Infant And Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant

Summary
Position Title: Holding HopeInfant andEarly Childhood Mental Health Consultant; supporting primarily Kitsap county ON-SITE in Washington State AND other counties in the Olympic Peninsula VIRTUALLY.
Reports to: CCAC Early Achievers Regional Coordinator 
Office Location: TBD
Status: Non-Exempt 
Salary Range: The salary range for this position is $32.58 to $37.34 per hour. A wage enhancement of $1.00/hour will be added to the pay rate for the regular use of Spanish in this position. An additional .50/hour (beyond that) is added for the regular use of an additional language beyond English and Spanish. 
 
Who we are: 
Child Care Action Council is a non-profit agency whose mission is to promote and nurture early learning communities where families and children thrive. We have programs to support both childcare educators and families. At a local, regional, and state level, our staff collaborate with a diverse group of individuals and organizations working on behalf of and in partnership with childcare educators, children, and their families. Through these relationships, we seek outcomes that reflect equity, inclusion and social justice within our agency and larger community. We strive to provide a supportive and flexible work environment that values our staff and their families. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to building a diverse team.  
 
About the job:  The Infant Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant (IECMHC) will be working in partnership with childcare/early learning providers, Mental Health professionals, coaches and others toward the shared goals of promoting the overall social emotional development and well-being of children, families and adults working in Early Childhood settings. Holding Hope IECMHCs work to increase adults’ capacity to understand and address challenging behaviors, reduce risk of expulsion from childcare/preschool settings and to promote trauma-informed practice. This MHC will have dual responsibilities: providing primarily on-site caseload services to identified providers AND virtual only services to providers who are waitlisted for on-site MHC supports.
What we’re looking for in a candidate: You have experience in child/family Mental Healthand Early Childhood development. You are passionate about supporting teachers, caregivers and parents of young children and are committed to a collaborative, attuned, strengths-based approach to problem solving and capacity building with adults. You are self-aware and reflective in your work and committed to your ongoing professional development. You are self-motivated and able to work independently, balanced with your commitment to a collaborative team approach. You are highly organized, responsive and conscientious about follow-through, and able to quickly establish rapport and trust with a wide range of individuals and groups. You are a flexible thinker, aware of systems dynamics, and are sensitive to linguistic, cultural, social, economic, individual and positional differences among staff, providers and children/families served. 
Duties
Responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to:
 
1.     Provide Infant-Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) services to selected licensed child care providers (centers and/or homes) for the purpose of strengthening the capacity of providers, families and systems to promote positive social and emotional development, and to prevent, identify and reduce the impact of Mental Health challenges among children and families.
 
·      Regular caseload support entails the following: Provide primarily on-site and some virtual Infant-Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) at selected licensed childcare sites, traveling within and supporting clients primarily in Kitsap county.
·      Virtual waitlist support entails the following: Collaborate with the statewide Holding Hope team in receiving and triaging referrals, providing individual and group consultation/training/support to waitlist providers and in transitioning cases to on-site service delivery as openings arise for Regional MHCs.
 
Consultation services to include but may not be limited to:
§ Child/Family Consultation: working collaboratively with providers and parents to assess, understand and address child/family needs through the development of individualized plans that are culturally attuned.
§ Classroom Consultation: working collaboratively with teachers and coaches to address attitudes, beliefs, practices, and conditions affecting the quality of relationships between adults and children.
§ Program Consultation: consulting with administrators, directors, and leaders to support changes in site practice and policy to benefit all children, families and adults in the early learning setting.
§ Systems-level Consultation – working with Coaches, Leads, trainers, MHCs, partners and statewide and regional agency staff to promote social-emotional health and well-being, and to build systems capacity to respond to social-emotional and Mental Health concerns.
 
   Specific Mental Health Consultation activities may include:
 
§ Consultation with teachers, administrators, staff, and families
§ Supporting reflection and problem-solving to build adults’ capacity to address child/family, classroom, programmatic and systemic concerns
§ Classroom observations (virtual and on-site as appropriate)
§ Collaboratively developing individualized support plans for children, families and programs and identifying culturally attuned, effective and feasible strategies
§ Facilitating screening, resources and referrals for children, families and staff
§ Trainings and follow-up consultation for early care and education staff and administrators on topics such as Trauma Informed Care, Understanding and Managing Challenging Behavior, Expulsion Prevention and Inclusionary Practices, Stress Management and Self-Care, and others as appropriate.
§ Collaboration with Early Achievers Coaches, Mental Health Consultants and other partnersworking in child care settings
§ Responding to urgent or short-term consultation needs
§ Group consultation and/or training for providers/communities of practice
 
