Exploring Roles in the ECE Community

Exploring Roles in Early Childhood Education: 

Local and State Levels

Position: Child Care & Early Childhood Education Faculty

Responsibilities: 

• Prepare and teach courses in the field of Early Childhood Education
• Serve as a mentor to students in the Child Care & Development program.

Requirements:

• Master's degree in Child Development or Early Childhood
• At least three years of work experience in an early childhood setting with young children and their families, or public school teaching experience in Pre-K - Grade 3 setting.

Personal Interest in Position:

• Provides opportunity to teach future early childhood educators.
• Provides opportunity to provide future EC educators the knowledge and skills necessary in developing safe, inclusive learning environments that nurture the social, emotional, physical, linguistic, and cognitive development of young children with and without disabilities.

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Position: Inclusion Consultant

Responsibilities: 

• Consultation with center-based staff, family child care providers and parents regarding provision of services to children with special needs.
• Ongoing discussion with and feedback to teachers regarding all areas of child’s development and attainment of specific IIP, IEP or IFSP goals or outcomes.
• Documentation of the child’s abilities and needs through observation of the child in a natural setting.
• Developing an individual program plan and curriculum adaptations as needed.  
• Model interventions to staff and parents.
• Support program in adapting equipment for child’s use in the program to increase success in all areas of curriculum.

Requirements:

• BS or Master’s degree in Early Childhood: Special Education or related field.
• Experience within child care program(s)
• Knowledge of early childhood, special education and experience in working with children with special needs and their families.  
• Communication skills, written and verbal.

Personal Interest in Position:

• Provides an opportunity to positively impact the lives of young children with disabilities and their families.
• Provides opportunity to ensure access to inclusive early childhood education that nurtures the development of young children with disabilities and their families.
• Provides opportunity to increase the number of inclusive child care centers in the community, state, and nationally.

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Position: Early Childhood Special Education Specialist

Responsibilities: 

• Provide professional development and services, develop products, and participate in special project activities in the area of early childhood education for students with disabilities.
• Develop, present, and facilitate effective professional development.
• Provide technical assistance and customized services.
• Develop products to support instruction and programming.
• Assist in planning and developing special project activities, e.g., grant proposals, interdepartmental services, demonstration sites, research studies, and other customer-based projects correlated with early childhood special education.

Requirements:

• BS or Master’s degree in Early Childhood: Special Education or related field.
• Three years in leadership position(s) related to early childhood education for students with disabilities.
• Five years teaching or related experience in early childhood for students with disabilities
• Experience in developing and presenting professional development
• Knowledge of instructional programming for early childhood students with disabilities including the use of assistive technology
• Broad-based knowledge of rules and regulations related to special education
• Exemplary written and oral communication skills

Personal Interest in Position:

• Even though this is very similar to my current position, this would provide me the opportunity to work with a team of specialists that are focused on providing high quality services to educators, families, and children.
• Provides opportunity to work with the school districts and community in providing high quality early childhood education for young children (birth to 5 years) with disabilities and special needs.