Company Overview
Family Services of Westchester (FSW) provides mental health and social services that strengthen and support families, children and individuals at every stage of their lives. With 50 innovative programs, FSW serves 30,000 individuals annually in Westchester County, New York.
Founded in 1954, Family Services of Westchester is a private, nonprofit, non-sectarian social services agency. FSW’s Head Start/Early Head Start is a federal government program that was created in 1965 to give preschool children from low-income families a “head start” on their readiness for elementary school.
JOB SUMMARY
Family Services of Westchester is looking for a Full-Time Home Visitor for our Early Head Start and Head Start programs, located in White Plains, NY.
As a home visitor within our home-based program option, you will be responsible for education, case management, and family advocacy to families in an assigned caseload by providing and linking families to comprehensive services, including home visits and socialization activities. This position works with typically developing children and children with disabilities, serving as a social service referral person, and shares responsibility for parent involvement in the program. The position works in tandem with the rest of the Head Start program as an integrated team to support the program's goals.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Program Development
- Attends all required training and workshops that include but is not limited to 15 hours of classroom focused professional development and methods that comply with applicable State and local laws for identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect.
- Remains up to date on information that pertains to the needs of the children in the program including Head Start Performance Standards, child care licensing regulations and other applicable regulations and practices.
- Works as a team member with the other education staff, parents, and Parent Committee members to develop a home-based curriculum that is meaningful and meets the individual and program needs.
- Responsible for the weekly preparation of family curriculum plans, which includes objectives to be developed with parents.
- Works with the parent to develop an individual plan for her/his child to include goal setting based on identified needs and prescriptions for objectives and activities to meet established goals (outcomes).
- Schedules weekly home visits with families as required and on an as-needed basis and documents these events. Plans and carries out twice-a-month socialization experiences.
- Assists parents to establish and maintain a safe, healthy learning environment for children that is positive, developmentally appropriate, and experientially based.
- Regular and predictable attendance is a requirement of the job
PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
- Supervises all home-based curriculum activities, field trips and socialization activities.
- With the parents, plans and provides a developmentally and linguistically appropriate curriculum and experiences in a manner appropriate to the ages, languages and cultures of children served.
- Provides each family on caseload with weekly 90-minute home visits in compliance with Head Start Performance Standards.
- Provides family-centered services that facilitate child development, support parental roles, and promote self-sufficiency.
- Locates resources, develops materials, and provides age-appropriate activities related to the culture of each family.
- Works with families to plan and implement learning experiences that advance the intellectual and physical development of children including improving the readiness of children for school by developing their literacy and phonemic, print and numeracy awareness, their understanding of the use of language, their understanding and use of increasingly complex and varied vocabulary, their appreciation of books, their understanding of early math and early science, their problem solving abilities and their approaches to learning.
- Implements home-based education lesson plans and weekly programs for each family in accordance with each child's need, based on a method of observing and recording children’s interests and current levels of functioning.
- Assists families to support social and emotional development and provide positive guidance and discipline.
- Maintains a commitment to professionalism and continues own professional development so that decisions are based on knowledge of early childhood theories and practices.
- Maintains strict confidentiality with respect to Early Head Start children, families, and staff in accordance with established policies and procedures.
- Ensures a well-run, purposeful program responsive to participant needs.
- Screens, observes and documents children with parents as required.
- Ensure an appropriate written Transition Plan for all children, six months before their third birthday; provide parents with training and information. Establish communication to facilitate and coordinate the transition.
PARENT INVOLVEMENT AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS
- Sets up system to assure program's needs for parent involvement are met.
- Establishes positive and productive relationships with families focusing on a relationship of trust and rapport with the parents of the children.
- Participates in the orientation of parents to Head Start/Early Head Start throughout the year.
- Facilitates and supports monthly Parent Committee meetings for the home-based program.
- Schedules and arranges meetings and documents socializations and home visits as required.
- Participates in the training of parents as requested.
- Involves parents in the educational activities of the program:
- to emphasize their role as the principal influence on the child's education and development; and
- to assist parents to increase their knowledge, understanding, skills and experience in basic child development.
- Serves as a single point of contact in assisting families in obtaining the services and resources needed.
- Collects monthly in-kind records from parents participating and submits to office
- Writes a home-based newsletter once every other month beginning in October and provides news for the program newsletter as requested.
- Directly orients trains and supervises all assigned volunteers.
- Works closely with local school system(s), as appropriate, for shared activities, registration, and smooth transition.
- Encourages the involvement of the families of the children in a Head Start/Early Head Start program and supports the development of relationships between children and their families.
- Ensure all home visits are planned jointly by the home visitor and parents, and reflect the critical role of parents in the early learning and development of their children, including that the home visitor is able to effectively communicate with the parent, directly or through an interpreter.
