Inclusion Specialist

Allies for Every Child; Indiana (PA); On-site; USD 36,000 - 39,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Sign-on bonus

Full benefits package

401k with employer match

Job summary

Allies for Every Child is seeking an Inclusion Specialist to provide consultation, and classroom support for children with special needs across our programs. This role collaborates with the Director of Inclusion Services and education teams to ensure access to IFSP/IEP services and referrals in the community.

Qualifications include an associate degree (bachelor’s preferred), experience with 0-5, and bilingual English/Spanish skills.

Qualifications

• Associate’s degree in Early Child Development, Psychology, Special Education, or related field; bachelor’s degree preferred.
• Experience working with children 0-5.
• Experience performing developmental screenings and working with children with developmental delays preferred.
• Experience providing case management preferred.
• Experience providing social service referrals and advocating for parents and children.
• Strong verbal and written communications skills.
• Bilingual English/Spanish required.

Responsibilities

• Support the administration of developmental screenings for children 0-5 across the agency.
• Monitor, track and process completed developmental screenings.
• Maintain understanding of state and federal regulations (e.g. EHS, CDSS).
• Link families to community agencies and services.
• Maintain electronic data in ChildPlus for Early Childhood Education programs.
• Ensure staff access to current IFSP/IEP for lesson planning and individualization.
• Coaching Allies staff to ensure appropriate environment accommodations.
• Visit family childcare sites to monitor inclusion of children with special needs.
• Conduct classroom observations to monitor inclusion and individualization.
• Assist with IFSP/IEP goals and progress tracking with staff and parents.

Skills

Bilingual English/Spanish

Verbal communication

Written communication

Child development knowledge

Education

Associate’s degree in Early Child Development, Psychology, Special Education, or related field

Bachelor’s degree preferred

Tools

ChildPlus data system

IFSP/IEP documentation

Job description

The Inclusion Specialist (IS) is responsible for consultation, collaboration, and monitoring of children with special needs and/or disabilities, who are enrolled in Allies programs, including providing support in the classroom and at family childcare provider locations. This position works within an interdisciplinary team setting to ensure full inclusion of children with disabilities. The Inclusion Specialist works closely with the education teams and Director of Inclusion Services (DIS), to ensure support for children with special needs and/or disabilities, monitor access to individualized services, and provide appropriate referrals to relevant community agencies to address developmental delays, as needed.

Every child needs a childhood. Allies for Every Child (Allies) exists to give at‑risk children and children living in poverty the foundation they need to increase their life choices and lead fulfilling lives. For nearly 40 years, Allies has been providing thousands of at‑risk children and their families with critical, high‑quality child development and family wellness programs (including comprehensive early education and Early Head Start services), family strengthening interventions, foster care and adoption services, and a range of vital, integrated services, including mental health services, educational assessments, trauma and disabilities screenings/advocacy, nutrition services, dental and vision screenings, and pediatric health consultations. In 2024, Allies expanded its reach, serving even more children and youth in foster care and those transitioning to adulthood through Extraordinary Families, a program of Allies for Every Child.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or abilities required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Inclusion Services

• Responsible for supporting the administration of developmental screenings for children 0-5, agency wide
• Monitors, tracks and processes completed developmental screenings, agency wide
• Maintains understanding of relevant State and Federal regulations and standards (e.g. EHS, CDSS)
• Ensures that children and families are supported through the linkage process to community agencies and appropriate services
• Maintains electronic data and documentation (disabilities) in ChildPlus for children enrolled in Early Childhood Education programs
• Ensure Allies staff have access to children’s current IFSP/IEP to facilitate lesson planning and individualization
• Support the DIS to ensure that these IFSP/IEP are consistently reviewed with the child’s primary educator
• Under the supervision of the DIS, provides coaching and support to Allies staff to ensure provision of appropriate environment accommodations
• Visits family childcare provider sites to monitor individualization of services and inclusion of children with special needs and/or disabilities
• Conducts classroom observations to monitor individualization of services and inclusion of children with special needs and/or disabilities.
• Under the supervision of the DIS, provides coaching and consultation for Allies staff working with children with special needs and/or disabilities, as well as parents of children who have special needs and/or disabilities
• Supports Allies staff in implementation of IFSP/IEP goals, and individualization of services, in the classroom and in the child’s natural environment; completes monthly classroom observation and provides feedback to Early Education Manager
• Supports parents with the IFSP/IEP process, including attending IFSP/IEP meetings, and participating in IFSP/IEP goal setting
• Attends required meetings, weekly supervision, Multidisciplinary Team Meetings (MDT), trainings, and evaluation meetings
• Monitors ChildPlus data system, ensure inputting of updated IFSP/IEP goals, maintain IFSP/IEP documents in child files and ChildPlus, and collaborates with outside agencies to monitor progress towards goals
• Mentor Allies staff in early identification of developmental delays, and eligibility for higher level services through Regional Center and school districts