2.     Provide resources, information and guidance to build the capacity of Early Achievers Coaches to support providers with children’s challenging behaviors and to prevent expulsion of children from child care and Early learning settings. 
Support/Consultation to Coaches may include, but is not limited to:
 
·      Joint virtual visits with Coaches and childcare providers to provide initial assessment/ impressions and consultation to Coaches and providers regarding potential strategies and/or resources/referrals, and to determine whether IECMHC services are warranted.
·      Ongoing partnership with Coaches and other MHCs around Coaching/Consultation to providers, including shared goals and sustainability planning as appropriate.
·      Training on topics such as, but not limited to: Social and Emotional Development, Trauma Informed Care, Understanding and Managing Challenging Behavior, Stress Management and Self-Care, Circle of Security and other Mental Health or social emotional learning topics as appropriate. 
·      Consultation with communities of practice regarding material covered in training and/or to provide group reflective consultation.
·      Providing resources, materials, information, or referrals for Coaches as needed.
 
3.     Engage with state/regional/community/tribal early learning and behavioral health partners to build connections, establish referral options for children, families and providers and identify strengths/opportunities and service gaps/barriers.
 
4.     Additional Responsibilities:

• Work in partnership with Child Care Aware of WA’s IECMHC Director and Supervisor, regional MHCs and Coaches to support statewide needs for short-term, urgent needs and waitlist support and Mental Health consultation.
• Collaborate with team to develop culturally sensitive/attuned content, training and resources
• Participate in regular individual and group reflective supervision and ongoing professional development
• Maintain provider, family and child confidentiality
• Attend Early Achievers team meetings as needed
• Other duties as assigned

Requirements
Qualifications:
Master’s Degree or Doctorate in Social Work, Counseling, Marriage and Family Therapy, or Psychology, clinical licensure or license eligible (candidates with experience with young children (0-5) and/or IMH experience or endorsement desirable).
 
Candidates with an advanced degree such as Master’s in Early Childhood Education or Child Development and/or Infant Mental Health Endorsement, and/or previous experience in delivering IECMHC and/or early education, may be considered if candidate is not a license eligible Mental Health professional.
 
Additional Competencies:
 
We are looking for experienced individuals who:
 

• Have 2+ years experience in child/family/adult Mental Health
• Have foundational knowledge in Early Childhood development and the importance of early relationships
• Understand the impact of risk factors (e.g. trauma, abuse and neglect, adult mental illness, caregiver depression, interpersonal violence, poverty, substance abuse) affecting children’s development, behaviors and relationships
• Understand how culture (beliefs, values, attitudes, biases and experiences), equity, and environment shape relationships and behaviors
• Demonstrate knowledge of culturally appropriate anti-bias practice and theory, along with a commitment towards continued professional development in this area
• Demonstrate knowledge of best practice interventions for supporting young children exhibiting challenging behavior
• Demonstrate knowledge of screening, assessment and facilitating referrals for children, families and providers
• Are systems thinkers, and able to negotiate complexities of working in a statewide system
• Have ability to work independently and self-motivate, as well as work collaboratively as part of larger statewide MHC Team
• Have ability to maintain timely documentation/data entry into electronic data system and assist with monthly and quarterly deliverable and reporting requirements
• Demonstrate skillful written and oral communication with staff, teams and communities served; demonstrate effective listening skills and empathy
• Have ability to work occasional evening and weekend hours
• Possess Washington State Driver’s License, automobile insurance, and access to a reliable automobile.

 
Other things to know: 
An Infant andEarly Childhood Mental Health Consultant must:  
·      Have proof of COVID-19 vaccination
·      Successfully pass a thorough background check 
·      Have access to remote reliable internet
·      Have reliable personal transportation and vehicle liability insurance
·      Be willing to abide by Washington State law as a mandatory reporter of child abuse and neglect
We are reviewing applications upon receipt. The position will remain open until filled.? 
 
Child Care Action Council is an equal opportunity employer.
Benefits
Benefits: For positions over 20 hours per week, we provide health insurance (80% employer paid); dental and vision starting the 1st day of the month following hire; and an employer-paid retirement plan that includes an 8% of salary agency contribution.
 
About Us

Child Care Action Council is a non-profit agency whose mission is to promote and nurture early learning communities where families and children thrive. We have programs to support both childcare providers and families. At a local, regional, and state level, our staff collaborate with a diverse group of individuals and organizations working on behalf of and in partnership with children and their families. Through these relationships, we are better able to address our goals for equity, inclusion and social justice. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to building a diverse team. ?

www.ccacwa.org