IT Application Development - Senior/Specialist

Description

GENERAL SERVICE

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT

IT Application Development Senior/Specialist $99,300 - $133,608 annually Closes November 29,2026

The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) seeks to fill an IT Application Development Senior/Specialist. This full-time permanent position is based in Olympia, Washington. This position may be eligible for partial to near full-time telework. Telework is a combination of in-building and off-site days. We encourage interested candidates to visit the OSPI website to gain insight into our agency.

About OSPI and our initiatives OSPI is the primary agency charged with overseeing public K–12 education in Washington state. Working with the state's 295 public school districts and 7 state-tribal education compact schools, OSPI allocates funding and provides tools, resources, and technical assistance so every student in Washington is provided a high-quality public education. At OSPI, we recognize that our employees are the key to the success of the agency. We are committed to our work but value the balance with our personal lives. We demonstrate our commitment to employees by providing an environment that stimulates professional growth and values them for their expertise. OSPI is a great place to work and has several initiatives to help create a great working environment, including:

• We support a healthy work/life balance by offering flexible/alternative work schedules and mobile and telework options. (Depending on job duties and work location.)
• We have an Infant at Work Program that is based on long-term values of newborns and infant-parent bonding. Eligible employees who are new parents or legal guardians can bring their infant (six weeks to six months) when returning to work. (Depending on job duties and work location.)
• We value and are actively involved in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion within OSPI by way of cross-divisional, collaborative committee. The focus of the committee includes employee engagement and education; reinforcing OSPI values; and maximizing the value of diversity and identifying strategies for inclusion.

Vision, Mission, and Values Vision: All students prepared for post-secondary pathways, careers, and civic engagement.

Mission: Transform K-12 education to a system that is centered on closing opportunity gaps and is characterized by high expectations for all students and educators. We achieve this by developing equity-based policies and supports that empower educators, families, and communities. Values: Ensuring Equity, Collaboration and Service, Achieving Excellence through Continuous Improvement, Focus on the Whole Child

Equity Each student, family, and community possesses strengths and cultural knowledge that benefits their peers, educators, and schools. Ensuring educational equity:

• Goes beyond equality; it requires education leaders to examine the ways current policies and practices result in disparate outcomes for our students of color, students living in poverty, students receiving special education and English Learner services, students who identify as LGBTQ+, and highly mobile student populations.
• Requires education leaders to develop an understanding of historical contexts; engage students, families, and community representatives as partners in decision-making; and actively dismantle systemic barriers, replacing them with policies and practices that ensure all students have access to the instruction and support they need to succeed in our schools.

Position Overview The objective of this senior-level position is to independently design, develop, maintain, sustain and modernize the Child Nutrition Services application suite and related data transfer systems. The position applies advanced application development, architecture, data integration, security, and troubleshooting expertise to support accurate and timely service delivery and financial support for Child Nutrition Services applications. The systems enable Child Nutrition Services to:

• Administer 9 U.S. Department of Agriculture Child Nutrition Programs
• Collect and approve a program application from program operators
• Pay claims for reimbursement for meals served.
• Account for state and federal dollars paid to program operators over multiple overlapping state and federal fiscal years.
• Collect data for state and federal reporting efforts.
• Determine eligibility for local level program participants.
• Manage food inventory and food ordering.
• Washington Integrated Nutrition System (WINS): an application and claiming system for USDA Child Nutrition Programs. Child Nutrition Services administers seven programs in WINS and each of these programs pays reimbursement for meals served each month of the year. Additionally, WINS has a custom payment option to distribute other payment types like federal and state equipment grants. WINS supports claims for reimbursement totaling $554 million annually.
• Washington Allocation Commodity Entitlement System (W-ACES): Helps Child Nutrition Services administer the USDA Food Distribution Program by allocating entitlement dollars to participating programs, offering food for ordering and subsequent delivery to program operators while maintaining an inventory of foods received and ordered. W-ACES supports management of $40 million entitlement dollars annually.
• Direct Certification; an Education Data System (EDS) application; : A system that matches data from two Washington state agency sources and determines eligibility for free and reduced-price meals for 450,000 students annually.

This position reports to the Information Technology Application Development Supervisor and is a senior developer of the OSPI application development team. This position mentors staff, works closely with the development supervisor in setting policy and work process, and supports the agency’s application architecture, standards, and industry practices. This position is responsible for the oversight of application development for the maintenance, operation, design, and development of highly specialized custom-developed applications utilized by over 295 Local Educational Agencies, 500 Child Care Centers and Community Based Organizations statewide. This position is also responsible for coordinating work efforts with customers and other technical teams to meet or exceed customer expectations for data collections, security, and applications. The application development team provides critical and complex software support and maintenance programming to state and federally mandated data processes for Washington State K-12 education. This includes but is not limited to architecture, design, maintenance and operation, framework management, technology policy and process within the Agency.

