Early Learning Specialist - CI

Ccscc•San Jose, CA

9d•Onsite

About The Position

The Early Learning Specialist, operating under the Children’s Initiative model, will leverage learning, share knowledge and best practices across programs, and engage in continuous program improvement to support client-centered service delivery within each resource center's community. They will work to leverage agency and partner resources to better support families. The role involves conducting home visits to assist children, families, and child care providers in developing literacy and language skills, and to practice strategies that support language development and caregiver-child interaction. The specialist will coach and help families/providers develop SMART goals. They are trained to follow the protocols, curriculum, and strategies established by the SEEDS program and/or ParentChild+ program with fidelity, and support the recruitment of participants based on program guidelines. The Early Learning Specialist will engage in networking opportunities with internal and external organizations and other programs to promote and disseminate information to parents and community groups. For Dual Language Learning Applicants (DLL), the specialist will reinforce parents' critical roles as their child's first teacher and encourage parents to support both the child's home-language and their English language development.

Requirements

Must possess or working towards a BA in Early Childhood Education or equivalent
Experience in social services in community settings, with families preferred
Bilingual Spanish/English or Vietnamese/ English
Ability to work with diverse workgroups and serve families with diverse economic, social, racial, and cultural backgrounds
Knowledgeable about local community resources
Ability to establish and maintain personal and programmatic boundaries while providing supportive services
Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to relate to individuals who may not share basic commonality, including value systems and behavior norms
Demonstrate good writing and organizational skill
Maintain a professional, confidential work environment
Knowledge of child development and behavior
Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and multitask
Serve effectively as a member of a team internally and externally
Communicate effectively
Be flexible, proactive, adaptable and able to work in a fast-paced, changing environment
Be professional, trustworthy, respectful of others, and display a positive attitude
Knowledge of modern office methods and practices, including filing systems, business, correspondence, presentations and report writing
Knowledge of the Internet, computer programs, e.g., Microsoft Word, Outlook, Power Point, Excel, etc.
Must be able to report to a service site on a regular and reliable basis.
Maintain different databases based on the program's need.
Must be able to work a flexible schedule, which includes day, evening, weekend, and holiday hours, as appropriate, to coordinate and provide services and activities for families during non-traditional hours
Able to travel between sites and to attend offsite events throughout the county, as appropriate
Must possess a valid California Driver’s license, reliable transportation and current auto insurance
Must be at least 18 years of age
Must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident
Clearance of fingerprint background check
Must have valid TB screening

Nice To Haves

Experience working previously with Literacy Program or FRCI a plus
Bilingual language capacity in Spanish/English language a plus

Responsibilities

Provide home visits as assigned by supervisor
Facilitate/Observe, model play, reading, and verbal interaction behaviors/activities between guardian/provider and child.
Outreach within the community and support in the recruitment of program participants through ongoing engagement and collaboration with other staff within the agency as well as external organizations
Uses effective dual language instructional methods/models according to professional standard practice.
Understand and model age appropriate expectations, in both targeted languages
Complete written reports after each home visit and input data into the database/s on time.
Support parent/provider child interaction, dual language development, early literacy, and social-emotional development of the child.
Curriculum planning; implement educational activities
Prepare information to be provided as resources in the community and ensure that this information is culturally, linguistically, and developmentally appropriate and relevant to the family;
Help parents/providers and caregivers identify gaps, barriers, and/or issues that interfere with children’s healthy development.
Complete required assessments and collect data as assigned including ASQ and ASQ:SE, CBT and PICCOLO.
Maintain secure and confidential records and files for each family served. Maintain confidentiality of client information.
Participate in trainings related to SEEDS and or ParentChild+ curriculum and developmental materials used for working with families.
Attend Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County trainings, meetings, and events as required.
With the support of the Supervisor, refer and connect families (through warm handoff and/or the use of the intra-agency referral system or other mode) to community resources and serve as a facilitator in linking participants to social, educational, and health services.
Follow directions from program supervisor/manager/ or director in completing duties as assigned verbally or in the work plan.
Understand agency guidelines and policies and procedures and act in alignment with the CCSCC core values of Service, Compassion and Justice for all
Adhere to FIRST 5 MAA requirements and federal, state, and local requirements to ensure MAA compliance
Complete all other duties as assigned.