Job Description

About The Centers:

The Centers for Families and Children is a nonprofit human services organization committed to efficient and effective service for people in this community. We are dedicated to providing high-quality, culturally competent, and mission-driven care to the individuals and families we serve. Our team reflects a deep commitment to equity, belonging, and continuous growth.

Job Summary

The Teacher Assistant - Early Learning designs, develops, and implements developmentally appropriate programs and lesson plans for children in their care. Will utilize High Scope approaches to develop content and employ multiple teaching strategies to accommodate learning differences such as, those with Individual Education Plans (IEP) or Individual Family Service Plans (IFSP).

Job Qualifications

• CDA or Associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education or related field.
• CPR/First Aid, Communicable Disease, Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention within 90 days of hire (training provided by The Centers).
• Some entry-level experience in a classroom setting required; early childhood focus preferred.
• Occasional evening hours may be required.
• No record of child abuse or moral turpitude as determined by background check based on fingerprints.

Day to Day Responsibilities of the Role:

• Assumes responsibility for the assigned children in the Teacher’s classroom; meets the social, emotional, physical and cognitive developmental needs of children in routine areas of their care and throughout their planned daily schedule of activities.
• Completes individual assessments and screenings for children in their care; formulates plans to support children with special needs.
• Helps individual children recognize and use acceptable behavior; demonstrates empathy for misbehavior and responds professionally; sets reasonable limits for children; uses incidents of misbehavior to teach children positive behavior, social awareness, social interaction skills, verbal skills, etc.
• Will always supervise children while in care custody and control.
• Help maintain exciting well-equipped learning environments to foster exploration.
• Participate in a cooperative team of teachers
• Cultivate optimal growth and development through High Scope Curriculum activities in both the indoor and outdoor environment.
• Promote personalized planning with high levels of teacher-child interactions under the direction of a supervisor.
• As a teaching team, help design, develop, and implement developmentally appropriate activity plans for children based on assessment and screening data.
• Be a team member in engaging parents through caring, meaningful, and professional relationships to enhance child(ren)’s development.

Other Job Duties & Responsibilities

• Maintains cleanliness and sanitation of the assigned classroom area, other areas in the center, toys and equipment regularly throughout the day
• Responsible for laundry within the assigned classroom – washing, drying, and folding, as needed.
• Maintains playground area by cleaning and sanitizing high touch areas after each classroom outside play.
• Assist Center with child enrollment by communicating with community members and passing out flyers.
• Other duties as assigned.

Our Early Learning Centers and programs provides high-quality care for children during the critical first 2,000 days of life by operating seven high-quality early learning centers, serving children birth through five years old, in Cleveland and the inner-ring suburbs. Because of our high standards, all sites achieved a 5-Star rating on the Step-Up-To-Quality Rating and been recognized and selected to be part of Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) and PRE4CLE.

Wellbeing and Benefits

Providing quality benefits to our staff is important to us. Just as important is our staff’s well-being. That’s why we offer a number of choices to meet the different needs of our staff.

• Choice of medical and dental plans
• Health Savings Account
• Flexible Spending Account for Health and Dependent Care
• Vision
• Support for continuing education and credential renewal
• Life Insurance
• Retirement Savings (401k) with a company contribution
• Mental Health Support
• Employee Assistance Program
• Calm Subscription
• Short and Longterm Disability

Our Culture

At The Centers, our culture is the heartbeat of everything we do. We are guided by five core culture patterns that shape how we show up for each other, our clients, and our community:

Brave — We lead with compassion for self and others. We speak truth, embrace vulnerability, and believe that "clear is kind.

Belonging — Every person deserves to be seen and heard. We share power, value uniqueness, and celebrate what we have in common.

We Can & We Will — We are solution-oriented and creative. We take bold action together through shared accountability and open communication.

Gratitude & Growth — We embrace a growth mindset, welcome change, and approach our work from a place of abundance.

Purpose — We are curious, collaborative, and driven by a shared commitment to the mission we serve.

We look for team members who embody these values and bring authenticity, humility, and heart to their work every day.

The Centers is an Equal Opportunity Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.