to:
• Operate successfully in a team environment
• Guide and support Local Education Agencies (LEAs) in designing, implementing, and evaluating effective and comprehensive school safety systems
• Research technical, specialized knowledge, laws, and legislation related to school safety
• Research and draw interpretations from public laws and rules
• Identify and create a network of connections between school and community resources and related federal technical assistance centers to support school safety
• Lead and facilitate meetings with diverse stakeholders and program staff

• Preference will be given to those applicants with experience in a school safety, mental health, or wellness role within a school or district setting

• Offers are contingent upon successful completion of all background and reference checks, required documents and, if applicable, a post-offer medical/physical evaluation.

If this position requires driving or the use of a vehicle as an essential function of the job to conduct State business, then the following requirements apply: Driver’s License Requirements.

All newly hired State employees are subject to and must successfully complete the Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification Program (E-Verify).

The State of Arizona provides an excellent comprehensive benefits package including:

• Affordable medical, dental, life, and short-term disability insurance plans
• Top-ranked retirement and long-term disability plans
• Ten paid holidays per year
• Vacation time accrued at 4.00 hours bi-weekly for the first 3 years
• Sick time accrued at 3.70 hours bi-weekly
• Paid Parental Leave-Up to 12 weeks per year paid leave for newborn or newly-placed foster/adopted child (pilot program).
• Deferred compensation plan
• Wellness plans

Learn more about the Paid Parental Leave program here. For a complete list of benefits provided by The State of Arizona, please visit our benefits page

You will be required to participate in the Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) upon your 27th week of employment, subject to waiting period. On or shortly after, your first day of employment you will be provided with enrollment instructions and effective date.

The State of Arizona is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer. Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation such as a sign language interpreter or an alternative format by calling (602) 542-3186 or emailing Human.Resources@azed.gov. Requests should be made as early as possible to allow sufficient time to arrange the accommodation.