Key Responsibilities

Duty: Serve as the lead developer responsible for the development and maintenance of the OSPI Child Nutrition Services (CNS) web applications code base to support the OSPI CNS processes that deliver services to school districts and other program operators statewide.

Outcome: Child Nutrition Services applications are reliable, secure, supportable, and responsive to program needs. CNS staff, agency leaders, school districts, and program operators receive accurate application services, data processing and financial information that support compliant program administration and timely delivery of services to students and families statewide.

Duty: Use advanced development skills to design and enhance Child Nutrition Services (CNS) application infrastructure.

Outcome: CNS application infrastructure is secure, supportable, and adaptable to state and federal program requirements. Application design, integrations, documentation, audit support, risk management, and performance improvements enable accurate processing of CNS records, reliable financial reporting, and timely system changes that support program operations.

Required Qualifications:

A post-secondary (four-year) degree in computer science, mathematics, or other closely aligned fields and five years of experience in a professional application development role for an employer.

[OR]

A two-year associate degree in computer science, mathematics, or other closely aligned field from a community college and seven (7) years of experience in a professional application development role for an employer.

[OR]

Nine (9) years of experience in a professional application development role for an employer.

At least four years of experience must include managing common functions and tools utilized by a suite of applications supported by a team of developers.

At least two years of experience must include each of the following:

• Developing with .NET and SQL technologies
• Object-oriented principles and methodologies, with a focus on maintainability and re-use of common code.
• Debugging, tracing, and otherwise troubleshooting existing code bases
• Developing financial components of applications.

Travel Requirements: Occasional travel Must reside of the state of Washington

Desired Qualifications:

Experience working within an Educational Agency or Cooperative that supports a State or Local Educational Agency (LEA).

Senior level professional experience in some or all of the following technologies:

• T-SQL Query Language for database development.
• Azure DevOps and GIT source code management
• Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS)
• Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) or other ETL processes
• Authentication and Authorization technologies. i.e. Entra ID
• ASP.NET MVC
• XML & XSLT
• Webforms
• Windows Services
• Web Services / SOA Messaging services
• Writing and executing Unit Tests and other Software Testing Methodologies.
• Source control management, tracking, reviews, and troubleshooting.
• DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and automated deployments
• Application troubleshooting, debugging, and performance analysis
• Unit testing, integration testing, automated testing, and quality assurance methodologies
• IIS administration and web application hosting
• Experience supporting large-scale enterprise applications

Professional experience in some or all of the following business processes:

• Lean principles and continuous process improvement
• Data Warehousing
• ITIL, DevOps, Agile
• Project Management
• Requirements gathering, business analysis, and stakeholder engagement
• Production support, incident management, and root cause analysis
• Change management and release management processes
• Technical documentation and knowledge transfer

Compensation

The annual compensation for the position is $99,300 - $130,344 per year and depends upon experience, educational background and qualifications. Geographic differentials may be applied based on work location of successful candidate. Washington State offers a generous benefit package including health, dental and life insurance, retirement and an optional deferred compensation program. Please visit Health Care Authority for information regarding health benefits and the Department of Retirement Systems for retirement plan information. This position serves at the pleasure of the Superintendent, and is Civil Service Exempt. This position is not represented by a bargaining unit. Application Process Those interested in this position must apply through Careers.wa.gov. Applications must include the following documents in MS Word and PDF format only:

• A letter of interest specifically addressing the qualifications listed in this announcement;
• A current résumé, and;
• A list of three or more professional references.

Please address any questions to:

Sal Salazar, Human ResourcesOffice of Superintendent of Public Instruction 600 Washington Street Southeast Olympia, Washington 98504-7200 360-725-6278: sal.salazar@k12.wa.us

Persons needing accommodation in the application process or this announcement in an alternative format may contact the Human Resources Office at (360) 725-6270 or (360) 725-6066, or e-mail hroffice@k12.wa.us. New Jobs Alert Service OSPI offers a subscription service, which regularly notifies subscribers of new OSPI employment opportunities on careers.wa.gov. Subscribers are notified via text or email alert. If you are interested in this service, then please subscribe at this location. OSPI is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from job seekers who will contribute to our diversity. OSPI provides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability. If you would like, please include your name and gender pronouns in your application, to ensure we address you appropriately throughout the application process. Persons needing accommodation in the application process or this announcement in an alternative format may contact the human resource consultant listed in “Application Process.”

