Children’s Home & Aid invites you to join our team of mission-driven staff who share a common vision: an equitable world where all children and families thrive in strong communities. As a leading child and family service agency with more than 20 locations across Illinois, our mission is to advance the well-being of children by investing in families to disrupt the systemic and multi-generational cycle of racial, social and economic inequality.

Our full-time staff receive competitive salaries and a generous benefits package including three scheduled weeks of paid time off per year (Spring, Summer, Winter), and additional flexible paid leave that accrues based on tenure. We hold ourselves and each other accountable for fostering an inclusive work culture where we can be our authentic selves, where we create and have equitable opportunities, and where our voices are supported and encouraged.

Children with special needs and their families need extra attention to ensure that they are identified early and their needs are met in a comprehensive and individualized way. As the Early Childhood Mental Health & Disabilities Specialist, you will provide that extra level of comprehensive, holistic, family-centered support. You will manage all aspects of our agency’s Chicago-based disabilities/mental health services and work closely with other Early Head Start staff to ensure that children receive comprehensive and integrated services.

What you’ll do:

• Develop collaborative, trusting partnerships with families; identify family goals, strengths, and opportunities for additional support.
• Maintain and regularly review disability folders on all identified families.
• Attend IFSP/IEP development meetings and coordinate Part C services for identified families.
• Collaborate with program staff to recruit families with children with special needs.
• Coordinate therapeutic services for identified children.
• Attend client staffing and grantee meetings.
• Recruit eligible families in the Englewood community.
• Support and train staff and family members to work effectively with children with special needs.
• Complete documentation, tracking, and reporting as required by funder.
• Establish working relationships with other early childhood education staff and leadership, parents, family partners, and community schools and agencies to ensure comprehensive care and service integration for children with special needs.

Who you are:

• Bachelor’s Degree required in Early Childhood Education, Special Education, Child Development, Psychology, or a closely related field.
• One year of experience working with children with special needs.
• Comfortable with attending community engagements and on-site meetings, and have a valid driver's license, insurance, and a reliable vehicle.
• Enjoy working autonomously but also value working with a team to reach shared goals.
• Natural collaborator, skilled at bringing partners and stakeholders together across departments and functions.
• An eye for detail and are known for being highly organized.
• Value data and rely on it to drive meaningful change and improved outcomes.

Candidates without the required education/credential may be considered with an approved educational plan.

The details:

• Location: Hybrid (on-site/community-based/remote): Work is completed site-based and other community-based locations in the Kane, Kendall, DeKalb, Grundy and Boone County communities, with the need to work from the 2-3 times per week for team meetings and other program needs with the opportunity to work remotely up to one day per week. Agency office for on-site work will be at the Jerri Hoffman Child and Family Center.
• Schedule: Full-time, hourly; general business hours with some flexibility required for special projects and evening/weekend recruitment events.
• Staff are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to submit proof of their vaccination status before their start date unless they have an agency approved medical or religious exemption

Compensation & Benefits:

• Salary: Range starts at $18.00/hr; offers are commensurate with experience.
• Noncash benefits: Medical/dental/vision insurance, paid time off plus 11 paid holidays, supplemental insurance options, 401(k) with match (more benefits details here)
• Winter Break: The agency is closed between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. This paid break allows staff to spend time with their families around the holidays without using their accrued time off balances.
• Student Loan Forgiveness: Children's Home & Aid is an approved agency for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).

Where you work matters.

You’re considering a new position, so no one knows better than you that where you work matters. We believe that by building diverse teams of passionate advocates for youth and families, we can continue to show up for Illinois families, putting those families at the center of every decision, and strengthening the communities where we all work, play, and live together. (More about who we are here.)

We invite you to become an active member of a team that supports, inspires, and challenges each other, and grow your career in an organization that celebrates emerging leaders and provides development and training opportunities aligned with your individual goals and aspirations. If you are looking for an opportunity to do meaningful work, including raising your voice to disrupt the status quo, we encourage you to apply today.

Review our agency’s blueprint for impact:

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)