Director of Child Care Health and Safety Program Manager Senior II

Introduction

The Maryland State Department of Education is dedicated to supporting a world‑class educational system that prepares all students for college and career success in the 21st century. We oversee state and federal programs that support the needs of a diverse population – students, teachers, principals, and other educators throughout Maryland.

State Salary Grade 24
Salary Range: $113,157 - $178,453
State Salary Guidelines may apply for current state employees.

Nancy S. Grasmick Education Building,
200 West Baltimore Street,
Baltimore, MD 21201

This position provides statewide leadership, regulatory oversight, and expert guidance to ensure that all Maryland children—birth through age five, and school‑age children through 13—have access to safe, healthy, and high‑quality early childhood and school‑age programs. Reporting to the Executive Director for Child Care Operations, the Director leads Maryland’s child care licensing system, including standards development, investigations, monitoring, enforcement, technical assistance, and operational quality assurance for public, private, and in‑home child care programs and nursery schools.

The Director also leads the ongoing review and modernization of Maryland’s child care licensing regulatory (COMAR) framework and efforts to improve the efficiency of the licensing system, using continuous quality improvement approaches, and ensures alignment of licensing functions across Maryland’s early childhood mixed delivery system, including alignment with the Child Care Scholarship (CCS) program.

• Direct, manage, and oversee Maryland’s Child Care Licensing System, Regulatory Compliance, and Licensing System Modernization.
• Provide strategic leadership and statewide oversight for all licensing functions to ensure compliance with COMAR, state/federal law, and MSDE’s strategic plan, and lead the implementation of recommendations from HB 477.
• Direct modernization of licensing regulations to ensure clarity, equity, legal soundness, and alignment with national best practices.
• Develop and direct statewide monitoring, investigation, and enforcement protocols, ensuring consistent application across regional offices.
• Ensure regional offices provide supportive, solutions‑oriented technical assistance that strengthens program quality.
• Oversee coordination with health, safety, and investigative partners to ensure consistent child safety protocols and aligned responses to incidents.
• Supervise 10‑15 regional managers and central office leadership, ensuring alignment with MSDE expectations and consistent implementation of licensing regulations.
• Oversee resolution of complex provider, family, and stakeholder complaints, ensuring consistent, transparent handling in accordance with law and policy.
• Respond to high‑level inquiries from MSDE leadership and external entities, preparing reports, legislative analyses, and updates.
• Represent MSDE on work groups, committees, councils, hearings, and interagency task forces related to child safety, licensing, and regulatory modernization.

• Education: A Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent with 36 post‑baccalaureate credit hours in Public Administration, Education, Administration/Supervision, Early Childhood, Social Work, or a closely related field.
• Experience: Five years of professional administrative experience in management, administration, supervision, and/or policy development of Child Care – Early Learning Programs; at least one year managing the regulatory aspects of a Child Care program.
• Note: Possession of a Master’s Degree may be substituted for two years of the required administrative experience.

• Experience coordinating or administering child care programs or services, or child care facility health or related field.
• Experience with interpretation and application of state and federal statutes, regulations, funding, and policies governing child care programs, licensure, and health and safety requirements.
• Experience with Centralized Criminal Background Checks (CBC) established under SB 359/HB 635 and criminal history records checks (CHRCs) for applicants,…