Parent Child Educator

Metropolitan Family Services empowers families to learn, to earn, to heal, to thrive. Part mentor, part motivator, part advocate, since 1857, Metropolitan Family Services has been the engine of change that empowers families to reach their greatest potential and positively impact their communities. Metropolitan is Illinois’ first comprehensive human services agency and reaches more than 117,000 individuals and families in Chicago, Evanston/Skokie, the southwest suburbs and DuPage County with services promoting education, economic stability, emotional wellness and empowerment.

We are now hiring for a full-time Parent Child Educator to join our Early Childhood Education Team!

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS: 

• Provides services, appropriate to client population, to maximize client potential and promote their optimal functioning in the community.
• Deliver health, educational, nutritional, child growth, and development information to parents via weekly meetings in the home.
• Work alongside the parents to ensure that prenatal, well-child exams, immunizations, health screenings, and nutrition assessments are complete and necessary follow up occurs.
• Provide support in parent and child activities that encourages developmentally appropriate activities for the changing needs of children.
• Participate in regularly scheduled team meetings to plan for and deliver collaborative services across all components.
• Support individual goals for children as identified in their individualized family service plans/individual education plan.
• Collaborate with each family to set goals with the parents as part of the Family Partnership Agreement process.
• Assess individual needs, attending to special needs, specific interests, strengths and concerns.
• Complete all developmental, social emotional and health screenings.
• Develop and utilize integrated curriculum plans, which reflect mandated elements and components, parental and cultural influences, and promote the social, emotional, physical and cognitive development.
• Encourage experimentation, exploration, problem solving, cooperation, socialization, and choice-making; ask open-ended questions and listen respectfully to the answers.
• Participate in required parent/teacher conferences and home visits.
• Plan and conduct regular socializations and parent meetings with team members.
• Maintain accurate written records, including: assessments, IEP/IFSP documentation, screening instruments, anecdotal observations, and other required forms.
• Ensure accurate and current information is entered in Child Plus and Teaching Strategies Gold on a regular basis.
• Monitor and report child abuse.
• Attend meetings, trainings and appropriate professional development activities.
• Responsible for following CACFP policy and procedures and ensuring that Meal Participation records are completed during meal and snacks and that they are accurate.
• Responsible for conducting weekly ninety minute home visits with each client.  Client caseload will consist of twelve families with children ages 0-3.
• Provide food preparation and food storage using approved sanitation methods.
• Work effectively with diverse staff and service population.
• Other duties as requested.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education, Child Development, or a related field from an accredited college or university required.
• Early Head Start, Infant-Toddler or Head Start experience preferred. 
• Must meet requirements per Illinois State Board of Education and agency policies and procedures.
• Experience working with low-income families preferred.
• Good written and verbal communication skills, with a basic knowledge of computer.
• Strong interpersonal and time management skills.
• Some direct service experience preferred.
• Must have access to a vehicle, valid driver’s license and proof of insurance to perform essential job function.
• Requires mobility to work with a community based case load.
• Ability to maintain assigned community and home base services.
• Ability to work with diverse individuals and groups.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS: 

• MFS staff are required to provide proof of vaccination or have an approved Medical exemption prior to starting employment. If an approved Medical is obtained, weekly testing may be required.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• While performing the essential duties of this job, the employee is required to sit and stand for sustained periods of time, frequently talk, hear, use hands and fingers to feel, handle and operate objects or controls, and occasionally stand, bend, stretch, stoop, kneel and crouch.
• The employee is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as preparing and analyzing data and figures, transcribing and viewing a computer terminal.
• The employee may occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.

SALARY:

• Compensation is commensurate with years of related experience, position requirements, and candidate qualifications. The average salary for the position is $55,000.

Metropolitan Family Services offers a very generous benefits packet to our professionals: 

• Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medical Coverage: HMO, Traditional PPO, or PPO w/ HSA contributions.
• Dental and Vision Insurance Options
• 11 paid Holidays  
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• 401K Plan
• Training and Professional Development Plan with E- Learning
• Wellness Initiative Program
• Employee Assistance Network