Tribal Technical Assistance Specialist

Who We Are:

Miami Environment & Energy Solutions (MEES) is wholly owned by the federally recognized Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, and is a Small Business Administration certified Tribal 8(a) business, and a Small Disadvantaged Business. As a Tribal 8(a), MEES has the capability to work with federal customers in creating responsive, comprehensive, and fast solutions to mission requirements.

MEES offers a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, 401(k) matching, and generous PTO and federal holidays schedule.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY:

The Tribal Early Childhood Regional TA Specialist provides high quality training and technical assistance (TTA) that improves the capacity of Tribal early childhood programs. The Early Childhood Education Specialist will support Tribal Child Care programs that reflect the diversity of languages and traditions that exist in American Indian and Alaska Native cultures. The programs are geographically diverse and provide comprehensive services to children and families that are culturally responsive and respectful of tribal sovereignty.

The ideal candidate will have both a background and experience in Child Development or Early Childhood Education with extensive knowledge of the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) regulations and program implementation. The Tribal Early Childhood Tribal TA Specialist will develop and provide TTA to a combination of CCDF funded early childhood programs, with a focus on supporting effective CCDF administration, capacity building, and the full implementation of CCDF requirements. Specialists will develop and provide professional-level expertise and TTA to support Tribal CCDF Administrators and staff in meeting their goals to meet the needs of their Tribal communities including consultation to promote, support, and improve the early development of children from the prenatal stage to five years of age using research-based practices. Understanding of developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood education and the ability to support its use as well as cultural and linguistic responsiveness in the classroom is required. The ideal candidate will have experience with providing culturally respectful engagement strategies to child care program directors, early childhood education managers, teachers and parents of American Indian and Alaska Native children.

This position will require extensive travel throughout the United States.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

1. Provide expert consultation to Tribal CCDF grantee staff in coordination with OCC Regional Office staff, as approved by the COR.
2. Identify and share culturally-responsive promising practices and approaches for using CCDF funds to support meaningful and effective center-based child care, family child care, in-home child care, and provider/teacher quality improvement and supply building activities, including effective CCDF administration and the full implementation of the CCDF regulations.
3. Assist in the research and development of timely responses to Tribal CCDF grantee and Regional Office requests, including writing and review of materials.
4. Support the planning of TA and training activities, including support for content development and facilitation of trainings.
5. Facilitate meetings and trainings with Tribal CCDF grantee staff, OCC Regional Office staff, OCC National Center staff, and other TA partners using results-based facilitation, results-based accountability, Indigenous knowledge, and strengths-based approaches in a culturally and linguistically responsive manner.
6. Develop meeting agendas, process agendas, summary reports, and other meeting materials as appropriate.
7. Work closely with the OCC Regional Program Manager (RPM), OCC National Centers, and other TA partners to develop, deliver, and facilitate (remote and onsite) individualized, tailored, and intensive TA for Tribal CCDF grantees and their partners upon request from the CCDF Administrator and approval by OCC.
8. Work closely with the OCC National Centers, TA partners, Tribal and community organizations, child care programs, and other early childhood providers nationally, regionally, and state-wide, as appropriate.

Job Qualifications and Requirements:

• Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development or related field.
• 5+ years of demonstrated experience in early childhood services working with children and families from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds.
• 5+ years of experience offering training and technical assistance within early care and education, including strong consultation, presentation, and facilitation skills.
• Knowledge of CCDF regulations and all applicable federal, state, Tribal, and local laws, rules, and regulations.
• Ability to maintain up to date knowledge of current child development practices and research based early childhood quality improvement methods and approaches.
• Ability to develop training and TA content, including excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficient in MS Office Applications (Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Excel, SharePoint, Teams) and other E-learning, webinar, and project management tools including Smartsheet.
• Excellent verbal, interpersonal, and written communication skills.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities.
• Team player with the ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to apply detailed knowledge of organizational procedures to make independent decisions and serve as a credible resource for a senior management team.
• Ability to be flexible to handle multiple priorities and to work limited overtime as necessary.
• Experience within Federally recognized Tribes and Native communities preferred.
• Native Language Revitalization and/or dual language program knowledge preferred.
• Understanding of trauma-informed care and supporting the social-emotional needs of children preferred.
• Experience in a leadership position within a CCDF/Head Start Program or similar position preferred.
• Experience providing training at State, Regional, or National Conferences/Meetings and technical assistance to individual organizations preferred.
• Experience at state, Tribal and/or national level with policies, early care and education regulations, and systems, particularly the implementation of the CCDF and/or other Tribal or state early learning programs preferred.
• Experience with content knowledge related to child care leadership and coordination, management systems, financial management, program integrity, health and safety standards, professional development strategies, monitoring, continuous quality improvement, provider licensing/approval, subsidy child and family eligibility, consumer education, child curriculum and assessment, and other early childhood programs and initiatives preferred.
• Experience with partnership-building and leading small, collaborative committees, workgroups, or task forces to develop projects or resources preferred.

Miami Nation Enterprises is an Equal Opportunity Employer