Assistant Teacher (Early Childhood Centers)

Organization DescriptionFounded in 1965, the Chinese-American Planning Council, Inc. (CPC) aims to promote the social and economic empowerment of Chinese American, immigrant, and low-income communities. Today, CPC is the nation's largest Asian American social services agency and offers more than 50 programs at over 35 sites throughout New York City, including early childhood education, school-age care, youth services, workforce development, community services, and senior services. CPC strives to be the premier social service and leadership development organization. In 2017, CPC launched Advancing Our CommUNITY, its organization-wide strategy to expand services to address persistent needs and emerging trends and to improve leadership skills among staff and community members. In 2022, our core programs and emergency services reached 200,000 people living in all five boroughs and all 51 city council districts. In the summer of 2022, CPC was recognized as the number one Chinese American organization in New York City to recommend to a Chinese immigrant looking for in-language and culturally competent resources according to a recent survey. This accomplishment is a testament to the incredible work and dedication of our staff. (For more information, please visit: https://www.cpc-nyc.org/)

Program Summary

The mission of each CPC Early Childhood Center is to foster a lifelong love of learning in each of our students. Our staff foster positive learning experiences through love, respect, quality education and professionalism. Early Childhood Centers serve approximately 300 students from ages 1-5 in multiple locations throughout the city. The goal of the program is to support students in all learning areas including intellectual, academic, physical, social, and emotional growth.

CPC operates a total of six (6) Early Childhood Centers in New York City:

• Chung Pak Early Childhood Center: 125 Walker St Suite 3, New York, NY 10013
• Garment Industry Early Childhood Center: 115 Chrystie St, 2nd Fl, New York, NY 10002
• Jacob Riis Early Childhood Center: 108 Avenue D, New York, NY 10009
• Little Star at Broome Street Early Childhood Center: 178 Broome St, 3rd Fl, New York, NY 10002
• Tribeca Early Childhood Center: 1 York St 2nd Fl, New York, NY 10013
• Lois C Lee Early Childhood Center: 133-14 41st Avenue 3rd Fl, Flushing, NY 11355

Job SummaryUnder the supervision of the Lead Teachers, Assistant Teachers assist in the care, supervision, and education of children in a childcare center setting. Assistant Teachers will help manage classroom behaviors and ensure a safe and caring environment conducive to learning is provided to the children and support timely and effective communication with parents/guardians concerning their children’s learning and behavioral progress.

Essential Responsibilities

• Assist the regular classroom teacher in providing a safe and caring environment for students by ensuring/and following the overall CPC's health and safety plan.
• Assist in the implementation of a developmental-interactive curriculum by providing instruction, as needed, according to plans as prepared by the regular classroom teacher
• Assist the regular classroom teacher in communication with parents/guardians verbally as needed and during parent teacher conferences concerning children progress.
• Assist the regular classroom teacher in completing the following assessments:
• A fall, winter and spring Teaching Strategies Gold checkpoints by the dates allocated by DOE.
• Within the first 45 days of entry into classroom- ASQ and ASQ-SE
• Report emergencies to the Education Director or otherwise designated person in charge:
• Verbally- immediately
• Written- within 24 hours
• Provide professional interactions with students, co-workers and families.
• Help with group teacher supervision and mentoring of volunteers.
• Maintain line of sight supervision. Use appropriate judgment to always act in the best interests of students.
• Maintain a classroom environment which promotes active learning. Work with students to help reinforce learning objectives.
• Maintain daily classroom routine, including distributing and collecting supplies, keeping attendance records, setting up meals, etc.
• Attend mandatory meetings and trainings.
• Adhere to CPC Early Childhood Center policies and procedures.
• Perform other duties as assigned.
  

QualificationsEducation and Experience:

• Must be 18 years of age or older.
• High School Diploma or GED; Early Childhood Education college credits preferred:
• High school diploma or equivalent (GED); nine college credits in early childhood education or child development; and two years’ experience caring for children; or
• High school diploma or equivalent (GED) and five years of supervised experience in a permitted childcare service; or
• High school diploma or equivalent (GED); and a study plan that is acceptable to the DOH leading to completion of nine credits in early childhood education or childhood development within two years.
• Have or obtain a Level 1 or higher NYS Teaching Assistant certification.
• Must have experience in working with children and knowledge of child development and developmentally appropriate practices.
• At least one year of experience working in a childcare setting.
• Experience working with children with special needs preferred.
  

Skills And Competencies

• Demonstrated ability, enthusiasm, love, and desire to work with and relate to children.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct self in a professional, courteous manner, to maintain a neat appearance.
• Customer service skills and ability to create/maintain partnerships with families and staff.
• Organizational and communication skills and the ability to handle crisis situations effectively.
• Ability to multitask while remaining organized and completing tasks by assigned deadlines.
• Bilingual in English and Mandarin, Cantonese, or Spanish preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to lift 25-30 lbs.
• Demonstrated ability to walk, squat/kneel, sit on floor, see, hear, speak with children to ensure their health and safety.
• Computer literacy skills

Hiring For This Position Is Subject To

• Review of resume completeness including education, experience, and skills
• Verification of three (3) references
• Completion of employment application
• Completion of interview
• Fingerprint Clearance from the Department of Investigation
• Statewide Central Register Clearance
• Child Abuse and Maltreatment Certification (online training)
• Additional mandated trainings as required by Department of Health
• Trainings can be done after hiring (within 2 weeks of hire)
• Recent physical (within one year), including immunization record
  

Compensation & Benefits Overview

• $16.00 - $17.71 per hour; 35 – 40 hours per week
• CPC offers a comprehensive union benefits package to full-time staff

COVID-19 SAFETY PROTOCOLSCPC has been committed to two goals: 1) keeping staff and community members healthy and safe and 2) continuing to safely provide services to community members. CPC no longer mandates COVID vaccination, but vaccines and boosters are highly encouraged for all our staff and community members.

How To Apply

Interested individuals should submit their resume, along with a cover letter addressed to Kathy Lee, when applying online via CPC’s website: https://www.cpc-nyc.org/jobs or selected online job boards. All documents should be submitted as one single file. Applicants may reach out to careers@cpc-nyc.org with any questions or further inquiries.

CPC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. CPC values a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and strongly encourages women, BIPOC, immigrants, LGBTQ+, individuals with disabilities, and veterans to apply.