Paraeducator qualifications

A few months back one of my para-educators had to leave my school to work on some very important advocacy work. I was then called upon to be a major part of the interview committee to find her replacement. This was all well and good because I had a list of characteristics which I thought covered all aspects of a good para: educated, experienced, motivated, creative, etc. We interviewed 6 applicants from a rather large pool of applications and we chose one person who we felt would be the best fits based on her qualifications and attitude.

After a few month of working with her, I realized that my list of qualifications and characteristics was slightly lacking. I’ve now figured out that the person also must have HIGH expectations of children with autism no matter how impacted they seem to be, they must be SELF-ASSURED and assert themselves with the child in a kind and caring way, they must be overly ORGANIZED and have a plan before working with a child, and they must know how to ADJUST to the ever-changing demands of children with autism and public school. These characteristics (in addition to being well trained in teaching techniques) seem to be the key to success. No matter how much “education”, “experience” or “creativity” you have, it really doesn’t make up for a lack of high expectations, self-assurance, organization and flexibility.

What are some characteristics you’ve found to be important in a para-educator and/or teacher?