Assistant Director of School Health Services - City of Newton

Job Description

Primary Purpose:

The mission of Health and Human Services Department is to protect, promote and sustain the health, harmony and wellbeing of all Newton residents, in a culturally sensitive, customer-friendly manner. The focus is on prevention. The Department is organized into five different divisions: Environmental Health, School Health, Public Health and Education, Emergency Preparedness, and Social Services. This position helps manage the total school health services program providing nursing leadership within the school system.

Supervision:

Scope and Judgment: This position requires excellent judgement, strong clinical assessment skills, polished professional skills, superior organizational skills, excellent verbal and written communication skills, and evaluation skills. It requires the ability to work both independently and as part of a team. Critical thinking, self-motivation, and a passion for school health services are all key elements of the role.  

Supervision Received: This position reports to the Director of School Health Services or his/her designee. 

Supervision Given: May provide supervision to school nurses and nursing students. 

Job Environment:

Work is performed under typical school conditions as well as other settings. 

Frequent contact with the parent community, other city departments and officials, school departments, outside agencies, businesses, vendors, and other governmental organizations and attorneys, etc. Communication is by means of in person meetings, telephone, online meeting platforms, personal discussion, and correspondence and involves discussing routine and confidential information, requiring patience, courtesy, and judgment.

The work is often unpredictable and requires flexibility in both work performed and schedule. Must be willing to work the following schedule:

• School year calendar September through June = 181 days
• 2 weeks before school opens and 1 week after school ends
• 15 summer days total – can be flexible (July and August)
• Time off will follow the school calendar –
• Days off: Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving Recess, December Recess, New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, Winter Vacation, Good Friday, April Recess, Memorial Day, Juneteenth and Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur when falling on school days
• Work hours: 8:30am – 5:00pm with flexibility depending on district needs
• Special Leave: Special leave will accumulate at the rate of 15 days per year
• Personal Days: May be granted up to 5 personal days in any calendar year

Qualifications: 

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Exceptional client service skills are required.

Essential Elements:

• Assist with orientation and mentoring of newly hired nurses
• Assist with daily scheduling and assignment of school health personnel
• Assist with day-to-day problem-solving and collaboration
• Directly Supervise school nurses who have been in the role less than 5 years
• Assist with nursing oversight for extended school year programs
• Provide oversight of school health case management to ensure consistency of care plans across the district
• Contribute to community health programming with other members of the HHS department and/or community partners, particularly those geared to youth and families
• Assist with the development of policies, programs, and procedures for the provision of school health services at an individual or district level including initiatives specifically designed to support vulnerable students
• Assist with the development of programs and practices that recognize the intertwined nature of physical and social and emotional well-being, that reduce absenteeism and support academic achievement
• Lead the development and expansion of a nurse-taught health curriculum in the elementary schools about substance issues and other health topics
• Conduct a racial and health disparities needs assessment to use for school health planning and improvement
• Assist with planning and implementing professional development programs including programs with an emphasis on health inequities, including applying for continuing education credits
• Participate in METCO family meetings to help make school health services more effective for these students
• Participate in and/or co-facilitate interdisciplinary teams such as the Safety Team and Wellness Committee
• Be a member of district student re-entry teams and assist with implementation of school health procedures for positive re-entry
• Attend state and regional Comprehensive School Health Services grant meetings
• Assist with planning and staffing school- located flu vaccine administration clinic.
• Collect school health data as required
• Ability to define problems and use judgement to work toward results, modify methods/techniques and make recommendations dealing with several abstract and concrete variables within clearly defined laws, precedents and policies
• Adhere to the Nurse Practice Act, pertinent regulations governing nursing practice and standards of care established by the professional organizations
• Adhere to and follow City of Newton, departmental/governmental rules, regulations, policies, and procedures

• Performs other duties as required

   

Minimum Entrance Qualifications:

Education, Training, and Experience:

• Possess a minimum of a baccalaureate in nursing from an accredited nursing program
• Requires current licensure as a Registered Nurse in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts under M.G.L. c.71 s.53
• Maintain certification in CPR and the use of an AED
• Maintain a valid Massachusetts driver’s license
• Complete ongoing continuing education programs pertinent to the evolving specialty area of school health and school nursing practice, as well as meet the continuing education requirements for licensure in Massachusetts
• Demonstrated excellence in oral and written communications skills
• Strong computer skills including Microsoft Word, SNAP and Google
• Have a minimum of five years of nursing experience that includes school nursing or related field experience

• Have performed in a supervisory role

  Knowledge, Ability and Skill:

• Has knowledge of school health principles
• Is a strong leader, prepared to identify new areas of support and develop programs, strategies and initiatives in response in coordination with the Director
• Possesses strong clinical judgment while working with a wide variety of students, families, educators, and nurses
• Is flexible and interested in learning new approaches
• Highly organized and detail oriented
• Superior interpersonal skills with outgoing style and willingness to creatively engage diverse constituents and develop strong working partnerships with a wide range of internal and external colleagues
• Demonstrates coalition building skills while working with multiple community agencies and stakeholders
• Excellent communication skills
• Experienced at de-escalation and support techniques
• Able to work independently and as part of a team

Physical requirements:

(The physical demands described here represent those requirements that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.)

