At the J. Arthur Trudeau Memorial Center our mission is to promote an enhanced quality of life for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. At Trudeau, we aim to foster a collaborative work environment which promotes a great company culture. Come see for yourself!

The J. Arhtur Trudeau Memorial Center is seeking an Early Childhood Educator who will monitor and assist the child and family in programmatic interventions including but not limited to gaining access to needed medical, social, educational and other developmental/therapeutic services. Functions as a member of a transdisciplinary team serving infants and toddlers. Performs service coordination, evaluation and assessment, IFSP development, and delivery of EI services requiring “qualified personnel”.

Essential Functions And Principal Duties And Responsibilities:

1. Protect the rights and dignities of individuals with developmental disabilities and extend these rights and dignities to family members or guardians.

2. Upholds and complies with all safety programs and policies to maintain a safe work environment for employees, consumers, family members and visitors.

3. Commits to organizational quality initiatives by participating in programs that will assure quality improvements and team processes.

4. Maintaining and assisting in procuring assessments and evaluations necessary for establishing need for services.

5. Participating in the treatment; planning process and monitoring progress in meeting the goals and objectives of the IFSP (Individual Family Service Plan).

6. Provide service coordination, essential functions and primary therapy through family training and counseling in a home-based, community or center-based setting to achieve goals in all necessary areas.

7. Locating, coordinating and monitoring necessary medical, educational and developmental supports.

8. Participate in arena-style multidisciplinary evaluations, taking responsibility for assessing cognitive development and play skills, (including adaptive and social emotional development as needed), and provide oral and written information to the child’s parents and other team members.

9. Provide individual or group formal teaching to parent and other members of the team in own area of expertise.

10. Obtain consultation from other members of the team in areas outside own expertise, such as social work, speech, motor development, in order to fully address the needs of individual children on caseload.

11. Provide family training and counseling in a home-based, community or childcare based setting to achieve goals in all necessary areas.

12. Maintain licensure and maintain professional knowledge through participation in professional organizations, conferences and in-services.

13. Document all activities in accordance with regulations and requirements necessary for billing, agency policies, or early intervention regulations.

14. Follows the Rhode Island Early Intervention Competencies.

15. Follow all agency guidelines and department specific policies, i.e. sick time or vacation time usage and call in policies, dress codes, etc. as specified in personnel manual and Early Intervention specific procedures.

16. Provide direct and /or indirect Early Intervention Services as qualified.

17. Mentors Service Coordinator I and Early Interventionists

18. Perform other duties as directed by the supervisor related to the organization’s mission, goals and operations.

Early Intervention Principles and Practices:

1. Infants and toddlers learn best though every day experiences and interactions with familiar people in familiar contexts

• Learning activities and opportunities must be functional, based on child and family interest and enjoyment.
• Learning is relationship based.
• Learning should provide opportunities to practice and build upon previously mastered skills.
• Learning occurs through participation in a variety of enjoyable activities.

2. All families, with the necessary supports and resources, can enhance their children’s learning and development children’s learning and development.

• All families’ means ALL (income levels, racial, and cultural backgrounds, educational levels, skill levels, living with varied levels of stress and resources.
• The consistent adults in a child’s life have the greatest influence on learning and development- not the EI providers.
• All families have strengths and capabilities that can be used to help their child.
• All families are resourceful, but al families do not have equal access.
• Supports (informal and formal) need to build on strengths and reduce stressors so families are able to engage with their children in mutually enjoyable interactions and activities.

3. The primary role of the service provider in early intervention is to work with and support family members and caregivers in a child’s life.

• EI providers engage with adults to enhance confidence and competence in their inherent role as the people who teach and foster the child’s development.
• Families are equal partners in the relationship with service providers.
• Mutual trust, respect, honesty, and open communication characterize he family-provider relationship.

4. The early intervention process, from initial contacts through transition, must be dynamic and individualized to reflect the child’s and family members’ preference, learning styles, and cultural beliefs.

• Families are active participants in all aspects of services.
• Families are the ultimate decision makers in the amount, type of assistance, and support revised accordingly.
• Child and family needs, interests, and skills change; the IFSP must be fluid, and revised accordingly.
• The adults in a child’s life each have their own preferred learning styles; interactions must be sensitive and responsive to individuals.
• Each family’s culture, spiritual beliefs and activities, values, and traditions will be different from the service provider’s (even if from a seemingly similar culture); service providers should seek to understand, not judge.
• Family “ways” are more important than provider comfort and beliefs (short of abuse/neglect).

