Job Roles in the ECE Community: National/ Federal

This week I explored potential employment opportunities and roles in the ECE field at the National and Federal levels. The three that I envisioned myself working for were, The National Association for the Education of Young Children known to us all by its acronym, NAEYC, Zero to Three, and Head Start Teacher II a Non Civil Service job in Nashville, TN were I reside.

NAEYC: Although I am not ignorant to the NAEYC organization, I never thought about possibly working for them. NAEYC’s headquarters is located in Washington, D.C. Their main focus is to improve the quality of early childhood programs, increase accessibility, and improve services for the purpose of enhancing the development of children and families. The organization is 100,000 members strong and is the model by which many other quality improvement systems follow. I also came across several positions, but the role that interested me most was the Program Resource Specialist.

Program Resource Specialist: Responsibilities include maintaining The Online Resource Center Headquarters (TORCH) website, providing technical assistance regarding accreditation and ensuring that the information is presented in a user friendly way. To qualify for this position one must have the following,

 B.A. degree in ECE or related field

Two years work experience in ECE

 Two years work experience in customer service

 Data base management skills

Experienced in editing and maintaining content management systems

The salary range for this position is in the mid 40s with great benefits

What interested me about this position is the element of being able to provide technical assistance. I like giving helpful information related to the EC field, I am patient and understanding, and I think I have good communication skills. On the other hand, the only computer skills I have are what I have developed over the years. But from my new Walden online experience, I am sure I can learn. I also liked NAEYC’s disposition about diversity. NAEYC believes that high performance organizations are strong because of the wisdom of diverse people.

“NAEYC's mission is to serve and act on behalf of the needs, rights and well-being of all young children with primary focus on the provision of educational and developmental services and resources (NAEYC Bylaws, Article I., Section 1.1)” (NAEYC, n.d.)

Zero to Three: Unfortunately the only job posting was for a web designer. But based on the description of Zero to Three’s objectives, training and supporting early childhood professionals, policy makers, and parents is right in line with what I enjoy doing. Zero to Three was established in 1977 by representatives from the child development, mental health, and health fields. The mission statement of Zero to Three is simple, “to promote the health and development of infants and toddlers” (zero to three, n.d.). As a former technical assistant for CCMS of Tarrant County in Fort Worth, TX, I am sure that “Zero to Three” and I would be good fit for each other.

Head Start Teacher II: While I love training others, this position appealed to me because it allows me to provide a safe healthy learning environment for young children. Also, I learned that head start has proven to be an effective program for improving the odds of disadvantage children going to college. I also love being able to be creative, read stories, sing, and facilitate children’s learning as I learn too. Although I am aspiring to leave the classroom, hopefully with this job being a government job, the working conditions will be better than the private sector because of the holiday observances and available resources. In terms of meeting the requirements, I am well qualified, as the position only calls for a B.A. degree in early Child Education/ Early Child Development and integrating the educational aspects of the Head Starts daily program to foster children’s social, intellectual, emotional, and physical development (Nashville.gov, 2012).

References

NAEYC. (n.d.). Our Mission. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/about/mission

http://www.nashville.gov/hr_benefits/jobs/employment_center.asp

http://www.zerotothree.org/about-us/areas-of-expertise/training-and-professional-development/pcan-training-curriculum.html

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

http://ladeebyrd.blogspot.com/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

Tennessee DHS: Director of the Child Care Certificate Program

The position of Child Care Certificate Program Director within the Family Assistance Division provides day-to-day administrative and technical leadership in the operation of the statewide Child Care Certificate Program for the Tennessee Department of Human Services and reports directly to the Families First Director.  Travel throughout the State may be required on occasion.  The office is located in downtown Nashville.

Skills I possess to meet requirements:

• Bachelors Degree
• Familiarity with the Tennessee Child Care Management System
• Familiarity with Tennessee Child Care Certificate Program policies
• Three years of formal supervisory experience
• Experience communicating and presenting information to large groups

As a former CCR Specialist in the state of Texas, I am very familiar with the certificate program which is designed to assist qualifying families with the cost of child care. Also as former child care director of a center that participated in the certificate program, I will be able to bring insight to the program about the financial gaps that exist with the certificate program such outdated cost of living factors.  I also enjoy disseminating information to groups of people, which is why I specialized in training adults.