Regularly required to use hands to finger, handle, feel or operate objects, tools, equipment, machinery or controls, and reach with hands and arms as in picking up/accessing paper, files, and other common office objects as well as equipment and supplies. Lifts and/or moves objects weighing up to 20 pounds. Manually operates all office equipment and other necessary equipment. Needs to operate a computer keyboard at an efficient speed. The job may require one to carry materials, heavy at times, to support students or programs. This may include (but is not limited to) food resources, school supplies, presentation tables and materials, audio visual materials, and documents. Ability to perform all regular nursing duties, including chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Performance Standard
Employees at all levels are expected to effectively work together to meet the needs of the community and the City through work behaviors demonstrating the City’s values. Employees are also expected to lead by example and demonstrate the highest level of ethics.

(This job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee and is subject to change by the employer as the needs of the employer and requirements of the job change.)

Company Description

THE CITY:

The City of Newton is a wonderful place to live and work. Newton has safe and attractive neighborhoods, an excellent public school system, an active community life, multiple transportation systems, proximity to Boston and a well-managed and financially strong City government. The City of Newton has a population of approximately 88,900, with 32,600 housing units and occupies a land area of 18.3 square miles. Newton is principally suburban-residential in character. Unlike many other communities that are established around a single Main Street or downtown, Newton is comprised of thirteen distinctive villages. Newton has a diversified economic base with approximately 4,700 establishments employing approximately 79,500 people. Newton is special in many ways. It is home to a variety of private secondary and post-secondary schools including a portion of Boston College, Lasell University, William James College, Hebrew College, and the UMass Amherst – Mount Ida Campus.  The longest stretch of the Boston Marathon runs through the City, including the well-known Heartbreak Hill. Newton-Wellesley Hospital, part of the Mass General Brigham health care system, serves as an important partner to the City. In September 2018, Newton was again ranked #1 in Massachusetts as the best place to live and #12 in the U.S.

OUR GOVERNMENT:

Newton has what is known as a “strong Mayor” form of government with the Mayor having the executive and administrative powers of the City. The legislative branch is comprised of 24 City Councilors. Mayor Ruthanne Fuller was sworn in on January 1, 2018 after serving on the City Council. She ran on a platform of providing Newton’s children with a top-notch education in an inclusive environment where empty nesters, seniors, young families, and people of diverse incomes can live together in vibrant villages and neighborhoods. Mayor Fuller is committed to keeping Newton safe, improving the city’s infrastructure, addressing climate change, providing excellent and responsive city services, and fostering art, culture and community life. The first female Mayor of Newton, she is a tireless advocate for all the city’s residents and is committed to making sure the city is welcoming, inclusive and diverse. The City of Newton was evaluated by Moody’s Investors Services in February 2020 and assigned its highest rating of AAA. Newton was thus well-positioned to weather the pandemic and economic downturn.

AS AN EMPLOYER:

The City of Newton believes that its employees are its greatest asset.  To that end, we are committed to supporting our employees by providing competitive wages and growth, a comprehensive benefits package which includes a defined municipal pension plan, quality health and dental insurance plans, generous paid leave benefits, paid holidays, and access to supplemental benefits such as deferred compensation, short term disability plans, flexible spending accounts, and other employee benefits.  We also provide access to an Employee Assistance Program and access to employee training and professional development opportunities.  We continuously work to review and expand upon our benefit offerings.  We encourage you to visit our Human Resources Department website to learn more about our organization and benefits which are available to our employees.  And as always, you are encouraged to reach out to our dynamic HR Team by emailing hr@newtonma.gov.

Human Resources Diversity Statement

We recognize our workforce is a source of strength that is vital to our ability to effectively serve the City of Newton’s diverse community. We will:

•   Actively recruit, develop, and retain a diverse and talented workforce.
•   Proactively address discrimination through education and in partnership with other departments and leaders.
•   Serve as a role model to celebrate and nurture diversity.
•   Foster inclusion by staying curious and clarifying assumptions.
•   Evaluate and develop policies and practices that reflect the diverse nature of our workforce.
•   Build and strengthen accountability at all levels to support diversity efforts.

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• 457 Deferred Compensation plans
• Metro Credit Union
• Verizon Wireless discount
• Employee Assistance Program
• Generous paid leave time benefits and paid holidays.
• City Retirement (Mandatory)
• Weekly Direct Deposit
• Opportunity to serve the public and join a dynamic team of dedicated employees