Performance Analyst III - Early Childhood Compliance & Quality Specialist

City of Alexandria; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Alexandria seeks an Early Childhood Compliance and Quality Supervisor to oversee compliance across Head Start and related programs. The role requires strong regulatory knowledge, coaching skills, and data-driven performance management.

You will lead evaluations, guide licensing processes, and coordinate professional development for staff. Work involves regular site visits, collaboration with health and education partners, and ensuring alignment with federal, state, and local standards.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in early childhood or social work; four years of relevant compliance experience.
• Strong knowledge of Head Start Performance Standards and licensing codes.
• Experience using data tools and writing reports for stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Oversee compliance across local home-based childcare, Head Start, Campagna Kids and related programs.
• Conduct scheduled and unannounced monitoring visits to assess health and safety standards.
• Coordinate with supervisors to review learning environments and classroom interactions using approved tools.
• Provide reflective supervision and coaching to staff on curriculum and developmentally appropriate practices.
• Guide families through licensing processes and support ongoing compliance.
• Develop and deliver professional development trainings on related topics.
• Collaborate with disability and mental health coordinators to support inclusive services.
• Review data and prepare CLASS Observer reports; track monitoring outcomes and training completion.
• Prepare programs for external licensing reviews and drive corrective action plans.
• Deliver targeted training sessions and technical assistance to educators.

Skills

Administration

Regulatory knowledge

Programmatic compliance

Data collection

Data visualization

Report writing

Tableau

MS Excel

Education

Advanced degree in early childhood or social work

Tools

Tableau

MS Office

Job description

Early Childhood Compliance and Quality Supervisor

The City of Alexandria is located in northern Virginia and is bordered by the District of Columbia (Potomac River), Arlington and Fairfax counties. With a population of approximately 150,000 and a land area of 15.75 square miles, Alexandria is the seventh largest city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Alexandria has a charming waterfront and is a unique and historic place to live and work. If you are interested in working for the vibrant City of Alexandria, we invite qualified candidates to apply for our Early Childhood Compliance and Quality Supervisorposition.

An Overview

The Early Childhood Compliance & Quality Specialist role has oversight responsibilities for the compliance related areas of local home-based childcare homes, the Alexandria Head Start program, Campagna Kids and CLASS Observer reporting. The position ensures that these meet all federal, state, and program-specific standards, support ongoing professional development, and drive the delivery of high-quality educational and family services. The position ensures alignment with federal performance standards, state licensing regulations, and municipal health, fire, and safety codes, utilizing a supportive coaching framework to build capacity while maintaining uncompromising accountability.

What You Should Bring

A professional responsible for ensuring compliance and regulatory oversight across diverse childcare and early childhood education settings must possess a blend of advanced administration skills, deep legal/regulatory knowledge, and programmatic expertise. The primary qualifications required for this role typically include an advanced educational background in early childhood or social work, two years of programmatic compliance experience, and comprehensive knowledge of Head Start Performance Standards and state licensing codes.

Advanced understanding and knowledge of program evaluation, business process analysis, performance measurement and management approaches, data collection, scientific surveys, data visualization, writing and presenting reports, and relevant related software including dashboard software (e.g. Tableau), and Microsoft Office (MS Excel, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, and MS Visio).

The Opportunity:

• Regulatory Oversight: Monitor and ensure 100% compliance across local home-based childcare settings, Alexandria Head Start, and Campagna Kids programs in alignment with federal, state, and local mandates.
• Conduct Routine Monitoring: Perform both scheduled and unannounced visits with staff to Family Based Childcare Homes and Head Start and Campagna Kids sites to monitor compliance with health, safety, and operational standards.
• Quality Assessment Review: Coordinate with the Early Childhood Wellness Supervisor and Program Analyst to receive reports of learning environments and teacher-child interactions using state approved standardized tools to identify areas for improvement and professional development.
• Provide Reflective Supervision & Coaching: Mentor Head Start staff and Family Day Home providers by offering actionable feedback on curriculum implementation and developmentally appropriate practices.
• Support Licensing & Accreditation: Guide Family Day Home providers through the state licensing process and assist them in maintaining ongoing compliance with department regulations.
• Coordinate Professional Development: Facilitate or arrange training workshops on topics such as child development, positive behavior guidance, and health/nutrition.
• Ensure Inclusive Services: Collaborate with disabilities and mental health coordinators to make sure providers are properly implementing individual educational/behavioral plans for children with special needs.
• Manage Data & Documentation: Review program data and compile comprehensive CLASS Observer reports to identify program strengths and areas requiring quality improvement. Track and document monitoring outcomes, training completion rates, and child progress in the division’s data management systems.
• Audit Readiness: Prepare programs for external federal, state, and local licensing reviews through regular internal audits, mock inspections, and risk assessments. Enforce Corrective Action: Develop, implement, and track corrective action plans for any identified non-compliance findings, ensuring swift resolution of health or safety concerns.
• Technical Assistance and Training: Ensure staff provide direct, constructive feedback and coaching to childcare providers to help them meet and exceed regulatory standards. Design and deliver targeted training sessions and workshops for educators focusing on compliance protocols and high-quality educational practices.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Serve as the primary liaison between program site leads, compliance bodies, and community partners to maintain unified program standards. Collaborate with program leadership to ensure family services and engagement initiatives meet all program-specific benchmarks.
• Policy Maintenance: Review and update internal operational policies, handbooks, and compliance checklists to reflect changing local, state and federal regulations.

About the Department

The Center for Children and Families (CCF) provides programs and services for Behavioral Health, Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault, Child Welfare & Child Protective Services, Early Childhood and Youth Development. CCF provides compassionate, collaborative and effective person and family-centered services based on best practices. Our teams support self-determination, safety, recovery and resiliency for Alexandria children and all residents affected by abuse, neglect, mental illness, intellectual disabilities and substance abuse disorders.

Bachelor's degree in public policy, statistics, data science, public administration or related field of study and four years relevant experience; or any equivalent combination of experience and training which provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Master’s Degree in Social Work, Early Childhood Education or Education Policy/Administration. Strong working knowledge of state licensing regulations and the HeadStart.gov Program Performance Standards. At least five (5) years of experience specifically managing compliance, quality assurance, or auditing for multi-site early childhood programs. Possession of a valid drivers license and good driving record. Current state licensure as a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) or Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) is highly desirable but not mandatory.

This position requires the successful completion of pre-employment background checks including but not limited to: Criminal Records Check; VA State Child Abuse/Neglect Registry; Medicare/Medicaid Fraud Database; education/certifications; and driver’s license.

Schedule:

Monday through Friday, 9:00AM to 6:00PM.