Early Childhood Specialist

About the position

The primary function of the Early Childhood Specialist is to work as part of the Connecting NJ Hub to address all child welfare referrals and those needing infant mental health support. They attend New Jersey Department of Child Protection & Permanency Early Childhood/Plans of Safe Care case conference and other relevant community-based meetings; promote developmental health by engaging families in community spaces regarding early childhood social, emotional, and physical developmental screening; and manage the county Hub family access portals (ASQ developmental screening).

Responsibilities:

Work closely with Early Childhood Systems of Care programs to help link families to the most appropriate and available services.

Promote universal screening of caregivers and their children utilizing the Community Health Screen (CHS), and inclusive of the Child Profile.

Provide information and follow-up to referred women/families to facilitate service linkages.

Provide developmental guidance and promote developmental screening for families, and make referrals as needed.

Strengthen and align the local-level infrastructure to ensure coordination and collaboration in delivering effective community-based services for the infants, children, parents, and families identified through intake.

Support the New Jersey Department of Children & Families’ Early Childhood Initiative by providing infant and early childhood mental health consultation to the Division of Child Protection and Permanency’s local office. Provide linkages and referrals to services, with special emphasis given to families requiring a plan of safe care.

Complete required documentation. Submit monthly/quarterly progress reports addressing process and outcome indicators that will help determine strengths and areas needing improvement.

Participate in quality improvement and evaluation activities.

 Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree preferred in Psychology, Social Work, Mental Health Counseling, Early Childhood Education

• Experience in maternal-child health (MCH), infant/early childhood mental health, parent/family support, and/or related fields and settings.

• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to develop trusting relationships with families and partners.

• Ability to translate complex MCH and early childhood concepts into parent-friendly language.

• Awareness of cultural diversity and its impact on planning and provision of services.

• Excellence in written and oral communication.

• Strong organizational skills and ability to solve problems.

• Full understanding of the roles of core MCH and early childhood partners.

• Infant Mental Health Endorsed (IMH-E) or pursuing is a plus.

 On-site childcare, health benefits, paid vacation and holidays, and 401K plan available. Salary for this position is $45,000 - $55,000, commensurate with previous experience, references, and other factors.

Place of work