Head Start Mental Health Specialist

Chester County Intermediate Unit; East Caln Township (PA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The Head Start Mental Health Specialist at Chester County Intermediate Unit will work with program leadership, staff, families, and community agencies to promote the social-emotional well-being of children birth to five. This role emphasizes a consultative, prevention-focused model and embeds mental health supports into daily practices in line with Head Start Performance Standards.

The position involves classroom consultation, collaboration with families, and coordination with partners to

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or a related field is required.
• Licensed or license-eligible mental health professional preferred.
• Experience with young children birth–5 and families strongly preferred.
• Experience in consultation, coaching, or early childhood settings strongly preferred.
• Extensive knowledge of early childhood mental health, trauma-informed care, behavior support strategies and/or Pyramid Model.

Responsibilities

• Providing classroom consultation and coaching to support positive learning environments, social-emotional development, trauma-informed practices, and individualized behavior support.
• Collaborating with families by sharing strategies, resources, and guidance to support children's development and strengthen caregiver confidence.
• Supporting implementation of program-wide social-emotional frameworks, such as the Pyramid Model and PBIS, while delivering professional development on behavior guidance, trauma-informed care, and staff wellness.
• Working collaboratively with education, disability, health, family services, and community mental health partners to coordinate services and facilitate referrals.
• Assisting staff during challenging behaviors and crisis situations by developing proactive behavior support plans, coaching effective responses, and promoting suspension and expulsion prevention practices.
• Promoting staff well-being through reflective consultation, burnout prevention, resilience-building, and integration of staff wellness into program practices.
• Maintaining required documentation, supporting compliance with Head Start Program Performance Standards, and contributing to program planning and continuous quality improvement.

Skills

Consultation

Trauma-informed care

Family collaboration

PBIS/Pyramid Model

Education

Master's degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or related field

Job description

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Frontline Applicant Tracking - Chester County Intermediate Unit

• Position Type: Behavioral & Mental Health Services/ Trauma Informed Care Specialist
• Date Posted: 10/21/2026
• Closing Date: 10/28/2026

A vacancy exists for a Head Start Mental Health Specialist within the CCIU's Division of Student Services. Thisposition will be providing supporting Head Start programming across Chester County, and will be located at the Gordon Early Literacy Center in Coatesville, PA.

Are you motivated to create brighter futures for students, families,and the entire community? If so, we want you on Team CCIU! At theCCIU,we pride ourselves on the creativity, dedication,and collaborative spiritthatour employees bring to their work every day,and we know that achieving success together takes a teamapproach!

We strive to hire exceptional, motivated,and passionate individuals that help us achieve our vision of acting as educational leaderswhocontribute to a better Chester County and beyond.

Ifyou are looking for an exciting, challenging opportunity to grow your career, don't wait.

Summary:

The Head Start Mental Health Specialist partners with program leadership, staff, families, and community agencies to promote the social-emotional well-being of children birth to five. This role emphasizes a consultative, prevention-focused model that builds the capacity of staff and families to support children's development, addresses challenging behaviors through evidence-based strategies, and strengthens connections between home, school, and community services. The MHS does not provide direct therapy as a primary function but instead works collaboratively to embed mental health supports into everyday practices, consistent with Head Start Program Performance Standards.

Essential Job Responsibilities:

• Providing classroom consultation and coaching to support positive learning environments, social-emotional development, trauma-informed practices, and individualized behavior support.
• Collaborating with families by sharing strategies, resources, and guidance to support children's development and strengthen caregiver confidence.
• Supporting implementation of program-wide social-emotional frameworks, such as the Pyramid Model and PBIS, while delivering professional development on behavior guidance, trauma-informed care, and staff wellness.
• Working collaboratively with education, disability, health, family services, and community mental health partners to coordinate services and facilitate referrals.
• Assisting staff during challenging behaviors and crisis situations by developing proactive behavior support plans, coaching effective responses, and promoting suspension and expulsion prevention practices.
• Promoting staff well-being through reflective consultation, burnout prevention, resilience-building, and integration of staff wellness into program practices.
• Maintaining required documentation, supporting compliance with Head Start Program Performance Standards, and contributing to program planning and continuous quality improvement.

Qualifications:

Education and Experience:

• Master's degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or a related field required
• Licensed or license-eligible mental health professional preferred
• Experience working with young children (birth�5) and families strongly preferred
• Experience in consultation, coaching, or early childhood settings strongly preferred
• Extensive knowledge of: Early childhood mental health, Trauma-informed care, Behavior support strategies and/or Pyramid Model

Professional or Other Required Clearances

• Valid Driver's License required
• Current police, child abuse, FBI fingerprint, and NSOR clearances within 1 year required

Schedule:

260 day position, 7.5 hours per day, 5 days per week

Salary Range:

Project, Level 13, $59,948 - $74,934/yr.
*Placement on scale commensurate to years of experience in similar positions*

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Equal Opportunity Employer

Chester County Intermediate Unit is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Chester County Intermediate Unit ensures equal employment opportunities regardless of race, creed, gender, color, national origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or disability. Chester County Intermediate Unit has a policy of active recruitment of qualified minority teachers and non-certified employees. Any individual needing assistance in making an application for any opening should contact the Department of Human Resources at 484-237-5085 .

Need Help?

We're here to help! For questions regarding position qualifications or application procedures, please contact Chester County Intermediate Unit directly.

For technical questions regarding the Applicant Tracking system, please contact the Applicant Tracking help desk using the Request Technical Help link below.