Job Description

Job Description

Job Description

GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Work as a member of a team whose primary role is to engage all families to partner with us to promote children’s healthy development and school readiness. Use knowledge of the principles of family engagement to support families in their roles as their child’s primary educator, encourages parent/child interactions that promote children’s school readiness and healthy development, and enhances family well-being. Provide more intensive and targeted support to vulnerable families and families of children with chronic health conditions and special needs in order to ensure that our engagement strategies meet their specialized needs.

TASKS AND ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Engage families (as partners) in individualized, in-home, and group experiences to enhance parent-child interactions that research shows promote school readiness through consistent family routines, positive guidance, and discipline , home environments rich in literacy experiences and activities.
2. Support family engagement and/or ERSEA leadership from participation in programming, planning, and coordination of recruitment activities throughout the year, transitions and third year revision as well as attendance tracking to engage families in our program and motivate their active participation
3. Engage families in the Family Engagement Contract process in order to build relationships and shared accountability for promoting children’s development.
4. Involucrar a las familias en el proceso del Contrato de Participación Familiar con el fin de construir relaciones y responsabilidad compartida para promover el desarrollo de los niños.
5. Family Partnership Process: Use family self-assessment information to assist families with self-identified goals to improve self-sufficiency in areas such as education, employment, housing, and access to community resources and where necessary coordinate o refer families to opportunities for continuing education, job training and other employment services through formal or informal networks in the community, this within relationships that are appropriate to the cultural context of the families, as well as respectful of the circumstances and/or or family contexts.

1. Analyze self-sufficiency data and utilize data/results to plan and coordinate a variety of parent cohort groups that allow families to support one another to achieve self-sufficiency goals.
2. Implement a research based Family Curriculum, (Shine On, Families) that extends our classroom curriculum into the family's home, modeling high quality adult- child interactions teachers use in their classrooms for families. Focus on coordination and collaboration with education.
3. Work and document case management with vulnerable families providing a minimum of more intensive monthly contact, face to face or by telephone, with the vulnerable families of cases identified through their self-assessment or interactions/communication with the family.
4. Assure that families receive immediate support during times of crisis, and assist with referrals to community based resources to meet counseling, treatment, entitlement or other needs.
5. Identify and access services and resources responsive to family interests and goals and follow-up with parents to ensure that services met their expectations and needs.

1. Carry out workshops and group activities and/or monthly parent meetings at the center, designed to foster a sense of community and belonging among families to strengthen social capital and commitment to their participation in their children's learning and development of their children.
2. Cultivate family leadership and support their advocacy efforts through participation in program governance bodies such as Policy Council, as well as neighborhood and community based advisory groups.
3. Work in conjunction with center staff and families to plan and conduct a wide variety of family engagement activities that provide opportunities for families to support one another, including, but not limited to the following:
4. Conduct activities, and campaigns that promote children’s school readiness.
5. Self-Sufficiency Sector Groups.
6. Build relationships that improve communication and collaboration between internal resources (interdisciplinary team) working hand-in-hand with the departments of health, early learning and disabilities and other members of the family engagement team to support families to fully participate in all aspects of our program.
7. Inform and follow up with families and team about children with allergies, chronic health conditions, or special needs so that medical documentation is received and case conferences are conducted prior to entry.
8. Participate in case discussion meetings, Individualized Health Plans, Action Plans (NE), and Nutrition Plans to support the family in the process and identify any needs for family support.
9. Establish regular coordination and communication with Health, Nutrition and Disabilities team members in order to provide more intensive support to families of children with chronic health conditions and special needs, including targeted goal setting, and assistance with building family advocacy skills to navigate community systems of care for their children
10. Work in coordination with members of the Health and Nutrition team to ensure that a determination of a home and medical and dental insurance is made within 30 days of the child entering the program.
11. Develop strategies and follow-up with parents to ensure that all children in the case group are up to date with EPSDT requirements, and that the determination of the child's EPSDT status is made within 90 days of the child's entry into the program, including receiving timely assessment and treatment for identified concerns
12. Develop effective communication and collaborative strategies with teaching teams to encourage family engagement in home learning activities, including individualizing activities based upon family interests and children’s developmental status.
13. Establish and maintain working relationships with community partners to strengthen access to resources and training identified as priority goal areas by families.
14. Ensure timely follow up on program inquiries and maintain an updated tracking system of potential enrollees.
15. By interview with family, determine eligibility of children/families, ensuring all family documentation is accurate and complete, ensuring all eligibility, selection, and enrollment processes adhere to Head Start Performance Standards and BGCPR
16. Work with the Family Coordinator and ERSEA leadership to maintain a current and accurate waiting list and enroll children/families based on selection criteria to fill openings as they occur
17. Track children in caseloads with daily calls to children who are absent from the program and attendance entry into the Insight System
18. Develop attendance goals, discuss and follow up with families of children experiencing chronic absenteeism.
19. Maintain accurate electronic and hard copy records and case notes to support positive child and family outcomes. Ensure that all ERSEA (Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment and Attendance) information is accurately captured and documented in electronic and hard copy records.
20. Document efforts to assist families to identify their strengths, needs and self-sufficiency goals through completion of Family Self-Assessment, Family Partnership Agreement, and case notes.
21. Attend and follow up on referrals made to family support services and that are written in the System.
22. Submit the reports requested by family area in the stipulated time.
23. Ensure that all PIR data is up to date in data system per caseload