Child Care Program Evaluator 2: After visiting the Tennessee.gov website I discovered that Applicant Services will not be available until Oct. 3, 2012. Fortunately I held on to this job description from when I applied for it three years ago. Primarily the role of the Child Care Evaluator 2 is to conduct quality of care assessments for child care facilities in the Davidson and Wilson County areas and assist other counties with assessments. Daily travel is required and on occasion overnight travel may be required.

         

Skills I possess to meet requirements:

• Strong writing, organization and documentation skills
• Proficient in basic computer skills
• Knowledge about child developmentally appropriate practice and classroom environments
• Possess strong interpersonal skills
• Possess organizational and time management skills
• Able to work in a flexible schedule
• Familiarity with the Environment Rating Scales (four internationally recognized instruments that measure child care quality). 

Objective/ Mission: The goals and objectives of the Child Care Evaluation / Report Card program are outlined by law. They are as follows, 1) to encourage and recognize quality child care programs, 2) improve the quality of child care in Tennessee, and 3) to provide support and information to parents seeking to secure quality child care for their children.

An interesting fact I learned was that initially the Assessment program only measured structural elements i.e., staff education and experience, the physical facility, ratios, and group sizes. But, the new Child Care Evaluation program measures both structural and process aspects of a child care program which includes measuring teacher –to-child and child to child conversations and other interactions; and the type of space, activities, and materials available to children.

The reason why I am interested in this position is because I will be able to impart valuable knowledge (developmentally appropriate practices) to early childhood professionals. In turn, the impact of helping early childhood professionals improves the work they do with children, families and each other. 

Literacy Coach
Martha O'Bryan Center

Position Description - Responsibilities and Requirements:

The Martha O'Bryan Center is a creative activist ministry serving over 4000 clients each year through early learning education, youth development, Work Ready job placement, family resource center community services and East End Prep K-5 charter school.

Our Early Learning Center contains 6 classrooms, with students from 6 weeks old to 4 and 5 year olds in our 3 Pre-K classrooms.  As the Literacy Coach, you will support teaching staff with literacy instruction coaching and implement literacy programs managed by partner agency United Way.

Skills I possess to meet requirements:

Bachelors degree and five (5) years related experience in Special Education, Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education or other related field; Master’s degree preferred 

Experience delivering training and formal presentations

Knowledge of best practices in emerging and pre-literacy instruction

Exceptional interpersonal and communications skills

Strong organization and planning skills

Proficiency with computers, including Microsoft Office and internet research

Meet DHS and DMR requirements prior to starting work.  This includes but is not limited to a criminal background check and CPR and first aid training

Mission Statement: The Martha O'Bryen mission statement is as follows,

“On a foundation of Christian faith, Martha O’Bryen center empowers children, youth, and adults in poverty to transform their lives through work, education, employment and fellowship.

My interest in this position is that I will be a part of a community of practice whose goal is to improve early child literacy skills. Also this role is that of a trainer which is what I love to do. Presenting researched information to the teachers will equip them to provide developmentally appropriate language and literacy activities to children in less affluent neighborhoods which is essential to bridging the educational gap between the affluent and those in poverty. 

According to Lepushcitz (2011), these jobs are examples of Bronfinbrenner's ecological exosystem because they have the potential to influence the lives of children, families, and early childhood professionals' in positive ways. The same holds true for negative influences as well which is all the more reason why early childhood professionals must pool their resources together to

 bring about social change. 

References

http://agency.governmentjobs.com/tennessee/default.cfm?&promotionaljobs=0&transfer=0

http://www.marthaobryan.org/jobs

Lepuschitz, J. K. (2011). Brofenbrenner's ecological systems theory. Laureate Education Inc., Baltimore, MD

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5673558/Just_Practice

Hello again. Thought I would practice making another Wordle!

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5673558/Just_Practice

Dear Colleagues

We are so close to completing our goals. I do not regret the decision I made to get my MS in ECE. The information I have learned has helped me to grow professionally and personally. I wish you the best.


Cheryl Byrd

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