Location and Job Title:

Early Childhood Director
Levite JCC
3960 Montclair Rd
Birmingham, AL 35213

Principal Responsibilities:

Position summary

The Early Childhood Director is a full-time position that demonstrates leadership abilities by creating and maintaining a positive learning environment for staff, children, and families of the Cohn Early Childhood Learning Center. The Early Childhood Director will ensure that the school operates in accordance with ECED and LJCC policies, procedures and state licensing standards to provide a safe, nurturing, educational environment for children, staff and parents. S/he will be an active and engaged partner in planning and assuring that the strategic and enrollment goals of the school are achieved. The successful candidate will exceed expectations for delivering exceptional customer service to families enrolled at the school and create a sense of community among parents, teachers and staff.

Minimum Qualifications:

Essential functions

• Assists the Senior Director of Early Childhood and Youth Programs in development and implementation of a vision for excellence in early childhood education
• Supervise and perform administrative operations of the preschool, including registration, school calendar, scheduling of staff and programs, attendance and evaluation of children
• Secure and maintain National Accreditation
• Maintain all standards and requirements in accordance with state and local licensing
• Facilitation of classroom oversight and management
• Oversight of program growth
• Enhancing and maintaining strong relationships with teachers and families
• Recruitment, supervision, and evaluation of teachers
• Manage student enrollment and recruitment
• Facilitation of proactive communication with parents
• Coordinate and attend meetings with the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) to foster collaboration, communicate school initiatives, and support community engagement efforts
• Develop community partnerships with schools and agencies
• Develop and implement fundraising strategies to secure financial support, build donor relationships, and achieve organizational revenue goals
• Assists the Senior Director of Early Childhood and Youth Program in development and oversight of budget
• Maintain all state and local licensing standards

Additional duties

• Managing the day-to-day operations of the center
• Planning student recruitment events, working collaboratively with colleagues, other agencies and outside partners to market programs and increase community, family engagement, and enrollment.
• Conducting yearly evaluations of all personnel, including formal classroom observations, and oversight of all teachers.
• The Early Childhood Director must be CPR and First Aid certified or have the ability to obtain and maintain CPR and First Aid certification within three months of employment.
• Developing and maintaining strong relationships with preschool families, including a strong communication system.
• Assists the Senior Director of Early Childhood and Youth Program in providing oversight of professional development for teachers.
• Provide for the health and safety of all children in the school.
• Comfortable speaking in a group setting, such as a tour.
• Provide nurturing, responsive, quality care, addressing each children's needs.
• Create a positive, warm, individualized, nurturing, environment for children; encourage inquiry and open-ended thought.
• Consistently treat children with dignity, respect, and compassion.
• Create a safe, healthful and secure environment for all children and faculty members.
• Maintain confidentiality.
• Promote the equitable, fair and consistent treatment of all staff members, parents, and children.
• Promote, administer and improve the organization's goals, philosophies, policies, and mission statements.
• Participate in all training programs, conferences, seminars, courses and other aspects of professional growth and continuing education provided by the ECED/LJCC and other outside resources to meet licensing requirements.
• Meet regularly with Parent Teacher Association

Requirements

• Degree in Early Childhood Education or related field, Master's degree preferred.
• Minimum 5 years' experience working with young children and 3 or more years in a director role.
• Understanding of child development and best practices in Early Childhood Education
• Strong organizational skills, personal communication skills, and computer skills.
• Demonstrate creativity in developing new programming.
• Ability to juggle and prioritize multiple projects and initiatives
• Strong leadership presence
• Familiarity with or willingness to become familiar with Jewish cultures and customs

Job conditions

The work environment is usually fast paced. This job requires high energy and positive interactions with staff as well as with members, other agency staff, community leaders, and outside partners, vendors, others. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use a computer, talk and hear, reach with hands and arms, and stoop, kneel and crouch. During the summer, this position requires spending time outside and at the pool, and the ability to run to opposite ends of the LJCC campus to address crisis situations. The employee must have the physical strength and ability to lift, carry and/or move children or other objects up to 50 pounds.

Salary:

$65,000 - $75,000

Agency Information:

About the Levite Jewish Community Center

Through the lens of Jewish identity and values, the family-oriented LJCC impacts thousands of Birmingham residents daily as we welcome people of all faiths, ages, genders, sexual identities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We take pride in being an active partner of both the Birmingham Jewish and broader Birmingham communities, and we strive to enhance our community every day.

Our campus includes a large fitness center, a five-mile hiking and biking trail, large indoor and outdoor pools and a baby pool, and the highly regarded Cohn Early Childhood Learning Center. We also offer dozens of group fitness classes, personal training, summer and year-round camps, and a wide range of other activities and programs.

Benefits: Medical and gap insurance, dental and vision and RX, flexible spending account, supplemental insurance offered, 401k match after first year, life insurance offered, PTO and vacation benefits