Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

The first organization that appeals to me in the State of Pennsylvania is the Head Start program. This is important to me since I work directly through this program in the city of Philadelphia where the majority of our families are considered below poverty level according to their salaries. They are provided a free education with breakfast, lunch, and afternoon snack before leaving for the day. “Head Start programs promote the school readiness of infants, toddlers, and preschool-aged children from low-income families. Services provided in various settings, including centers, family child care, and children’s own home. Head Start programs also engage parents or other key family members in positive relationships, focusing on family well-being. Parents participate in leadership roles, including having a say in program operations”. Head Start programs are available at no cost to children ages birth to 5 from low-income families. Programs may provide transportation to the centers so enrolled children can participate regularly. Families and children are experiencing homelessness, and children in the foster care system are also eligible. Additionally, Head Start services are available to children with disabilities and other special needs. This non-profit organization helps the community and has the possibility that when I become a professional, I can access a workplace with more leadership for the good of the immigrant community, as is one of my primary objectives.  The program prepares children to enter school ready to learn and supports a child’s mental, social, and emotional development. Head Start programs also provide participating children and their families with information on health, nutrition, social development, and other services.

An example of a Head Start position in Philly is at TYL II Inc which is a Pa Keys STAR 4 child care facility located in West Philadelphia. TYL II, Inc. has been a member of this community since 1994 and continues to strive to improve their standards for childcare services for children from 8 weeks to 12 years and their families.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS for a Lead teacher are as follows:

– BACHELOR DEGREE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION with PA State Instructional Level I Certification in Early Childhood Education (PK-4 or N-3)

-1-2 years teaching experience is preferred.

–  Knowledge of developmentally appropriate practices

• Energetic personality who can communicate well with children and their parents
• MUST be a positive team player with a proactive, ‘can do’ approach
• Excellent organizational skills

The second organization that appealed to me during my research of Pennsylvania is called HUNE. Hispanos Unidos para Niños Excepcionales (HUNE) empowers parents of exceptional children to obtain a free and appropriate quality education for their children and other children with disabilities. HUNE is a not for profit organization established in 1998. They provide free bilingual English and Spanish training, technical assistance and individual assistance to parents of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities and to professionals who work with children (https://www.huneinc.org/). Their website even has everything written in both English and Spanish, with the option of choosing the translation as you read. Since I started working in Philly I have been getting more experience working with bilingual students and their families so when I saw that this was a bilingual program, I was immediately hooked. HUNE also works to improve educational outcomes for children and youth with all disabilities (emotional, learning, mental, and physical) from 0-26 years of age, so although this organization isn’t strictly for early childhood, I still was interested in this and think it would be a good fit for me. They do have an early intervention program that specifically focuses on ages 3-5 years old.

They only have one job opportunity right now is a Youth program lead. While this Masters is in early childhood I do have a dual certification in K-6 elementary education and N-3 early childhood so I could still apply for this position, although I definitely do not have the bilingual skills that other might possess to be as efficient and they may prefer.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Role and Responsibilities

• Conducts interviews, background and reference checks for potential employees, and provides support and supervision to the Youth staff

 • Oversees and evaluates youth staff, consultants and volunteers; Collects and analyzes data on youth participants and families;

• Analyzes, maintains and reports on youth staff and consultant’s schedules; Conducts regular database audits for compliance to established case management protocols and provides alerts to other team members regarding quality issues affecting service access;

 • Ensures that documentation is submitted in accordance with HUNE standards, and meets all designated requirements;

• Organizes and conducts bilingual virtual and/or in-person youth and family meetings and trainings with team;

• Networks and collaborates with school and community based organizations and conducts/delegates outreach and youth recruitment;

• Maintains a thorough knowledge of national, state-wide and community disability-based resources intended to assist families of youth and youth

The third state community of practice that appealed to me when researching in Pennsylvania is called Kids Together. Kids Together is a parent-run all volunteer organization and website. “The goals of Kids Together, Inc. include a desire to remove barriers that exclude people with disabilities. They support the belief that children with disabilities, like all children, have the need to be welcomed, cherished and embraced in our communities” (http://www.kidstogether.org/) What drew me to this organization is the fact that it is both volunteer run and not just any volunteers, but specifically by parents for other parents, professionals, advocates, and self-advocates. Kids Together, Inc began in early 1995 as a large children’s festival attracting over 5,000 people to Quakertown, PA. According to their website, “it was organized by volunteer parents of young children with disabilities. Our goal was to promote children with disabilities being a part of what every other child was, and just be kids. We wanted other people to understand that having a disability was but one small part of our children, and that they are more similar to all children then they are different”. I loved how their goal was to promote the fact that children with disabilities can, and should, still be a part of all opportunities and the whole point was to let ALL the kids be kids.

Since this organization is non-profit and volunteer-run, there are job opportunities, but not for payment. One position that interested me however, was that of a Job Coach.

The Job Coach:

– teaches the skills needed to DO specific job tasks. Part of this teaching can include developing job aids to help a person do a task. For example, a peg board can help a person who cannot count keep track, or a glass shield can protect the work area of a person who dribbles.

–  helps the person develop abilities needed to successfully HOLD a particular job. This could include helping a person learn how to behave during a coffee break or how to accept correction.

– works with the employer to develop job accommodations needed by a person because of his or her disability. These might be to divide one job between two person with disabilities. That one would be available to do a whole job if the other was in the hospital or temporarily emotionally unable to cope with the job’s requirements. Another accommodation could be to agree that performance would be rated on getting a job done and not on always arriving at work on time.

– does things that are needed to help the person be meaningfully included in the day-to-day interactions at the workplace. This can include teaching co-workers basic sign language or doing a group training for employees on general disability issues.     – Finally, during the supported employee’s intensive training period, if the worker is unable to finish the job, the job coach him or herself completes the work.

References:

Head Start

https://www.huneinc.org

http://www.kidstogether.org/kidstogether.htm