Career Center

The University of Washington (UW) is proud to be one of the nation’s premier educational and research institutions. Our people are the most important asset in our pursuit of achieving excellence in education, research, and community service. Our staff not only enjoys outstanding benefits and professional growth opportunities, but also an environment noted for diversity, community involvement, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits, and natural beauty.

Cultivate Learning fosters the quality that makes access to learning meaningful.  Backed by the University of Washington, our research-powered innovations and hands-on partnership create a fertile environment for smarter teaching and learning.  We advance opportunity by lowering barriers to entering the profession and guiding educators to success.  And we identify the building blocks of quality along with the path to use them – in Washington State and across the country.  Every child deserves to flourish from a foundation of quality learning.  This core belief drives our work to provide talented learning professional the support they need to build that foundation.  At Cultivate Learning, we translate insight into learning opportunity.

Cultivate Learning is funded by the Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) and provides training and research on the quality of childcare and early learning in Washington State.  Currently, Cultivate Learning is involved in the Washington State Quality Recognition and Improvement System (QRIS) standards initiative, Early Achievers. Cultivate Learning is an essential part of Washington State’s Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge initiative to give childcare providers the support and skills they need in order to help children develop the skills they need to be successful in school.

Cultivate Learning has an outstanding opportunity for a Quality Recognition Specialist. This position requires biliteracy in English and Spanish and is a fully remote position with the option of working onsite at the Seattle Office.

This position has the challenge of collecting data as efficiently and objectively as possible within the constraints and comfort level of individual providers and acting as a liaison between the individual providers and the project team. They need to use independent decision making to score for the Early Achievers Quality Standards and the assessments that inform those standards.  This position will be independently responsible for the coordination and planning efforts of each quarterly phase of the research project(s), will be expected to participate in the development of research designs and revisions to data collection processes and overall reliability, assist in all areas of Early Achievers quality recognition, including Community Liaison work and are responsible for composing and editing technical reports, publications, and presentations.

Essential Functions/Major Responsibilities

Research Activities:
•     Demonstrate understanding of the rationale behind QRIS (Quality Rating Improvement System) standards and local and state requirements for early care and education programs serving young children.
•     Informing, adapting, and following Cultivate Learning data collection protocols and procedures which include tailoring data collection to individual site needs.
•     Responsible for project management, coordinate site visits, corresponding with study participants, disseminate and collect study related activities and materials, monitor and track files and documents, and maintain study information electronically.
•     Responsible for administering Institute materials/sessions, presenting to large groups, and creating session materials and presentations.
•     Apply scientific knowledge of standardized assessments, coding for reliability, child development and early learning and care environments gained through formalized training.
•     All study activities, both in the field and on site at Cultivate Learning, will be conducted in a reliable, valid and confidential manner per human subjects, IRB and existing Cultivate Learning expectations.
•     Meet established reliability rates on all assigned assessment instruments (for example, classroom and individual child assessments).
•     Maintain reliability on all assessments per instrument and/or Cultivate Learning requirements.
•     Present at and attend trainings and meetings with Cultivate Learning central staff and regional data collection team.
•     Maintain appropriate decorum and demeanor when interacting with providers.

Data Administration:
•     Complete data collection within allotted time schedule for each observation/assessment and in coordination with the Ratings, Research and Evaluation teams. 
•     Responsible for the quality checking process of assessments, data quality control, and composing reports to the providers. 
•     Complete data collection and coding for each assessment and submit the data according to project procedures and protocols.
•     Use independent judgment in the field to solve emergent research problems that arise during data collection.
•     Report questions about data collection to appropriate supervisors.

Other duties as assigned.

Requirements:
Bachelor’s degree with significant coursework in early childhood education and care, child development and learning, early childhood assessment, and/or family systems AND 2-3 years’ experience working with children. 
•     Biliterate in English and Spanish
•     Human subjects training.
•     Meet and maintain set reliability criteria on all assigned assessment instruments.
•     Ability to follow rigorous data collection protocols and procedures.
•     Ability to be flexible in meeting Cultivate Learning scheduling needs.
•     Experience with data entry, working with databases, paperwork management, and working within project deadlines.
•     Knowledge of and experience with child assessments and program assessments.
•     Ability to work with people of various racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds.
•     Ability to maintain confidentiality and to handle confidential and sensitive information in an appropriate manner.
•     Willingness to travel within and outside of your designated region to conduct assessments.
•     Strong written and verbal communication skills.
•     Strong organizational skills.
•     Ability to work effectively in a team environment.

Equivalent education/experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

Desired:         
•1-2 years working on a large-scale research project.
•Demonstrated Reliability on ERS or CLASS measure.
•Dual Language Proficiency
•Experience translating documents to multiple languages

Application Process:
The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.