Infant Lead Teacher

Merritt Academy; Fairfax (VA); Hybrid; USD 38,000 - 54,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Tuition reimbursement

Competitive pay

Health, dental and vision insurance

Vacation and sick leave

Retirement plan with employer matching

Discounted tuition rate for child(ren)

Job summary

Merritt Academy is seeking a warm, nurturing Lead Infant Teacher who loves working with babies and understands the importance of the first year of learning and development. You will create a safe, engaging classroom focused on play, language, movement, and responsive caregiving.

As the lead, you’ll guide a teaching team, maintain routines for feeding, diapering, and sleep, and partner with families to share meaningful moments from each day. Patience, positivity, and dependability are essential.

Qualifications

• High School diploma required with an AA in Early Childhood Education, or related field, CDA (or at least 12 college credits in Education)
• Bachelor's degree preferred
• Experience in education; early childhood experience required
• Ability to lift up to 45 pounds and work indoors or outdoors
• Must read, write, and communicate effectively in English
• Must pass pre-employment screenings

Responsibilities

• Lead and collaborate with teaching team to provide exceptional infant care
• Maintain consistent routines for feeding, diapering, and safe sleep
• Observe development and support individual progress
• Build partnerships with families and keep parents informed
• Ensure safety and classroom organization

Skills

Patience

Strong communication

Team collaboration

English literacy

Education

AA in Early Childhood Education

CDA or 12 college credits in Education

Bachelor's degree preferred

Tools

CPR/First Aid certification

Job description

Description

Merritt Academy is seeking a warm, nurturing, and enthusiastic Lead Infant Teacher who loves working with babies and understands just how important their first year of learning and development can be. You’ll create a safe, loving, and engaging classroom where infants can explore, build trusting relationships, and develop through play, sensory experiences, language, movement, and responsive caregiving.

As our Lead Infant Teacher, you’ll lead and collaborate with your classroom teaching team to provide exceptional care while maintaining consistent routines for feeding, diapering, safe sleep, supervision, and classroom organization. You’ll observe and support each infant’s individual development, build meaningful partnerships with families, and keep parents connected to the special moments happening throughout their child’s day. We’re looking for someone who brings patience, positivity, dependability, and a genuine love for babies to the classroom each day.

Requirements

In order to be considered for this position, you must meet the following requirements, including:

• High School diploma required with an AA in Early Childhood Education, or related field, Child Development Associate (CDA) (or at least 12 college credits in Education)
• Bachelors degree preferred
• Experience working in education, early childhood experience is required
• A love for children and a strong desire to make a difference every day.
• Must be physically able to lift and carry a minimum of 45 pounds, engage in physical activity with children, and work indoors or outdoors.
• Must be able to constantly move and interact with the children to provide stimulation and develop relationships.
• Must be able to alternate often between sitting and standing.
• Must be able to maintain sight and sound of the children at all times.
• CPR and First Aid certified or willingness to obtain.Must be able to read, write, and communicate effectively in English.
• Pass pre-employment screenings and trainings as required.

We also seek candidates who exhibit professionalism, pride in work, initiative, a strong work ethic and who support parents as partners in education.

We support our teacher’s passion for learning by providing a tuition reimbursement program as well as many professional development training opportunities. Additional benefits include:

• Competitive pay
• Health, dental and vision insurance options for eligible employees
• Vacation and sick leave
• Retirement plan with employer matching
• Discounted tuition rate for child(ren) attending any J127 Education Foundation school

Please visit our career page at www.merrittacademy.org/careers to see our full list of benefits.