ERSEA Specialist

Brightpoint invites you to join our team of mission-driven staff who share a common vision: an equitable world where all children and families thrive in strong communities. As a leader in the human services sector for 140 years, we aim to advance the well-being of children by investing in families and strengthening communities through data-informed, collaborative, and preventative solutions.

The Early Childhood ERSEA Specialist (Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment, and Attendance Specialist) monitors enrollment, recruitment, selection, eligibility and attendance (ERSEA) services for our early childhood programs in Kendall, Kane, Boone, Grundy, and DeKalb Counties. As the ERSEA Specialist, you will determine eligibility and provide training, monitoring, and technical assistance to staff and parents on regulations and procedures for Head Start, Early Head Start, Preschool for All, Prevention Initiative and child care subsidies. The ERSEA Specialist reports to the ERSEA Program Manager.

Candidate qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent with at least 3 years of experience in early childhood education (ECE) or a related field required.
• An associate degree with at least 2 years of experience preferred.
• A minimum of one year experience implementing Head Start Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment, and Attendance (ERSEA) standards preferred.
• ERSEA Certification, or ability to become certified within 12 months, required.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Experience with documentation, data-entry, and record keeping.
• A valid driver’s license, insurance and a reliable vehicle required.
• The ability to communicate in both English and Spanish required.

Job Responsibilities

• Maintains a monitoring system and process for determining the eligibility of children at assigned early childhood education sites; reviews enrollment applications and process to ensure accuracy of forms and timeliness of intake.
• Ensures that recruitment efforts reach families that are most in need of services.
• Works collaboratively with other Family Support staff to coordinate recruitment efforts that target children with disabilities.
• Monitors daily attendance and follow-up with families.
• Maintains waitlists.
• Assists the ERSEA Manager and Family Support Supervisors with the community assessment process, including helping with planning of program design, recruitment efforts, and enrollment guidelines.
• Trains parents, staff, and community partners in topics related to childcare, program enrollment and eligibility.
• Works with program leadership to ensure that operations meet organization, federal, state, and local requirements, including licensing, Head Start, accreditation, contractual, and other standards.
• Maintains and monitors program data collection and evaluation system in the areas of eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance to ensure that quality standards are met and that services continue to improve.
• Participates in community outreach events and attends public meetings.
• Consults with Policy Council and necessary staff to develop selection criteria to be used in selecting families.
• Oversees planning and implementation of recruitment including inter-agency partnerships and develops tools for program use in these areas.

Job details

• Compensation:
• Hourly: Range is between $20.19-$23.24 per hour, offers are commensurate with experience and bilingual candidates may receive additional compensation. The salary range provided represents our current estimate for this role at the time of posting and is subject to change. The final salary will be determined based on a range of factors, including but not limited to, a candidate's relevant experience, education, qualifications, skills, certifications, and alignment with organizational needs. We are dedicated to fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to fostering a diverse workforce while providing equal opportunities for all candidates.
• Benefits: Medical/dental/vision insurance, 3+ weeks paid time off in the first year including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day (PTO increases with tenure); 11 paid holidays, supplemental insurance options, 401(k) with match (more benefits details here). [https://brightpointbenefits.com/]
• Location:
• Hybrid (on-site/community-based/remote): Work is completed at home-based and other community-based locations in Boone, Grundy, and DeKalb Counties; home office located at our DeKalb office [https://www.google.com/maps/place/155+N+3rd+St+%23504,+DeKalb,+IL+60115/@41.9308248,-88.75343,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x880f2a8af0168e01:0xde1facfdfc08d051!8m2!3d41.9308248!4d-88.7512413].
• Schedule: Full-time, hourly; general business hours with some flexibility for special projects.
• Student
• Loan
• Forgiveness: Brightpoint is an approved agency for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) [https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service].