Substitute Teacher Pool - Deschutes County

Description:

About the Job:

MountainStar is actively building a pool of dedicated substitute teachers to support our classrooms across Deschutes County. We are seeking qualified individuals with open availability Monday through Thursday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM for on-call placements at our Redmond, Bend, and La Pine locations. Substitute Teachers play a vital role in maintaining a therapeutic and supportive classroom environment while implementing child directed and developmentally appropriate activities.

Why you want to join us:

You believe that every child deserves the best start possible. You believe that parenting is hard even in the best circumstances. You care about children who have experienced trauma and want to work to support vulnerable families to succeed. You enjoy working with children in a trauma informed workplace and a therapeutic classroom environment. You are motivated to engage with families and offer resources so that families are supported in nurturing their child’s emotional, physical, and intellectual development.

About MountainStar Family Relief Nursery:

MountainStar Family Relief Nursery is a local non-profit that has been in Central Oregon for 20 plus years. We are a strength-based child abuse and neglect prevention program to support families with children ages 6 weeks through 5 years. We provide high quality trauma-informed care and services for children and families experiencing high stress. Services include a therapeutic classroom emphasizing social-emotional development, home visits, parenting classes and other full wrap around services.

Our values are:

1. Caring – welcoming, trauma-informed, non-judgmental, family-focused, compassionate, honest, and fun.

2. Collaborative –engaged with clients, supporters, program partners, and communities.

3. Excellence – committed to quality programs, current research, continuous learning, and robust evaluation.

4. Inclusive – seek out and value diverse perspectives, understand and address systemic barriers equitably.

What’s in it for you:

MountainStar offers a professional, agile workplace with its primary goal being a workplace of choice. MountainStar offers excellent leadership that works hard to align strategies with the company's mission statement, core values, empower employees’ autonomy, provide trauma informed workplaces, a culture of transparency, wellness days, learning and development opportunities. MountainStar was ranked the 100 best nonprofits to work for in 2022 and 2023, based on the survey responses of MountainStar’s employees and their work experience.

About the environment:

• Wellness Days & Team Appreciation Days
• Professional growth opportunities
• Continuing Education
• Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives
• Engaging, purposeful, values-based work
• Meaningful connections
• Work/life balance
• Focus on well-being & health
• Positive, supportive work culture

About the Role:

• Maintains a safe, therapeutic, attractive, comfortable, and well-designed classroom environment.
• Implements therapeutic, child directed, healthy, and safe activities that are developmentally and age appropriate.
• Implement a (dual if possible) language classroom by supporting a language rich environment.
• Maintains record keeping as assigned.
• Contributes to team effort by communicating positively with staff, volunteers, parents, and children who participate in the program.
• Assists with custodial duties of the classroom.
• Assists with classroom and playground supervision while incorporating positive guidance techniques.
• Fosters an understanding of the Relief Nursery, its mission, goals, objectives, and program services.
• Gathering child and parent mental health and development screenings as needed.
• Serve USDA meals following family style meal service guidelines.
• Riding or driving bus/van to assist in transportation of children/families to and from program events or the therapeutic classroom.
• Performs other work related or assigned duties.

Requirements:

What You’re Skilled At:

• Experience in social service setting, knowledge of community resources

• Basic knowledge of child abuse and neglect

• Ability to work with children who have diverse temperaments and needs

• Effective communication skills including rapport building, conflict de-escalation, resolution, and relationship repair

• Ability to establish and maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality while providing services

• Cultural competence, and personal understanding and implementation of tenets of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)

• Ability to relate sensitively and non-judgmentally with at-risk children and families

• Ability to work independently and as a team member, including good time management and prioritization

• Consistent attendance is essential for both the smooth operation of our programs as well as fostering a sense of stability for the children and families we serve.

Physical Demands, Background, Driving and Training Requirements:

• Knowledge of developmentally appropriate practices and behavior guidance principles; certificate or degree in Early Childhood Education or related field, or 1+ years of experience in childcare, or step 6+ on Oregon Registry

• May work outdoors intermittently with exposure to typical Oregon weather conditions. There may be frequent interruptions, working alone, evening or weekend work, working long hours. Working in a close environment with active children.

• Adherence to Relief Nursery Standards, daycare licensing regulations, USDA guidelines, and other applicable standards to ensure a safe and nurturing learning space for children.

• Must be able to pick up and carry 40 pounds. Must be able to bend, kneel and stand for long lengths of time. In addition, staff must be able to get up and down from playing on the floor with children.

• Ability to pass a background check.

• Valid driver’s license and reliable personal transportation

• Clean driving record to drive company vehicles.

• Within 60 days of employment must be Pediatric CPR and First aid Certified, have a current food handlers’ card, and show proof of completing “Recognizing and Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect,” “Childcare Health & Safety,” “Safe Sleep,” and “Prevention is Better than Treatment” courses as required by Oregon Office of Childcare.

Salary Range + Benefits:

This is a part-time, flexible, on-call position with needed availability Monday – Thursday 8:30am – 4:30pm. The payrate is $21.88/hour. To protect confidentiality at MtStar there is a standard procedure requiring at least a 2-year separation between being a program participant and serving as a staff member or volunteer within the organization. All staff and volunteer roles are at the discretion of MountainStar. All positions at MountainStar Family Relief Nursery are contingent upon the availability of funding.

To Be Considered for this position:

Please email your resume and cover letter to hr@mtstar.org

Please tell us about how your skills, experience, training, and attitude will support your success in working across these many areas of our organization.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

MountainStar is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, age, disability or sexual orientation.