Benefits

More than Just a Paycheck! Employee benefits are not just about the kind of services you get, they are also about how much you may have to pay out of pocket. Washington State offers one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation.

We understand that your life revolves around more than just your career. Like everyone, your first priority is ensuring that you and your family will maintain health and financial security. That's why choice is a key component of our benefits package. We have a selection of health and retirement plans, paid leave, staff training and other compensation benefits that you can mix and match to meet your current and future needs.

Read about our benefits:

The following information describes typical benefits available for full-time employees who are expected to work more than six months. Actual benefits may vary by appointment type or be prorated for other than full-time work (e.g. part-time); view the job posting for benefits details for job types other than full-time.

Note: If the position offers benefits which differ from the following, the job posting should include the specific benefits.

Insurance Benefits Employees and their families are covered by medical (including vision), dental and basic life insurance. There are multiple medical plans with affordable monthly premiums that offer coverage throughout the state.

Staff are eligible to enroll each year in a medical flexible spending account which enables them to use tax-deferred dollars toward their health care expenses. Employees are also covered by basic life and long-term disability insurance, with the option to purchase additional coverage amounts.

To view premium rates, coverage choice in your area and how to enroll, please visit the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) website. The Washington Wellness program from the Health Care Authority works with PEBB to support our workplace wellness programs.

Dependent care assistance allows the employee to save pre-tax dollars for a child or elder care expenses.

Other insurance coverage for auto, boat, home, and renter insurance is available through payroll deduction.

The Washington State Employee Assistance Program promotes the health and well-being of employees.

Retirement and Deferred Compensation State Employees are members of the Washington Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). New employees have the option of two employer contributed retirement programs. For additional information, check out the Department of Retirement Systems' web site.

Employees also have the ability to participate in the Deferred Compensation Program (DCP). This is a supplemental retirement savings program (similar to an IRA) that allows you control over the amount of pre-tax salary dollars you defer as well as the flexibility to choose between multiple investment options.

Social Security All state employees are covered by the federal Social Security and Medicare systems. The state and the employee pay an equal amount into the system.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness If you are employed by a government or not-for-profit organization, and meet the qualifying criteria, you may be eligible to receive student loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

Holidays Full-time and part-time employees are entitled to paid holidays and one paid personal holiday per calendar year.

Note: Employees who are members of certain Unions may be entitled to additional personal leave day(s), please refer to position specific Collective Bargaining Agreements for more information.

Full-time employees who work full monthly schedules qualify for holiday compensation if they are employed before the holiday and are in pay status for at least 80 nonovertime hours during the month of the holiday; or for the entire work shift preceding the holiday.

Part-time employees who are in pay status during the month of the holiday qualify for the holiday on a pro-rata basis. Compensation for holidays (including personal holiday) will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status in the month to that required for full-time employment, excluding all holiday hours. Pay status includes hours worked and time on paid leave.

Sick Leave Full-time employees earn eight hours of sick leave per month. Overtime eligible employees who are in pay status for less than 80 hours per month, earn a monthly proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment. Overtime exempt employees who are in pay status for less than 80 hours per month do not earn a monthly accrual of sick leave.

Sick leave accruals for part-time employees will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment. Pay status includes hours worked, time on paid leave and paid holiday.

Vacation (Annual Leave) Full-time employees accrue vacation leave at the rates specified in WAC 357-31-165(1) or the applicable collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Full-time employees who are in pay status for less than 80 nonovertime hours in a month do not earn a monthly accrual of vacation leave.

Part-time employees accrue vacation leave hours in accordance with WAC 357-31-165(1) or the applicable collective bargaining agreement (CBA) on a pro rata basis. Vacation leave accrual will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment.

Pay status includes hours worked, time on paid leave and paid holiday.

As provided in WAC 357-58-175, an employer may authorize a lump-sum accrual of vacation leave or accelerate the vacation leave accrual rate to support the recruitment and/or retention of a candidate or employee for a Washington Management Service position. Vacation leave accrual rates may only be accelerated using the rates established WAC 357-31-165.

Note: Most agencies follow the civil service rules covering leave and holidays for exempt employees even though there is no requirement for them to do so. However, agencies are required to adhere to the applicable RCWs pertaining holidays and leave.

Military Leave Washington State supports members of the armed forces with 21 days paid military leave per year.

Bereavement Leave Most employees whose family member or household member dies, or for loss of pregnancy, are entitled to five (5) days of paid bereavement leave. In addition, the employer may approve other available leave types for the purpose of bereavement leave.

Additional Leave Leave Sharing Parental Leave Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Leave Without Pay

Please visit the State HR Website for more detailed information regarding benefits.

Updated 01-07-2026