5. IFSP outcomes must be functional and based on children’s and families’ needs and priorities

• Functional outcomes improve participation in meaningful activities.
• Functional outcomes build on natural motivations to learn and do; fit what’s important to families; strength naturally occurring routines; enhance natural learning opportunities.
• The family understands that strategies are worth working on because they lead to practical improvements in child and family life.
• Functional outcomes keep the team focused on what’s meaningful to the family in their day to day activities.

6. The family’s priorities needs and interests are addressed most appropriately by a primary provider who represents and receives team and community support.

• The team can include the family’s friends, relatives, and community support people, as well as specialized service providers.
• Good teaming practices are used.
• One consistent person needs to understand and keep abreast of the changing circumstances, needs, interests, strengths, and demands in a family’s life.
• The primary provider brings in other services and supports as needed, assuring outcomes, activities, and advice are compatible with family life and won’t overwhelm or confuse family members.

7. Interventions with young children and family members must be based on explicit principles, validated practices, best available research and relevant laws and regulations.

• Practices must be on and consistent with explicit principles.
• Providers should be able to provide a rationale for practice decisions.
• Research is ongoing and informs evolving practices.
• Practice decisions must be data-based and ongoing evaluation is essential
• Practices must fit with relevant laws and regulations.
• As research and practice evolve, laws and regulations must be amended accordingly.

8. Support for families in developing strategies to understand, interpret and nurture their child’s development is best achieved through the use of reflective practices.

• Early Intervention providers take the time to pause and explore their reactions and feelings regarding their work with children and families
• Reflection occurs at individual, family, team, supervisory, programmatic and interagency levels.
• Reflective supervision supports individual, family, team, supervisory, programmatic and interagency levels.
• Reflective practices promote a parallel process whereby early intervention providers reflect on their relationships and interactions with parents/caregivers who in turn reflect on their relationship and interactions with their child.

Internal Relationships/External Relationships

Internal: Function as a member of a transdisciplinary team serving infants and toddlers with special needs and their families. Consult to other members of the team in areas of own expertise. Provide formal teaching to parents and other members of the team in your area of expertise.

External: Consult to other members of the team in areas of own expertise. This includes promotion of overall development, adjustment of the home environment to promote functional skills, and promotion of cognitive development and play skills. It also includes methods for promoting the child’s participation in typical infant or toddler experiences in natural settings.

Working Conditions: Natural settings, center and home-based interventions which shall require local travel. General business office conditions working with computer, telephone, photocopy equipment and fax machines. Work environment is contained in a program location that necessitates frequent child and family contact.

Physical And Mental Requirements: Ability to successfully perform the essential function of this job with reasonable accommodations considered. Ability to deal with a wide range of individual and programmatic issues. Frequent sitting, standing and walking. Must be able to lift 30 pounds. Must have valid driver’s license, safe driving record, automobile insurance and own vehicle to be used as directed and when needed for transport. Must have and maintain pediatric CPR certification.

Education, Experience And Skills: Bachelor’s Degree and two to five years’ experience with infants and toddlers (birth to age three); valid R.I. certification as Early Childhood Special Educator or Early Childhood Educator; classroom leadership and curriculum development experience with infants and toddlers; advanced knowledge in one or more special areas, such as play assessment, or integration of physically disabled toddlers; second language, signing, and/or experience working with minority racial, ethnic, and immigrant populations. Preferred: Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education or Early Childhood Special Education. Advanced knowledge in one or more special treatment areas such as PDD/autism, second language and/or experience working with minority, racial, ethnic and immigrant populations.

The Early Childhood Educator position is Full-Time and offers Outstanding Benefits including:

• 13 Paid Holidays
• Vacation, Sick, and Personal Time
• Medical, Dental & Vision – eligible after 1 full month of employment
• Health Reimbursement Account (HRA)
• Employer Paid Life Insurance/ Voluntary Life Insurance
• Voluntary Long-term Disability Insurance
• Flexible Spending Account
• 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan
• Employee Discounts
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Paid Trainings

Working at the Trudeau Center will give you an opportunity to be a part of a non-profit agency that has been supporting children and adults who are differently abled for 60 years. If you read this posting and think, “Wow! I was meant to do this job,” apply to work at Trudeau today!