Family Educator - Head Start

The Family Educator works with families in a home-visit setting to provide resources and referrals to assist with family goal setting and self-sufficiency. The person in this position works with other team members to provide services in the areas of: education, health, nutrition, disabilities accommodation, family services, and parental involvement. The Family Educator assists families in becoming an advocate for their children by encouraging involvement in their education.

This person will support families in becoming active members of their communities and active in their children's education.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

This is a Full Year, Part Time position, 20-29 hours with benefits.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Level 1: High School Diploma or GED.

• Level 2: Associate's degree in Social Work or Behavioral Health or a related field with a minimum of 18 credit hours in Social Work or Behavioral Health.

• Level 3: Bachelor's degree in Social Work or Behavioral Health or a related field with a minimum of 18 credit hours in Social Work or Behavioral Health.

• One year experience in social service delivery or case management

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATION

• Driver qualifications required for this position. Driver license, auto insurance and satisfactory drive record for the past 3 years are required.

• Registration with the Central Background Registry of the Child Care Division.

• CPR/First Aid Certification or the ability to obtain within 60 days of hire.

• Food Handlers Card or the ability to obtain within 30 days of hire.

• Candidate must pass pre-employment physical examination, renewable every two years.

• Candidate must pass pre-employment and random drug/alcohol screenings.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIE

• Experience working with families and children preferred.

• Demonstrated proficiencies in Microsoft Office (Teams, Outlook, Word, Excel) and videoconferencing platforms.

• Effective communication skills with individuals and groups.

• Bilingual or multi-lingual skills may be required. Bilingual English-Spanish preferred.

  • To qualify as bilingual, staff must pass a bilingual exam demonstrating fluent speaking, reading, and writing in English and Spanish. Required bilingual staff will receive a pay differential based on language test results.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive.

Health

• Supports families in obtaining child's physical and mental examination.

• Assists families with obtaining and maintaining health insurance, medical home and dental home.

• Supports program activities regarding health.

• Effectively uses the Child Plus system for collection and tracking child and family data.

• Supports in the planning, organizing, and conducting of child hearing, vision, and growth screenings for all enrolled children.

• Supports Health Team in completion of Health Management Plans.

Family Services

• Utilizes the Parent-Family Community Engagement (PFCE) framework to provide families with required elements of family services, including home visits, establishing goals, assessments, resources, referrals, community engagement, parenting education, and follow-up support.

• Conducts at least 2 family service home visits per year with a total of 3 contact hours.

• Assists families in establishing family goals and action plans; works with families and other agencies to coordinate and support goals from pre-existing plans.

Parental Involvement and Meetings

• Partners with families to organize monthly site parent meetings.

• Arranges for guest speakers for parent meetings in response to parent input.

• Facilitates effective site communication with parents utilizing phone/text, email, or other communication applications.

Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment and Attendance

• Monitors children's attendance, including requests for extended leave.

• Works with families to maintain an 85% attendance rate.

• Completes Family Demographic Information and Persons Authorized forms to document changes.

Agency and Community Meetings

• Attends a variety of classes, workshops, seminars, pre-service training and other education and family services trainings, and keeps current on developments in community resources.

• Coordinates and conducts child and family staffing meetings in partnership with the teacher and other staff as needed.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

This position has no supervisory responsibilities.

PHYSICAL AND MENTAL DEMANDS Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties and responsibilities.

• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and ability to adjust focus.

• Regularly lift and/or move 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.

• Manual dexterity for handling office equipment.

• Frequent driving to Agency and family home sites in Polk and Marion counties.

• Requires planning, problem-solving, and resourcefulness with little direct supervision.

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