Program Manager Mental Health & Disabilities

VOALA

Helping Our Most Vulnerable Change Their Life Stories

Volunteers of America is a non-profit human services organization committed to serving people in need, strengthening families, and building communities. VOALA provides a variety of social services to Los Angeles area communities such as Head Start programs, Upward Bound college prep programs, veterans’ services, homeless shelters, low-income housing programs as well as drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Learn more at www.voala.org.

PAY RATE: $91,770 - $96,600 PER YEAR

BENEFITS: VOALA offers competitive medical, dental, vision and retirement benefits.

HEAD START/EARLY HEAD START

Through our Head Start and Early Head Start programs, we work with children (ages 0 – 5) and their families to provide the skills, confidence, and stable home life necessary for a smooth transition into kindergarten and beyond. Children also receive a broad array of health services including screenings and referrals, maintenance of immunization schedules, nutrition assessments and follow-ups, mental health assessments as part of initial screenings, and determination if any developmental or physical delays are present. Children receive health and dental services and have access to ongoing and acute and routine health and dental care. Enrolled children receive healthy meals, along with an assessment of their nutritional needs and the necessary follow-ups. Nutrition education is available for parents and incorporated into daily classroom activities for the children.

Cities served include: Carson, Commerce, Compton, Culver City, Del Rey, East Los Angeles, El Segundo, Harbor City, Hawthorne, South Central Los Angeles, Lomita, Lynwood, Mar Vista, Newhall, North Hollywood, Pacoima, Palms, Paramount, Rancho Palos Verdes, San Fernando, San Pedro, Santa Clarita, Shadow Hills, South Central Los Angeles, South LA, Studio City, Sun Valley, Sunland, Sylmar, Torrance, Tujunga, Val Verde, Valencia, Valley Village, Wilmington.

JOB SUMMARY AND PURPOSE

The Program Manager (PM) - Mental Health and Disabilities provides guidance and technical assistance to ensure that the Mental Health and Disabilities content areas are working in accordance with the agency’s goals to meet all Head Start Performance Standards and contractual agreements with State and local governing agencies. The Program Manager will ensure that the Mental Health and Disabilities teams deliver quality services by assessing children’s concerns, determining appropriate care and follow-up, and providing support to families. PM will also help parents understand, support, and advocate for their children with special needs/disabilities. The PM will support all staff working directly or indirectly with children who have a disability (or suspected disability). Other requirements include: interpretation, implementation, and monitoring of all aspects of the Performance Standards, State and Federal regulations, program policies, and procedures.

Specific duties include:

• Provide leadership, supervision, and guidance to a team of Coordinators and Program Assistants in the implementation of policies and procedures related to Disabilities and Mental Health compliance;
• Monitor and maintain that at least 10% of each program’s funded enrollment are children with a diagnosed disability;
• Manage support for children with disabilities who are in a positive, inclusive learning environment, to ensure that all reasonable accommodations and necessary classroom modifications are made to create a “least restrictive environment”;
• Coordinate a program-wide culture that promotes mental health, and social and emotional well-being for staff, children, and families;
• Ensure and monitor that all children receive adequate and timely developmental and social-emotional screenings including appropriate follow-up. Manage the use of evidence-based parenting curricula;
• Maintain community partnerships to facilitate access to additional mental health services. Develop interagency agreements with the local agencies responsible for implementing IDEA to improve service delivery to children eligible for services under IDEA, including participating in the Health and Mental Health Services Advisory Committee;
• Facilitate and coordinate a multidisciplinary team, that includes representatives from all relevant program services, to support the well-being of children and families involved in any significant incident;
• Stay current and provide oversight and ongoing monitoring with federal, state, and local laws and regulations including new initiatives, policy clarifications, Office of Head Start (OHS) frameworks, special education laws (IDEA, PL 94-142, PL 99-459), civil rights laws (Section 504 and Americans with Disabilities Act), Caring for our Children Safety regulations, Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD) Regulations, and HSES Performance Standards;
• Prepare and submit required reports promptly and accurately. Provide additional reports as assigned by the supervisor in a timely manner, as well as meeting assigned deadlines;
• Participate in continuous quality improvement through monitoring and data analysis for informed decision-making. Identify resources that are necessary to enhance program implementation. Travel to all program sites as needed to provide technical assistance;
• Engage in promoting staff development and continuous learning through training, in-service training, observation, and coaching. Coordinate with the team to develop training and technical assistance to staff regarding Mental Health and Disabilities services, Child Abuse reporting, and IDEA;
• Other duties as may be needed to fulfill program requirements.

Qualifications

REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be able to pass a fingerprint clearance, background check, including criminal history, personal references, employment and education verifications
• Proof at the time of hire
  • TB clearance within 6 months prior
  • Annual Influenza vaccination (between Aug 1 – Dec 1)
  • Pertussis (whooping cough) and measles immunization
• Health screening at the time of employment
• Requires ability to interact with children in a busy environment including, but not limited to:
  • Able to lift up to 50 lbs.
  • Frequently kneel and squat
  • Ability to move quickly

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited College or University in the field of Child Development, Human Services, Psychology, or related field.

EXPERIENCE:

• Three (3) years of relevant experience in Early Head Start/Head Start.
• One (1) year of relevant experience in early childhood Mental Health or Disabilities.
• General knowledge of IDEA and collaborating with Part B and Part C.
• Knowledge and understanding of federal, state, and Performance Standards regulations within Early Head Start/ Head Start programs.
• 1-2 years of staff supervision.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master’s degree in special education, social work, MFT or related field.
• Ability to read and analyze data from various sources.

Volunteers of America is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

This employer participates in E-Verify as required by the federal government and will provide the federal government with your Form 1-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.

If E-Verify cannot confirm that you are authorized to work, this employer is required to give you written instructions and an opportunity to contact Department of Homeland Security (OHS) or Social Security Administration (SSA) so you can begin to resolve the issue before the employer can take any action against you, including terminating your employment

Salary : $91,770 - $96,600