Easterseals Head Start/Early Head Start provides high-quality, family-centered education for children birth to five years old. We collaborate with 40+ early childhood programs located in the city of Chicago and suburban Cook County to promote school readiness in young children of all abilities from families with incomes below poverty guidelines. Easterseals also directly operates two Early Learning Centers in Head Start/Early Head Start in Chicago and in Hickory Hills.

For more information about our organization, please visit us online at www.eastersealschicago.org. 

Under the direction of the Social Emotional Specialist, the Play Therapist is responsible for providing therapeutic services to young children and their families to support their emotional, social, and psychological development and providing professional development opportunities to staff as needed. This role involves utilizing play therapy techniques to help children express their feelings, resolve conflicts, and develop healthy coping mechanisms. 

The Play Therapist works closely with teachers, families, and other Easterseals staff to create a supportive environment that fosters each child's overall well-being and development on their caseload.

This position is located at the Easterseals Early Learning Services Headquarters at 1939 W. 13th Street, Chicago 60608. 

MAJOR FUNCTIONS/ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Planning and Program Services:

• Conduct individual and group play therapy sessions with children in Easterseals Early Head Start (EHS) and Head Start (HS) programs.
• Assess the emotional and developmental needs of children and develop appropriate therapeutic plans.
• Collaborate with teachers, parents, and other staff to integrate therapeutic strategies into the classroom and home environments.
• Provide training and support to staff on child development, behavior management, and therapeutic techniques.
• Maintain detailed and confidential records of therapy sessions, progress notes, and assessments.
• Conduct parent workshops and support groups to enhance family involvement and understanding of play therapy.
• Stay current with best practices and advancements in the early childhood mental health field.
• Provide mental health consultations as needed to children and families.
• Participate in the self-assessment process and strategic planning.

Record Keeping, Reporting, and Communication:

• Track the hours that sites, children, and families are served.
• Ensure mental health information is entered into Child Plus in a timely manner.
• Prepare monthly reports with updates and progress of sites and children served.
• Participate in regularly scheduled content area and other meetings.
• Travel to Easterseals and partner sites regularly.
• Create an ongoing monitoring system to ensure children and families identified from the referral system receive play therapy services in a timely manner.
• Implement and participate in monitoring systems to ensure the active supervision and safety of children so that no child is ever left alone or unsupervised when at a center.

Human Resources:

• Implement reflective and relationship-based practices.
• Collaborate and provide guidance to the ELS team on engaging with families and children in need of mental health support
• All other duties as assigned.

Education/Certification:

• Master’s degree in counseling, Psychology, Social Work, or a related field. LPC or LSW required, LCPC or LCSW preferred. Licensed or eligible for licensure as a play therapist (RPT preferred)

Experience Required:

• 3 years of experience working with young children in a therapeutic setting
• Experience in Head Start/Early Head Start preferred

Required Knowledge:

• Strong understanding of child development and early childhood education
• Head Start Performance Standards.
• MS Office.

Vehicle/Transportation Requirements:

• Valid driver’s license.
• Auto insurance.
• Reliable vehicle.

Skills/Abilities:

• Ability to demonstrate cultural competence and sensitivity while using reflective practices with a diverse population.
• Able to work well with all levels of the organization, partner sites, other agencies, and funding source personnel.
• Demonstrates the ability to conceptualize and articulate program outcomes.
• Well organized, highly detail-oriented, and accuracy driven.
• Technologically adept – comfort, familiarity, and ability to learn and use a variety of computer applications. Intermediate-level knowledge of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Teams, Outlook, and Excel. Ability to use internet browsers and video conferencing.
• Excellent interpersonal and organizational skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

ADA: Easterseals will make reasonable accommodations in compliance with the Americans with Disability Act of 1990. Unless exempted by the Americans with Disabilities Act, all persons hired for this position are required to possess the ability to perform the physical tasks necessary to treat clients, i.e., bending, floor-sitting, etc., as well as to have the ability to lift up to 50 pounds frequently.

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