Implement strategies and activities in order to collect In Kind from the area of family engagement.

EXPERIENCE, EDUCATION, SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED:

Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work, Human Services, Family Services/Engagement, Counseling or a related field preferred, OR AA or BA in another field with a commitment to complete Family Services/Certificate/Credential within 18 months of hire. We will also consider candidates with a High School Diploma with 3 years experience working in the community with families and a completed Family Development Certificate or Credential.

• Bilingual Required- translation and interpretation. (per program- language(s) specific).
• Experience, training, and skills with assisting the parents of young children to advocate for their families
• Experience working in low-income diverse communities preferred
• Physical exam and background checks are required for this position.
• Must have reliable personal transportation as travel from site to site is required.
• Travel required locally or long-distance up to 10% of the time for work-related meetings and functions.
• Must have a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation.
• A passion for achieving positive child and family outcomes through high-quality family engagement
• Ability to interact effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to communicate effectively, verbally and in writing.
• Demonstrated computer literacy skills, using MS Office applications and other basic data systems including internet navigation.
• Must be honest, dependable and able to meet deadlines.

• Self-motivated and able to work independently.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS & WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• Ability to sit most of the time with some bending and reaching.
• Ability to stand, walk, and bend periodically.
• Ability to engage in repetitive movement of wrists, hands, and fingers – typing and/or writing.
• Ability to work frequently at close visual range (i.e. preparing and analyzing data and figures, accounting, transcription, computer terminal, extensive reading).
• Ability to receive and respond to oral communication.
• Ability to exert up to 10 pounds of force to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects.
• Work is generally performed in an office environment.
• Noise level in the work environment is moderate to occasionally loud (examples: business office with computers and printers, light to moderate traffic, human voices).
• Standard office equipment generally used includes:
• Telephone
• Personal Computer (monitor, keyboard, and mouse) or Tablet
• Printer/Photocopy Machine
• Calculator
• Fax Machine
• May be required to operate a motor vehicle during the course of duties.

ORGANIZATIONAL COMPETENCIES:

• Goal Oriented: Ability to execute actions, use resources efficiently, and make timely decisions according to the quality standards expected by the organization to obtain the expected results.
• Service Oriented: Ability to identify and understand the needs and expectations of people in relation to the organization, and serve them with the required quality.
• Teamwork: Ability to build cooperative relationships based on trust with the people whom will interact with at work. Promoting the achievement of the organization’s objectives.
• Effective Communication: Ability to listen and express in a clear, concrete and timely way through writing, verbal and non-verbal communication.
• Organizational Commitment: Ability and willingness to align one’s behavior with the needs, priorities, values and objectives of the organization, and act based on organizational policies and procedures.
• Willingness to Change: Ability to propose changes and adapt work actions to the new realities presented by the organization and its context.
• Professional Development: Ability to be an example, by practicing self-development, actively participating in learning forums and promoting the best human resources practices.
• Safety: Ability to quickly manage and alert a work-related safety and/or emergency.

ORGANIZATIONAL VALUES:

• Extraordinary: Uses his talent and experience to clarify structure, roles and relationships and transform obstacles into opportunities.
• Missionary: Maintains self-control in situations of stress and conflict, seeks support when necessary and is committed to letting others know when their behaviors affect them.
• Collaborator: Demonstrates availability, cordiality and participates in face-to-face communication with colleagues and clients, uses email to inform.
• Participative: Complies with established agreements and increases conversations, negotiating priorities and / or asking questions to validate information.
• Creative: Promotes a sense of innovation for the development of new ideas, trends and processes to carry out their work.
• Utopian: Focused on professional development and change management, ensuring to include all those who are impacted by the change.

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