Early Childhood Transition Specialist

Description:

MISSION

Children need to spend their most critical years with dedicated, educated, trained, and well-compensated individuals in order to thrive. The New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute leads the work to establish and implement an early childhood workforce system to ensure funding, standards and competencies, career development resources, qualifications and credentials, professional development (training and strengths-based coaching), and program quality assurance and improvement for individuals who work with young children throughout New York. Housed at the City University of New York, the Institute is a fast-paced, dynamic public/private partnership that is committed to the early childhood workforce across New York State.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

New York State has recently been awarded the Preschool Development Grant Birth to Five Renewal (NYSB5-R) 3-year grant from the US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Child Care to support best practices and the alignment of state and local systems to promote positive transitions in early childhood, including transitions from early intervention to preschool special education and special education, and the transition into kindergarten.

This position will work to align all Training and Technical Assistance delivery for Early Childhood programs in NYS. The position will involve frequent written and oral communications with a wide variety of people, including executive and management staff, co-workers, program and administrative staff, representatives of businesses and organizations, and the public. This position is integral to the work of the NYS Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (NYSB5) initiative.

This position is dependent on available grant funding. This position will be located in Rensselear (near Albany) and will report directly to the co-chairs of the New York Early Childhood Advisory Council.

Responsibilities:

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Cross-Systems Alignment 

• Work to align and coordinate services young children receive across the state, including best practices around transition
• Work with statewide partners to maximize parental choice and knowledge about the state’s and territory’s mixed-delivery system of early childhood education program providers.

Project and Event Management

• Manage the B5 Kindergarten Transition Summits across the state each year by working closely with transitions liaisons at the NYS Education Department, the NYS Department of Health, and others.
• Manage the “Welcome Baby Kit” Pilot.
• Assist with the Technical Assistance Alignment work by planning meetings and leading follow-up activities under the supervision of the Head Start Collaboration Director.
• Work closely with the Early Childhood Collaboration Coordinator and other NYSB5 staff.

Data Compilation and Communications 

• Identify and compile database of all early childhood TA providers in the state.
• Work with NYSB5 Manager to update CCF website after each Transition Summit and TA alignment meeting.
• Develop centralized statewide early childhood resources for transitions.
• Coordinate the development and dissemination of transition materials, including the translation of materials as needed to ensure the materials are language accessible.

Other Duties

• Attend staff meetings and other trainings as required.
• Perform special projects and other duties as requested.

Qualifications: