Early Childhood Intervention Specialist

Primary Job Responsibilities:

The Early Childhood Intervention Specialist (ECIS) implements and oversees the Inclusive Playgroup program. This includes:

• Creates a one-page handout on provided topics for parents in collaboration with the Program Director.
• Helps to guide and add input as to the scope and direction of Inclusive Playgroup.
• As the program lead, the ECIS chooses and transports toys from the CFK storage facility. The ECIS sets up the room with assistance from a Family Resource Specialist.
• At the program, the ECIS welcomes and interacts with each family, asking targeted developmental questions and providing tools and strategies when appropriate. The ECIS also introduces and encourages adult engagement with other families when appropriate.
• During and after the program, the ECIS works with the Family Resource Specialist to report on of families’ specific needs and identify resources that will be sent during follow-up.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

To perform this position successfully, an individual must be able to satisfactorily perform each essential duty listed below, with or without reasonable accommodation:

• Punctuality and Attendance: Maintains regular and punctual attendance for all scheduled programs/events.
• Flexibility: Ability to quickly change activities to match the developmentally appropriate abilities of the families in attendance.
• Cooperation: Works cooperatively with co-workers, families, children and CFK administration.
• Compassion and Sensitivity: Consistently provides compassionate, sensitive emotional support to children and their caregivers. Exercises tolerance and respect in serving a demographically and socioeconomically diverse population of families. If appropriate, given the program's limited time and public forum, tactfully and respectfully broaches difficult concerns or needs for intervention with participants in the program. Compassionately and patiently interacts with children who may display very challenging behaviors.
• Discretion and Confidentiality: Absent circumstances creating obligations of mandatory reporting under the law, maintains families’ confidentiality and privacy, abstains from gossip or sensationalism and refrains from discussing confidential or private activity occurring within the programs.
• Alertness: Must be alert at all times during programming, attending to the safety and security of all participants and mindful of the potential for participants’ potential for quick acts of aggression, wandering or elopement.
• Maintains Current Knowledge of the Field: Remains current on research and trends regarding effective educational, therapeutic and behavioral intervention methods to assist children with developmental delays.
• Efficacy: Creates and implements effective, research-based strategies to enhance the developmental skills of all children and effectively conveys these methods to their caregivers in a way that they may be implemented at home. Anticipates and tailors programming to the individual needs and abilities of the participants in the program.
• Communication: Effectively assists caregivers of all demographic and socioeconomic backgrounds in addressing developmental and behavioral concerns of children by suggesting activities, modeling positive behavior interactions, facilitating play and providing information.
• Policy Compliance: Responsible for following CFK’s employee handbook and policies.
• Timekeeping Precision: Given the limited and set budgets of the program, completes all curriculum-design work within projected timeframes; accurately and completely records hours worked. Timely submits records of hours worked and miles for payroll.

Other Requirements

• Attends all training requested by CFK.
• Performs other duties as directed.

Qualifications

• Minimum Bachelor’s Degree in Childhood Development field or Special Education.
• Work experience in the field of Developmental Disabilities/Autism Spectrum Disorders.
• Knowledge of developmentally appropriate milestones, ABA and/or Play-Based therapies as well as family counseling is preferred.
• Meet the essential requirements for the position, with or without reasonable accommodation

Work Environment

This position’s primary work environment entails serving members of the public who may be unfamiliar with or anxious about their child’s development. They may be confused about what to do and they may have extensive questions or concerns. As a result, they may be agitated, stressed, impolite or unreasonable; yet CFK expects its employees to consistently provide courteous services in return. Participants in our programming may wear heavy perfumes, be eating strong-smelling food, present with inadequate hygiene or present other environmental concerns for those with airborne allergies or other olfactory sensitivities. To be successful in this position, an individual must be able to work effectively throughout these changing dynamics and demands.

This job description in no manner states or implies that these are the only duties and responsibilities to be performed by the employee filling this position, who will be required to follow instructions and perform any duties required by the employee’s supervisor or designee.