Early Care Education Specialist

The Early Care and Education Specialist is a relationship builder and valued member of the Texas Rising Star program, responsible for developing close working partnerships with child care providers. Recruits new service providers and manages existing relationships through effective delivery of training, technical assistance and resource assessment, and distribution of developmentally appropriate materials and equipment. The Specialist conducts on-site technical assistance, mentoring, assessment and training visits to providers interested in Texas Rising Star (TRS) certification.

Prepares inclusion plans for providers caring for children with disabilities, and monitors all providers to ensure compliance with contractual regulations.

• Recruits providers for Texas Rising Star (TRS) certification.
• Provides mentoring or conducts provider assessments for Texas Rising Star (TRS) certification as assigned.
• Performs technical assistance, training visits, and monitoring visits to providers’ facilities to ensure contractual compliance as well as Texas Rising Star (TRS) certification compliance and progress.
• Works closely with Supervisor in developing inclusion plans for providers caring for children with disabilities.
• Prepares and maintains updated paperwork for all records within the time frames specified by the Texas Workforce Commission and Board area directives, policies and procedures.
• Updates The Workforce Information System of Texas (TWIST).
• Conducts monitoring of providers to ensure compliance with contractual regulations, and provides technical assistance as needed.
• Conducts follow-up visits on Service Improvement Agreements (SIAs).
• Follows unit procedures and guidelines and participates in meetings and other events to increase understanding of the Workforce Solutions system.
• Resolves any problems related to provider contracts and works well with management staff, account representatives, and Intake/Eligibility Specialists to resolve any provider complaints or issues.
• Ensures all provider files contain all the required documents pertaining to the service agreements, tax forms, deposit forms, state licenses, etc.
• Collaborates with other Child Care Services staff to enhance program operations.
• Identifies and documents process improvement opportunities.
• Performs other duties as assigned.
• Complies with all policies and standards.

Education

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university in early childhood education, child development, special education, child psychology, educational psychology, elementary education, or family consumer science; OR

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university with at least 18 credit hours in early childhood education, child development, special education, child psychology, educational psychology, elementary education, or family consumer science, and at least 12 credit hours in child development; OR

• Associate’s degree in early childhood education, child development, special education, child psychology, educational psychology, elementary education, or family consumer science, with two years of experience as a director in an early childhood program; preference given for required experience with a provider that is accredited or TRS certified.

Work Experience

1–3 years: 1 year of full-time early childhood classroom experience in a child care, Early Head Start, Head Start, or prekindergarten through third grade school program.

Knowledge,

Skills and Abilities

• Intermediate experience in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook and the Internet.
• Demonstrated ability to work with customers and vendors, keep detailed records, and enter data accurately and timely into automated databases.
• Ability to handle escalated situations with critical thinking skills and problem‑solving techniques.
• Utilizes best practices in early childhood education.
• Ability to apply early childhood evaluations, observations, and assessments for both teachers and children.
• Ability to use related assessment instruments including ITERS‑R, ECERS‑R, FCCERS‑R, and CLASS.
• Must be able to work a variable schedule Monday through Saturday with some night and weekend training and travel.
• Understanding of TRS Certification Guidelines and the minimum standards of Texas child‑care licensing.
• Ability to relate to individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds.
• Detail oriented with strong oral and written communication skills.
• Basic administrative skills, including record‑keeping and use of a computer or tablet for data entry.