National Roles/Jobs in the ECE Community

Three Early Childhood Education Jobs/Roles at the National Level:

NAEYC

The first organization that I would be interested in working for is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  NAEYC is the world’s largest early childhood organization, promoting a standard of excellence in current research and ongoing professional development.  According to the website, NAEYC’s mission is expressed in three goals:

1.        Improving professional practice and working conditions in early childhood education.

2.        Supporting early childhood programs by working to achieve a high-quality system of early childhood education.

3.     Building a high-performing, inclusive organization of groups and individuals who are committed to promoting excellence in early childhood education for all young children (www.naeyc.org)

I wish to be a strong advocate for children, and to influence best practice not only in my current early childhood program, but others as well.  Therefore, the job that appeals to me at NAEYC is the Senior Director for the NAEYC Academy for Early Childhood Program Accreditation.  This role requires effective leadership, supervision, and organizational skills to manage the accreditation team and program, and the ability to work with NAEYC senior leadership in developing quality improvement processes for early childhood systems at the national, state and local level.  Strong interpersonal and communication skills would also be required due to the collaborative nature of working with many early childhood programs.  An advanced degree in business administration and/or early childhood education is preferred (http://www.naeyc.org/about/jobs).

HFRP (Harvard Family Research Project)

The challenge that I am most interested in addressing in my role as an early childhood program director is strengthening family partnerships.  The Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) is dedicated to offering professional development, research, and resources targeted to helping early childhood professionals connect with and engage the family in early childhood education.  Additionally, “HFRP’s work influences policymakers, practitioners, researchers, evaluators, philanthropists, teachers, school administrators, and concerned individuals” (www.hfrp.org).  There are currently no job positions available at HFRP, however, I have recently joined their Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE), which is a national network of people with access to current research, resources, and collaborative efforts related to this topic.  The information offered by FINE and HFRP has contributed greatly to my knowledge and development in addressing my chosen challenge. 

Zero to Three

Zero to Three is a national, nonprofit organization providing research and information to policy makers, parents and professionals on many early childhood topics including brain development, social-emotional development, play, and family engagement.  I have a passion for mentoring and training early childhood professionals, therefore, a current position that interests me with Zero to Three is the Senior Training Specialist.  The Senior Training Specialist develops and provides research-based training in diverse venues (conferences, workshops, webinars and/or webcasts) as a part of the Early Head Start National Resource Center.  This position requires one to have strong knowledge of early childhood development, Early Head Start program development and standards, excellent training skills, strong communication and interpersonal skills, computer/power point, and the ability to work collaboratively with others.   A Master’s Degree in the early childhood field is required (http://www.zerotothree.org/about-us/careers/jobs/senior-training-specialist-5-14.pdf)

Exploring Roles in the Early Childhood Community

          I am currently the center director for an early childhood care and education program in a hospital-based organization.  I enjoy my role, and I especially love working for Intermountain Healthcare.  Three key communities of practice for my role include my hospital organization’s administration and support teams, as well as the State of Utah’s Office of Childcare Licensing, and the Care about Childcare (Child Care Resource and Referral) networks that provide ongoing quality guidelines and professional development to my team and myself.  I do not intend to leave my current position because I am very fulfilled and happy where I am.  However, I did research other roles that have either previously interested me or that I might have an opportunity to pursue in the future.  Because I love the supportive community of practice that I work for, I first explored a couple of roles that are available in the early childhood field within the corporation I am currently employed. 

Hospital-based Child Life Specialist

            These early childhood professionals are trained to give emotional support to help families and children overcome the challenging experiences of being treated in a hospital environment.  They help children cope with treatment, pain management, and/or stress through therapeutic play, education and self-expression activities.  They also provide educational information, support and guidance to family members, as well as educate hospital staff and other caregivers about the needs of children under stress.  The requirements of this job include a Master’s degree in the field of early childhood, as well as Child Life Certification and medical experience through an internship program in a qualified hospital program.  It is essential that an Child Life Specialist has effective and empathetic communication skills and a strong knowledge of not only early childhood education, but medical terminology and practice in order to offer support to pediatric patients and their families.

Administrative Director of Child Care Services – Corporate Health Care

            The Administrative Director of Child Care Services provides expertise, training and consultation to the hospital corporation regarding multiple hospital-owned child development centers and the development of child care initiatives and policy.  This position ensures operational effectiveness and that quality standards are met by departmental staff including the health, safety, care and developmental education of the children attending the organization’s child development centers.  The Administrative Director supervises and mentors the directors of each child development center, and assists all the directors in operational, team engagement, professional development, and quality processes.  This position requires a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Development and at least five years experience directing multiple childcare sites.  This position also requires a strong emphasis on business management and leaders skills, strategic planning, collaboration with other hospital organizational services, curriculum and policy development, and the ability to educate and train adult learners.

State of Utah – Five County Director of Child Care Resource and Referral

            The Director of the Five County Child Care Resource and Referral (Care about Childcare) collaborates with several government agencies to provide support to families and child care providers.  These agencies include the Department of Workforce Services, Office of Childcare and the Five County Association of Governments.  The professional duties of this role involve improving and supporting quality childcare in Southern Utah by overseeing professional training and conferences for early childhood providers, overseeing grant programs and quality initiatives, and offering referral and education services to families looking for quality early childhood care.  Requirements needed for this role include a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, strong communication and collaboration skills, experience with grant writing and implementation, organization to maintain a database of child care and education providers and families, extensive early childhood knowledge to develop training curriculum for providers, and the ability to train and supervise adult educators who provide ongoing early childhood professional development.