ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

Easter Seals is a distinguished nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting individuals with disabilities and special needs, empowering them to live, learn, work, and play in their communities. Known for its comprehensive range of services that promote inclusivity, personal development, and enhanced quality of life, Easter Seals operates numerous programs across the United States. One of their vital initiatives is the Head Start program, which is designed to provide high-quality early childhood education, health, nutrition, and parent involvement services to low-income children and their families. Easter Seals’ commitment is rooted in a culture that values diversity, equity, and inclusion, making it a leader in community-based care and development services.

The role available is that of an Assistant Director for the Head Start program. This leadership position is essential in assisting and supporting the overall operation of an inclusive early care and educational Head Start center. The Assistant Director focuses heavily on maintaining and enhancing program quality by ensuring compliance with licensing standards, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation standards, and Easter Seals’ internal policies and procedures. As an ambassador for Easter Seals, the Assistant Director promotes the organization’s culture, mission, vision, goals, and core values to staff, parents, and the wider community.

This position offers a hybrid function, where approximately half the time is devoted to supervisory and professional responsibilities, while the remaining half involves direct classroom engagement. The Assistant Director assumes critical leadership responsibilities, including managing staff performance, fostering professional development, and maintaining effective communication among teams. Under the guidance of the Center Director, the Assistant Director evaluates classroom practices, supports curriculum implementation such as the Creative Curriculum and Teaching Strategies Gold, and ensures a safe and nurturing environment that encourages every child’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development.

Additionally, the Assistant Director plays a significant role in recruitment and staffing activities, including interviewing and onboarding new personnel, orienting staff, and monitoring the implementation of their duties. This role also supports employee retention strategies and participates in disciplinary processes following organizational and legal guidelines. The Assistant Director demonstrates a commitment to leadership and teamwork, facilitating team-building activities, maintaining positive morale, and fostering staff collaboration.

Parent and guardian communication is a vital aspect of the role, with the Assistant Director maintaining accessibility to address concerns, supporting continuous communication efforts, and developing community involvement initiatives to enhance parent engagement. Marketing and enrollment activities also fall within this scope, including assisting with waitlist management, promoting the program to the community, and orienting new families to the center.

This position ensures strict adherence to health, safety, and licensing standards, including supervision in areas such as emergency response, documentation of incidents, and regulatory compliance. Fiscal responsibility is important as well, with oversight of budgets, scheduling, and financial record-keeping handled in collaboration with the Director. The Assistant Director supports the cleanliness, maintenance, and overall child-readiness of the facility.

Professionalism and teamwork are foundational to this role, requiring confidentiality, ethical conduct, flexibility, participation in continuous learning, and constructive communication. The job also demands physical capability to safely and actively engage with children and meet state and organizational health and safety guidelines.

This role is a career development opportunity within Easter Seals, ideal for candidates committed to early childhood education leadership and passionate about making a meaningful impact in inclusive learning environments. Employment type and salary specifics may vary by center and are aligned with organizational standards and budgetary constraints.