DIRECTOR - Early Childhood Center

Description:

Westchester Jewish Center (WJC) is an egalitarian Conservative synagogue, located in Mamaroneck, NY. We are a welcoming spiritual, educational and cultural home base for our local community. We offer a variety of programming from early childhood through adulthood, including our Early Childhood Center (ECC) which is an important gateway into our synagogue community, welcoming members of WJC, as well as Jewish and non-Jewish families in the greater community. The ECC is a warm and nurturing environment that encourages and supports children’s cognitive, social, emotional and physical growth.

The ECC is a progressive early childhood school where children are active learners, exploring and experimenting in a developmentally-appropriate manner. The ECC takes inspiration from a range of childcentered approaches to early childhood education with an emphasis on play-based and experiential learning, embracing the curiosity and wonder of a young child

Responsibilities:

Our new ECC Director will have the opportunity to build upon and grow our early childhood programs with his/ her own vision. The ECC Director reports directly to the Executive Director and works collaboratively with clergy, colleagues and lay leaders. Primary responsibilities include:

Curriculum • Continually assess and enhance a developmentally-appropriate early childhood curriculum including the integration of Jewish holidays and traditions • Plan and coordinate non-classroom school events • Supervise specialists and extended day programming • Oversee the organization of the school environment including the acquisition of materials in keeping with the educational goals of the program

School Staff Support and Oversight • Recruit, train, and place staff • Conduct consistent staff observations, evaluations and individual supervision meetings as well as lead regular staff meetings • Provide in-service and out-service professional development opportunities for teachers and oneself

Communication • Develop and maintain strong relationships with ECC families, including implementing an effective communication system • Facilitate proactive communication between teachers and parents/caregivers

Child Advocacy • Regularly observe children in classroom setting to effectively communicate with parents regarding their children’s progress in school • Act as resource person for recommendations for evaluations of children and advocate for children with special needs for CPSE and CSE services, collaborating with relevant consultants

Administration • Promote and manage recruitment, enrollment and retention of ECC families, including giving tours of the school, effectively communicating the school’s strengths to prospective families • Prepare and manage the annual budget in collaboration with the Executive Director and Financial Vice-President • Develop the school calendar in collaboration with Programming Committee • Conform to health, safety and licensing regulations including scheduling all necessary inspections, assuring that all records are up to date, and preparing all material for licensing process

Community Relations • Collaborate within WJC — with committees, staff, lay leaders — to optimize programming and community building, and attend meetings as necessary • Participate in synagogue-wide events as appropriate • Act as spokesperson for the school, helping to enhance our visibility in the local community, participating in professional networks and conferences, and working with Marketing Committee to promote the ECC

Qualifications: