CASTL Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant (wage, part-time – Virginia)

Description

The Center for the Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia seeks applicants for a part-time Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant to join our highly collaborative, diverse team. This position will work on the Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (ECMHC) pilot in its third year (2023-2024). This work involves the refinement of an expanded birth-to-five mental health consultation model, in partnership with the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) and Child Development Resources (CDR). Our ECMHC model aims to support Virginia teachers to promote young children’s social-emotional skills and prevent expulsion of children from early care and education settings. This position is part-time wage employment for up to (on average) 30 hours a week (0.75 FTE).

The individual in this part-time consultant role will provide ongoing consultation services to teachers serving 3-5-year-olds, as well as to families and program leaders. The consultant will receive training and support to ensure successful, high-fidelity implementation of the model. We will emphasize follow-through on protocols and up-to-date documentation of the consultation to promote quality of services, intended outcomes for teachers and children, and support the successful evaluation of the pilot.

This position will include in-person and virtual work. In your cover letter, include your current location in Virginia or your willingness to relocate to Virginia.

Ready Region Central, Ready Region Blue Ridge, and/or another Virginia Ready Region in which the candidate lives. Driving is required to provide in-person services to programs within approximately 1-1.5 hours’ drive; mileage will be reimbursed at the federal rate. Candidates should be located in Virginia and have reliable transportation to drive to varying site locations. Virtual and hybrid work formats will also be used to provide services to these and other areas of Virginia. Our virtual and hybrid model includes video-based consultation with teachers using an online system called TORSH. ECMHC training, supervision, and other team meetings will typically be conducted in virtual formats.

The proportion of in-person to virtual/hybrid work will depend on the location and timing of referrals received as well as the needs of teachers/programs.

Job Duties

Communication and Dissemination 

• Develop and maintain positive working relationships with early childhood teachers, leaders, families, and teams at UVA-CASTL, VDOE, CDR and other Coaching Partners.
• Conduct outreach and recruitment of diverse classrooms, programs, and leaders.
• Collaborate closely with diverse teams in a deadline-driven environment.

Preferred Skills:

Significant preference will be given to those candidates who meet some or all preferred qualifications. Candidates are strongly encouraged to submit a cover letter detailing how their experience and qualifications align with the following:

• Experience providing early childhood mental health consultation (or more broadly, consultation, coaching, or technical assistance.)
• Licensure in a mental health field and/or a Master’s degree in psychology, counseling, social work, education or a related field.
• Experience with virtually consulting, coaching, or creating and facilitating online coursework, especially coaching or supervising teachers using video review and feedback.
• Experience supporting children’s social-emotional and self-regulation skills such as through use of frameworks or curricula like the Pyramid Model or Streamin3.
• Experience observing classrooms and/or children with standardized tools.
• Experience with Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) or Early Intervention.
• Experience working with families (e.g., home visiting, counseling, consultation).
• Experience serving birth-to-five teachers in various settings, including child care centers and Family Day homes, Head Start, VPI, and ECSE.
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Proficiency in use of technology:

• Microsoft Office applications (Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Excel)
• Videoconferencing, teaching, or webinar tools (e.g., Zoom, Canvas)
• Virtual platforms or storage (e.g., Google Docs, Box, OneDrive)
• Virtual video-based coaching platforms (e.g., TORSH)
• Project management tools (e.g., Smartsheet)

Skills Required

Role and Responsibilities

Implementation and Coordination

• Develop a deep understanding of our ECMHC consultation model, which includes in-person, hybrid, and virtual formats to support early childhood teachers’ use of equitable social-emotional practices and collaboration between teachers, leaders, and families.
• Provide high-fidelity one-on-one ECMHC consultation based on established protocols for teachers, as well as leaders and families.
• Gather and analyze data from child and classroom assessment tools (such as inCLASS, TPOT-S, VKRP: CBRS) and use data to set goals and assess progress with teachers.
• Use structures and systems to ensure consultation uptake, dosage, and fidelity (e.g., CASTL Coaching Fidelity tool, consultation logs and checklists).
• Participate in regular group and individual supervision meetings that involve reflecting on your own and others’ session recordings, action plans, and written feedback.

• Conduct multiple simultaneous tasks, demonstrating excellent attention to details, problem-solving skills, and accountability for work quality, timeliness, and outcomes.
• Assist with one or more of the following as needed/assigned:
  • Training and supporting other consultants and coaches.
  • Developing materials and trainings for consultants and coaches.
  • Administration of the ECMHC program, including recruitment and continuous improvement. Continuous improvement for ECMHC involves identifying challenges (related to service uptake, effectiveness, and/or efficiency), planning improvements, and monitoring implementation and outcomes.

Physical Demands

This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require traveling some distance to provide services to ECE programs.

Compensation Information

Pay is $28-36/hour.

This is a wage position which is not eligible for leave or other benefits and is limited to 1500 hours of work in a year. For more information, refer to the Wage Employment link: http://uvapolicy.virginia.edu/policy/HRM-029

Application Instructions

Please apply through Workday, and search for “CASTL Part Time Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant (Part Time- Wage- Virginia)”.  Complete an application online with the following documents:

• CV or Resume
• Cover letter that includes your current location in/around Charlottesville or your willingness to relocate to Central Virginia.

Upload all materials into the resume submission field. Multiple documents can be submitted into this one field. Alternatively, merge all documents into one PDF for submission. Applications that do not contain all required documents will not receive full consideration. Internal applicants must apply through their UVA Workday profile by searching ‘Find Jobs.’

Applicants invited to interview will be asked to describe how they address diversity, equity, and inclusion in their work.

The position will remain open until filled. CASTL Part Time Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant (Part Time- Wage- Virginia) is a non-exempt level position. This position will not sponsor applicants for work visas. This restricted position is a 12-month appointment, and continuation is dependent upon project need, availability of funding, and performance. The University will perform background checks on all new hires prior to employment.

For additional information about the position, please contact Ann Lhospital at aes3n@virginia.edu.

For questions about the application process, please contact Jen Krahn, Sr. HR Specialist, at jak8w@virginia.edu.

Click here for more information about UVA.

In alignment with President Ryan’s UVA strategic plan, CASTL is committed to:

• Recruiting talented and diverse doctoral students, post-doctoral fellows, faculty, and staff;
• Recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce and providing an inclusive and supportive environment in which staff and faculty are recognized as integral to the success of our work; and
• Promoting a culture of integrity, mutual respect, excellence, collaboration, and innovation.

In addition to the above job responsibilities, other duties may be assigned.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Education: Bachelor’s degree required. Additional experience will be required in lieu of a degree.
Experience: Two years of experience required with a Bachelor’s degree. Six years of experience required with a High School degree or equivalent.
Licensure: None.

Additional Info

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require traveling some distance to attend meetings, and programs.

COVID Vaccination Requirement and Guidelines

Please visit the UVA COVID-19 Job Requirements and Guidelines webpage prior to applying for current information regarding vaccination requirements and guidelines for employment at UVA.

The University of Virginia, including the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff.  We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person’s perspectives and lived experiences.  We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.