Job Description

Job Overview:

• Schedule: 35 hours per week between the hours of 8am – 6pm from Monday to Friday
• Type: Regular, full time
• Pay: $80,000-$95,000 annualized salary, exempt + benefits
• Location: Fully onsite in the Lower East Side

Job Summary:

Join our education division as the program director of our early childhood education program, which enrolls 70 students ages 2 to 4 and offers an onsite playground, gymnasium, and kitchen. Dual language teachers offer an inclusive learning environment, and the extended day and year gives parents a flexible childcare option. Strong candidates for this role will be excited and eager to take on a small but mighty program, provide holistic support to Lower East Side families, and coach dedicated team members to grow their education based careers.

Qualifications: 

• Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education and NYS Certification in Early Childhood Education required.
• Minimum of three (3) or more years of experience working in an early childhood program as a teacher and/or director/supervisor/manager.
• Experience working with the Department of Education (DOE) and Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) initiatives in a community-based setting and knowledge of DOE Birth to Five, 3K for all, and UPK instructional expectations, and program requirements.
• Ability to supervise, coach, inspire and collaborate with staff.
• Familiarity with Early Childhood Education licensure process and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) rules and regulations.
• Proficiency with diverse early childhood education curricula and frameworks including the Creative Curriculum and Reggio Emilia.
• Experience with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS), the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECER-S), and the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale-Revised Edition (ITER-S).
• Excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills, ability to multitask.
• Experience with managing a unionized workforce, including kitchen and custodial staff.
• Must meet standards for licensing requirements (fingerprinting, child abuse check, etc.).
• Bilingual (Spanish, Chinese) preferred.

Responsibilities: 

• Responsible for the strategic implementation of administrative procedures, programmatic oversight and organizational compliance with the Birth to Five DOE-funded early childhood education center located at 301 Henry Street.
• Direct all aspects of the program administration, operations, and compliance with standards and regulations for the Department of Early Childhood Education (DECE) and DOHMH.
• Supervise the teaching staff, Administrative Assistant, Family Assistant, and kitchen staff.
• Provide leadership to ensure the delivery of high quality early childhood educational services that are consistent with developmentally appropriate rigors determined by the DOE.
• Review educational plans/curricula in conjunction with teaching staff and ensure that they are properly trained on an annual basis.
• Liaise with an array of stakeholders including but not limited to the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS), Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), NYC Department of Education (DOE), Day Care Council of New York (DCCNY), the Parent Center, Abrons Art Center, Jump Start, and Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE).
• Prepare annual budget, monitor finances, oversee department purchasing.
• Establish educational staff schedules, including approval of time off requests and coordination of classroom substitute teachers to ensure appropriate classroom coverage.
•  Responsible for opening the center at the beginning of the day, welcoming families and closing in the evening a few times each week and overseeing a rotation schedule with the administrative team.
• Complete assigned program reports in a timely fashion, address facility related matters with that department, and verify that classroom layouts best support learning, development, and are contract compliant.
• Oversee marketing and structure and administer recruitment efforts to help maintain full program enrollment.
• Ensure that required classroom observations and lesson plan reviews occur.
• Provide new employees and staff with an orientation that includes: Review of job description, discussion/review of regulations applicable to the program, etc.
• Review evacuation and emergency procedures annually and ensure proper implementation of monthly fire drills and shelter in drills.
• Maintain timely and high quality written documentation of classroom activities/planning, including, individual goal setting, curriculum planning and attendance.
• Manage the safe, responsible, FERPA, and HIPAA compliant maintenance of all client records and data.
• Report and properly document any and all crisis situations and/or liabilities.

Essential Physical Job Functions: 

• Able to work onsite in the Lower East Side
• Fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (no booster requirement)

How to Apply

To apply, please submit a resume and cover letter using our online application.

Bureaus: New York. Job Categories: Full-Time. Job Types: Operations / Administration. Salaries: 80,000 - 100,000.