PRENATAL SERVICES
- The Home Visitor, Family Advocate and Health Manager will work together to provide the following services as well as all services described in Head Start Performance Standards Part 1302.80:
- Provides enrolled pregnant women, fathers and partners or other relevant family members the prenatal and postpartum information, education and services that address, as appropriate, fetal development, the importance of nutrition, the risks of alcohol, drugs, and smoking, labor and delivery, postpartum recovery, parental depression, infant care and safe sleep practices, and the benefits of breastfeeding.
- Addresses the needs for appropriate support for emotional well-being, nurturing and responsive caregiving, and father engagement during pregnancy and early childhood.
- Within 30 days of enrollment determine if a pregnant woman has on-going source of continuous accessible medical care and if needed facilitate her access to such a source of care that will meet her needs.
- Provide referrals that, at a minimum, include nutritional counseling, food assistance, oral health care, mental health services, substance abuse prevention and treatment and emergency shelter or transitional housing in case of domestic violence.
- Provide a newborn visit with in two weeks of infant’s birth.
- Provide family partnership support and engage pregnant women and other relevant family members, such as fathers, in discussions about program options, plan for the infant’s transition to program enrollment, and support the family during the transition process, where appropriate.
COMMUNICATION
- While respecting family confidentiality, regularly shares information with the supervisor to ensure coordinated services that meet the needs of individual children and families.
- Provides health, safety, and family literacy activities to parents, as appropriate,
- Coordinates with center staff to promote parent involvement in the program as a classroom visitor, volunteer, employee, and/or participant in family events.
- Promotes effective community support for families by coordinating and advocating for community agencies' services.
- Ability to communicate ideas and instructions orally and in writing,
- Ability to speak before groups of individuals, such as Parent Committees and staff meetings.
- Work cooperatively with other component coordinators to plan health services integrated with education, mental health, dental health, nutrition, parent involvement, and social services.
- Complete and submit required reports to immediate supervisor in a timely and accurate fashion.
- Provides information for the collection of data for the submission of the PIR (e.g., COPA, etc.).
COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT
- Submits monthly progress reports to the supervisor as scheduled.
- Supervises or orders supplies as needed and takes inventory as requested.
- Submits monthly bills and reports to the central office in a timely manner.
- Maintains child records, including completion of health services, screening, immunizations, and referrals.
- Gathers and maintains individual, family and socialization data for documentation, ongoing assessment, evaluation, and recordkeeping for successful individual and program planning.
- Attends all required training and workshops to include focused professional development and methods that comply with applicable State and local laws for identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect.
- Remains up to date on information that pertains to the needs of the children in the program, including Head Start Performance Standards, child care licensing regulations, and other applicable regulations and practices.
QUALIFICATIONS:
EDUCATION
- The minimum requirement is a High School Diploma and Home- Based CDA credential or comparable credential, or equivalent coursework as part of an associate or bachelor’s degree
EXPERIENCE
- 2+ years of experience working with young children and families in an early childhood program such as Head Start/Early Head Start, implementing comprehensive family services for young children and families from diverse backgrounds.
SKILLS
- Manual dexterity sufficient to operate a computer (Microsoft word, excel, etc.) and office equipment, including, but not limited to, the telephone, fax machine, and copier.
- Requires effective writing and oral communication skills to conduct meetings and to prepare reports that are clear, complete, and comprehensive.
- Extensive knowledge and skills in the field of early childhood development. Knowledge of various service resources in the community. Knowledge of the state and federal child abuse and neglect regulations and childcare licensing requirements. Knowledge of local resources, languages, and customs is helpful.
- Ability to be perceptive of children's needs and work well with staff, children, and families,
- Ability to organize and direct curriculum activities,
- Ability to maintain accurate records which reflect the needs and progress of children
- Ability to communicate ideas and instructions orally and in writing,
- Ability to speak before groups of individuals,
- Ability to always maintain strict confidentiality, including recognizing situations in which confidentiality is required,
- Ability to exhibit patience and tact when communicating with children, families, staff, management, referral sources, and the public,
- Ability to project professionalism in conducting daily activities.
- Ability to work with typically developing children and children with disabilities.
Additional Requirements
- Bilingual
- MUST BE AUTHORIZED TO WORK IN THE UNITED STATES
There are a variety of benefits to joining Family Services of Westchester, an organization with over 65 years of history impacting vulnerable communities. In addition to the opportunity to connect with and help thousands of residents in Westchester County, FSW offers its employees an inspiring, diverse and team-based work environment with comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, life insurance, flexible spending accounts, and 403(b) for full-time employees.
At FSW, we enjoy working in a collaborative, mission-driven environment and value the benefits of a diversified workplace that prioritizes our clients and the communities we serve. If you want to make a difference in the lives of thousands of people across the communities of Westchester, and if the position of Head Start Assistant Teacher speaks to your capabilities, experience and commitment to social service, please submit your resume and cover letter. Qualified candidates will be contacted by phone and/or email.
FSW is an equal opportunity employer.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $20.00 - $22.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Dental insurance
- Flexible spending account
- Health insurance
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Retirement plan
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