Other

• In collaboration with the DIS and Early Education Coaching Manager, facilitate staff and parent trainings supporting Early Intervention
• Evening or weekend hours may be required
• Maintain confidentiality; obtain and maintain legal releases of information and consent documentation for confidential information
• Comply with all applicable federal, state and county regulations, policies and procedures
• Perform other related essential functions, as assigned. In accordance with our “team” philosophy, the person filling this position may be required to carry out or assist with other tasks in addition to the duties listed in this job description
• Associate’s degree in Early Child Development, Psychology, Special Education, or related field; bachelor’s degree preferred
• Experience working with children 0-5
• Experience performing developmental screenings, working with children with developmental delays preferred
• Experience providing case management preferred
• Experience providing social service referrals, working with multidisciplinary teams, and advocating for parents and children
• Strong verbal and written communications skills
• Bilingual English/Spanish required
• Interest in learning about issues related to early childhood education, disabilities, and mental health
• Passionate about learning and possesses curiosity about issues affecting children and families
• All employees/contractors, regardless of position, serve as role models for children and adolescents who are served by our agency. Therefore, each employee/contractor must at all times be emotionally stable and able to function effectively with children, adolescents and adults who may have mental or behavioral health problems. The staff must be able to demonstrate appropriate daily behavior, appropriate expression of emotions, as well as appropriate role modeling. Hostility, aggression and unnecessary or inappropriate physical actions as well as inappropriate emotional expression are not acceptable
• Staff must believe in and act in accordance with both the Agency’s and the program’s mission/vision statements, adopted theoretical frameworks, and philosophy.
• Fingerprint background clearance (DOJ, FBI & Child Abuse Clearance Index), or approved exemption
• Successful completion of pre-employment physical, PPD test/ risk assessment, proof of immunizations for pertussis (Tdap), measles (MMR) and influenza (can decline)
• Class “C” driver’s license, proof of insurance and access to reliable transportation required

$2,500 SIGN-ON INCENTIVE BONUS

Pay Range: $26.50 – $28.50 hourly

In accordance with California law, the expected salary range for this California position. The actual compensation will be determined based on experience and other factors permitted by law.

Full Benefits Package Offered, Including

• Competitive Pay
• 12 Holidays per calendar year
• 2 Personal Days – birthday and anniversary of employment
• 10 Vacation Days per year (increases with tenure)
• 10 Sick Leave Days per year
• 10 Jury Duty Days
• 100% Employer Contribution to: Health – Kaiser or Anthem, Dental, Vision
• 401k Retirement Plan with a 50% employer match for the first 4%
• 100% Employer-Paid Life and Accidental Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – for team members and dependents
• Additional benefits:
• Pet Insurance
• Supplemental Life Insurance
• Discounts on movie tickets, amusement parks, travel, hotels, sporting events, shows, and more.
• Initial and ongoing training and professional development opportunities
• Opportunities for growth and advancement
• Employee referral incentive – $1,500
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness
• Credit Union Membership

Allies for Every Child actively seeks candidates who reflect the rich diversity of the communities that we serve. We are committed to a work environment that embraces and promotes individuality and inclusion. We believe that diversity and inclusion of varied perspectives, backgrounds, and life experiences are essential to our organization’s effectiveness, and allows us to serve our clients in the respectful, responsive, and understanding way that they deserve. We define diversity in broad terms to include race, ethnicity, age, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, geography, socio‑economic status and other unique attributes that make us who we are.

Allies for Every Child has achieved accreditation through the Council on Accreditation (COA). This means our programs, services, administration, and management have been rigorously evaluated and meet best practice standards. Visit www.COAnet.org to learn more about COA Accreditation.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

To support this, Allies is sharing a "Report a Concern" link with all relevant stakeholders. This helps ensure that the review team receives input that may be valuable during the Site Visit. All responses are confidential and sent directly to COA: https://coa.formassembly.com/232264

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