Associate Teacher (Early Childhood Education)

Educare of Omaha, Inc. is a collaborative partnership between the Early Head Start/Head Start, Omaha Public Schools and the Buffett Early Childhood Fund. Comprised of the two Educare Omaha Schools (Kellom and Indian Hill) and the three Early Learning Centers (Skinner, Gateway and Kennedy), the mission of Educare of Omaha, Inc. is to promote school readiness by enhancing the social and cognitive development of children ages 0 to 5 through the provision of evidence-based education, health, nutritional, social, family engagement and other services to enrolled children and their families.  

The Associate Teacher works cooperatively with the Lead Teacher to plan and implement the daily education program for the children. Under the supervision of the School Director/MTS and Lead Teacher, the Associate Teacher will ensure the education program is developmentally appropriate meeting the individual needs of children as well as program standards of Educare of Omaha, Inc., Head Start/Early Head Start, Sixpence, and the Nebraska state licensing guidelines.  In the absence of the Lead Teacher, the Associate Teacher takes responsibility for the management of the classroom.

Schedule: This position is full-time, 40 hours per week, Monday-Friday. There is a variation of schedules available with the hours falling between 7:00am-5:30pm.

Classification: Non-Exempt/Hourly 

Reports to: Lead Teacher, Master Teacher 

Supervises: The Associate Teacher is a non-supervisory position.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Child Development 

• Observe, assess, and document each assigned child’s health, skills, behavior, growth and development.
• Provide opportunities for children to develop positive self-images and experience success.
• As assigned, develop an individualized educational plan for each child.
• Contribute information for child and family staffing.
• As assigned, coordinate referrals for children with special needs or mental health needs with the Lead Teacher/Mentor Teacher.
• Foster positive relationships with all children in the classroom.

 Classroom Management  

• Maintain an attractive and stimulating learning environment and encourage child’s independence and self-selection of activities.
• Ensure that all children are under appropriate supervision and guidance at all times.
• Maintain a clean, safe and healthy classroom environment.
• Assist with the timely completion of necessary paperwork, including developmental assessments, lesson plans, newsletters, incident reports, etc.
• Participate in reflective supervision.

 Curriculum   

• Assist in the planning and implementation of developmentally appropriate classroom activities that will enhance the social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development of each child.
• Assist in the development of lesson plans with goals, objectives, activities, and outcomes for children and participate in implementing them intentionally.
• Assist in the integration of other areas, i.e., health, nutrition, mental health, disabilities, and parent involvement, into the education plan.
• Assist in, or take responsibility for as assigned, the creation of documentation panels on a regular basis to make the learning that the children are experiencing visible to parents and visitors.

 Parent Involvement  

• Develop effective relationships with parents through regular informal conversations.
• As assigned by the Teacher, communicate with parents regularly about their child’s progress.
• As assigned, participate in home visits with each child’s family to clarify child and family needs.
• Encourage parent participation in program activities and in implementing education activities for their children at home.
• Develop effective partnerships with parents by encouraging input into all aspects of the educational program.

EDUCATION/QUALIFICATIONS

• Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development; or
• Bachelor’s Degree in a related area with a minimum of 30 credits of college level coursework to include 18 credits of Early Childhood coursework and an additional 12 credits earned from a related area.
  • Related areas can include, but are not limited to, child development, early childhood curriculum, early childhood assessment, psychology, family development, social work and children’s literature. It is up to each prospective employee to provide Educare with information on the college courses taken and to demonstrate that the courses address early childhood education or child development.
• A minimum of six months’ experience teaching in an early childhood program.
• Must be able to pass a background check that meets compliance standards.