Teacher/Family Advocate
The Teacher Family Advocate will provide leadership in the classroom of a comprehensive preschool and family service program that is accountable to funding sources and applicable licensing agencies. The Teacher Family Advocate provides local community resources to serve children and families. Teacher Family Advocate will supervise staff in the classroom; work with children, staff, parents and communities in a sensitive, confidential and supportive manner, which honors individual differences, cultural & linguistic backgrounds, and current circumstances. This is a classified position reporting to the Education Site Manager.
SCOPE OF WORK
- Educational programming and classroom management that promotes safety for a class of 16-19 children
- Educational planning of developmentally appropriate curriculum that addresses the needs & interests of dual language learners and children with disabilities
- Promote school readiness goals by creating an emotionally supportive classroom environment that fosters self-help skills
- Engage parents in their child's learning through participation in home visits and home learning activities
- Provide direction and leadership to the Assistant Teacher, Food Service Workers, Classroom Aide and Volunteers
- Effectively plan, implement and evaluate classroom systems and plans, team communication and problem-solving with site staff and classroom co-teacher team
- Ongoing monitoring and compliance with Head Start & ECEAP program standards and procedures
- Maintain program data bases with current child and family assessment and contact information
- Conduct and evaluate development and behavioral screenings, referring children as needed
- Collaborate with local school districts on coordinated services and referrals to children with disabilities
- Recognize that parents are the first teacher and most knowledgeable of their child's needs
- Maintain Head Start & ECEAP standards in completing home visit requirements of two home visits and three parent conferences a year
- Ensure that Family Needs Assessment is completed within 90 days of family enrollment
- From Needs Assessment, follow-up with community referrals and resources
- Ensure that parents are meeting Head Start & ECEAP standards in health requirements
- Work collaboratively with program services of health, mental health, disabilities, family services to ensure children and families are meeting Head Start and ECEAP performance standards.
- Ensure families are meeting attendance requirements
- Schedule Multi-Disciplinary Team meetings when required to ensure family and child needs are met when issues arise
SCOPE OF AUTHORITY
The Education Site Manager directly supervises the Teacher Family Advocate; providing technical assistance and support in ensuring:
- Timely submission of time sheets
- Completion of performance reviews
- Classrooms are safe, orderly and program curriculum is being followed to support school readiness goals
- Teacher Family Advocate completes all required family and child assessments
- Teacher Family Advocate has first line problem solving with management for work issues
- All policies, procedures and performance standards are met.
The Teacher Family Advocate gives input to Education Site Manager on performance review, and training, along with supervising the following staff while in their classroom:
- Teacher Aide
- Assistant Teacher
- On-Call Aide/subs
- Classroom Food Service Workers
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Consistently adhere to an established work schedule and maintain a 95% attendance rate
- Complete documentation, data entry, and reports in an accurate and timely manner
- Write, respond and send emails, establish and update work calendar, complete database entry and generate established reports
- Produce written documents with clearly organized thoughts using proper sentence construction, punctuation and grammar
- Comprehend and make inferences from written material
- Communicate in English (both orally and in writing) at a professional level with adults and children, in small to large group settings, one-on-one, or on the phone providing grammatically correct and content appropriate information suitable for diverse population
- Instruct children and adults in a classroom settiing
- Work in a respectful manner with all children, parents and employees
- Maintain the safety of the environment and children through visual, auditory, verbal, mobility and smell.
- Set-up a preschool classroom that requires moving of child's size furniture, tables, chairs, shelves, and regular sized shelving units
- Develop and implement and classroom systems and strategies to ensure that children are supervised at all times by keeping them within visual and auditory range, accounting for their whereabouts at all times, and ensuring that no child is ever left alone or unsupervised
- Able to lift up to 50 pounds occasionally to ensure children's safety
- Perform regular sanitation/cleaning of the classroom that may require the use of a broom, carpet sweeper, mop, vacuum, and the use of cleaning products
- Maintain confidentiality and adhere to program's confidentiality policy
- Observe, compare, or monitor data and children's behavior to determine compliance with other prescribed standards
- Drive a personal vehicle
Qualifications
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- An associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree in child development or early childhood education, or equivalent coursework
- Two years of experience working in a preschool classroom
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience as a Lead Teacher in a preschool classroom
- Experience in a Head Start/ECEAP program, working with children and parents
- Additional professional work experience
- doing home visits
- working with low-income children and families
- working with a classroom of mostly non-English speaking students
- Experience supervising classroom staff and parent volunteers
- Work experience that required establishing/maintaining complex paper and electronic records, comprehensive documentation and establishing/updating client database
- Current First Aid and CPR certification
- Spanish Language Fluency
Additional Information
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
Hiring for this position is on the condition that candidates meet the following requirements:
Before Starting Work:
- Submit paperwork indicating negative TB Test or clear chest x-ray
- Submit proof of current Tdap (Pertussis) vaccination
- Submit proof of a cleared Portable Background Check from the Washington State Department of Early Learning (NOTE: if you do not have a current PBC, you must first create an account in the DEL's MERIT system by clicking here. The fees for obtaining a PBC are your responsibility. The entire process of obtaining a PBC takes 3-4 weeks. You may not start working until we have a copy of your cleared PBC.)
- Present a current Food Worker Card from the Snohomish County Health District
Within three days of hire:
- Submit proof of US Citizenship or ability to work in US (must show original social security or Alien Registration Card/Work Permit, as well as one piece of picture identification)
- Completion of all pertinent personnel/payroll forms
Within 30 days of hire:
- Union Shop Fee: You must become a member of the classified union or pay a representation fee or no association fee within thirty calendar days of your hire
- Send sealed, official transcripts showing your degree to the EdCC Head Start/Early Head Start HR liaison
- Create and update your professional record in the Department of Early Learning's MERIT system, and send sealed, official transcripts showing your degree to DEL
Within 60 days of hire:
- Signed statement by a health provider that the employee is free from communicable diseases and physically able to perform job responsibilities.
Within six months of hire:
- Obtain pediatric/adult 1st Aid/CPR certification (must be maintained in current status)
Condition of continued employment:
- Successfully complete a nine-month probationary period
- Keep all certifications and clearances in current status
- Complete 15 hours of Professional Development Training each year
EEO / AFFIRMATIVE ACTION STATEMENT
Edmonds Community College is an equal opportunity employer and assures equality of treatment in educational and employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex (gender), disability, sexual orientation, age, citizenship status, marital status, veteran status, or genetic information. Applicants with disabilities who require assistance with the recruitment process may call 425-640-1470, 425-640-1832, or email jobs@edcc.edu, and accommodations will be made to the extent reasonably possible. The Human Resources Office is accessible to persons with disabilities.