EHS Home Base Specialist

Job title 

Home Base Specialist 

Program

Head Start and Early Head Start Program 

Reports to 

Home Base Director 

General Description 

It is the responsibility of the Home Base Specialist to support families towards the fulfillment of their child’s cognitive, language, literacy, social/emotional and physical growth and development.  Promotes and maintains a high level of parent involvement and deliver family support services to promote greater self-sufficiency for at-risk children.  Position responsibilities include making weekly home visits to implement curriculum-specific activities, providing group socialization experiences to parents and children, advocacy, and crisis intervention, maintaining on-going contact with families, and working with all components to integrate services into the family setting.   

Essential Duties and Responsibilities 

• Establish and maintain professional relationships with families and children. 
• Conduct home visits with families to deliver health, educational, nutritional and child development/growth information to parents via weekly visits lasting at least 90 minutes. 
• Develop each child’s goals and comprehensive individualized plans designed to promote

learning. Ensure families are completing prenatal visits, well-child exams, immunizations, health screenings, and nutrition assessments for their children to meet program guidelines and following up on any concerns. 

• Complete developmental screenings and other required assessments with families per program deadlines. 
• Observe, document, and analyze child assessment data. At prescribed checkpoints complete report to share with parents. 
• Support families to meet their identified goals.
• Assist families in locating resources and scheduling appointments with the appropriate community resources. Provide families with timely information and referrals as needed.
• Provide support for parents in deriving child activities that encourage developmentally appropriate activities for the changing interests/needs of the child, designed to enhance         cognitive social/emotional, language, literacy, and physical abilities. encourage parental involvement in all classroom activities and events and in program trainings. 
• Provide classroom socializations twice a month for approximately 2.5 hours. Develop and use lesson plans which reflect the goals, interests, and cultures of the families involved. 
• Work in collaboration with lead education agencies and parents to refer children with suspected disabilities and in coordinating and implementing services for children with identified disabilities. 
• Conduct and encourage on-going parent education activities, including parent meetings, parent participation in Policy Council, and other special gatherings.
• Provide parents with guidance on home safety, nutrition, positive discipline, constructive play activities and other related topics. 
• Maintain confidential, accurate written and electronic records/database for each child. Submit accurate, timely documentation as required.
• Coordinate parent volunteer schedule assuring adequate parent involvement.
• Always monitor and supervise children to ensure safety and appropriateness of activities. This may include home environments, classrooms, playgrounds, and field trip destinations. 
• Attend and participate in staff and team meetings as required; serve on committees as required.
• Participate in agency activities, including but not limited to annual Self-Assessment State and Federal program reviews, and Program Information Report data collection. 
• Adhere to credentialing requirements by attending regular and special training events, degree/certificate programs or completing comparable studies by arrangement with the

program administration and in accordance with a professional development plan. Stay abreast of trends in field. 

• Participate as part of the team through sharing work ideas, communicating, problem solving and providing mutual support. 
• Model appropriate behavior for children, parents, and other staff. Teach positive child guidance techniques, nurturing skills, and appropriate limits, as well as effective responses to children’s challenging behavior issues. 
• Advocate for the GCD programs in interactions and recruitment efforts with families and community partners. 
• Monitor and report child abuse/neglect as a mandated reporter. Participate in recruiting efforts to ensure full enrollment and maintain participant. waiting lists.  

Essential Qualifications 

• Minimum of a Associate’s or equivalent with related experience or training in early childhood education and child development is required. Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, social services or related field of study is preferred. 
• Must have or be able to attend or enroll in EDU 119 classes with the agreement to obtain a AA in early childhood education and child development
• 1-2 years’ experience working in a social services field, preferably with young children, adults and low-income families. 
• Strongly prefer an individual who is bilingual English/Spanish.
• Must be able to work with other adults as part of a team. 
• Requires knowledge of local community service agencies and resources; prior experience with Early Head Start a plus.
• Must have effective communication skills, written & verbal; ability to prioritize work independently; ability to keep records using a computer; and ability to organize multiple tasks.
• Personal means of transportation is needed for work travel; candidates must have a valid Driver’s License and personal vehicle liability insurance.

Physical, Mental and/or Visual Demands

• Must be able to sit and stand for extended periods of time throughout the day.
• Must be able to lift up to 35 lbs.
• Must be able to bend and stoop.
• Must be able to walk extended periods throughout the day monitoring.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to weather conditions prevalent at the time.   
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. 
• Specific vision abilities required by the job include close, distance, color, peripheral depth and the ability to adjust focus.   

GenerationEd is committed to provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals, including those with disabilities in accordance with ADA.

Acknowledgement

This job description describes the general nature and level of work performed by the individual assigned to this position and should not be interpreted as all inclusive. It does not state or imply that these are the only duties and responsibilities assigned to the position. The employee may be required to perform other job-related duties. All requirements are subject to change and to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with a disability.