Early Learning Specialist

Overview

Company Overview:

Founded as an orphanage in 1831, Rising Ground has been at the forefront of evolving community needs. Driven by the belief that each of us can thrive when life has hope and opportunity, Rising Ground provides caring support and proven paths to positive change, helping children, adults, and families rise above adversity, and each year, Rising Ground is a positive force in the lives of more than 25,000 individuals. We do this through 50 programs in 70 locations throughout New York City and Westchester. Our strong belief and commitment to diversity shows not just through our work with supported persons but is integral to the building of a strong staff that reflects the communities we serve. Rising Ground is headquartered in downtown Brooklyn.

Job Summary: Specialists will deliver the ParentChild+ program model at Rising Ground which promotes early literacy with children aged 16 months to 5 years and their families. Using a gentle approach, specialists will model reading, playing, and conversation activities using books and educational toys to parents with their children in "play" sessions in the comfort of their homes. "Play" sessions will include modeling to parents how they can interact with their children during reading by engaging in open ended questions and promoting school readiness skills.

Responsibilities

• Visit assigned families, engage parents and their children in interactive "play" sessions for 30-minutes twice weekly.

• Manage assigned caseload up to 16 families. Boroughs: Bronx and/or Brooklyn

• Deliver books, toys, and activities to family homes.

• Model for parents the appropriate ways to interact with his/her child using the toy or book

• Create an atmosphere in which the parent feels comfortable participating

• Respect the role of the parent as his/her child's first and most important teacher

• Review book or toy during second visit of the week

• Outreach, recruit, complete assessments, and intakes for program families

• Input data in National and Rising Ground MIS and other systems as needed

• Plan and attend events, occasional trips on weekdays or weekends

• Write an anecdotal report for each family visit

• Attend weekly staff meetings

• Record attendance of sessions in MIS system

• File and ensure that paperwork is up-to-date, organized and inputted to National MIS

• Be supportive of and collaborative with other Early Learning Specialists

• Respect the privacy of all families and show good judgment in the discussion of sensitive family issues at staff meetings or with his/her supervisor

• Maintain a non-judgmental attitude toward families

Qualifications

Required: High School Diploma or GED,

Preferred: Early Childhood in one on one or group setting and community service work experience. Candidates should demonstrate good communication and social skills.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

Fulltime/35 Weekly

Travel (if required):

Bronx and/or Brooklyn Communities

Physical Requirements:

Move boxes of toys and books and pack bags for families. Monthly delivery of educational toys, books to program family homes.

Benefits offered (Medical, Dental, Vision, PTO, 401k matching)

Annual Salary: $36,454.60