Perinatal Community Health Educator

Job Summary

The Perinatal Community Health Educator (CHE) is a trusted, community-based member of the Joyful Beginnings Maternal-Infant Wellness Program team at North Texas Area Community Health Centers, Inc. (NTACHC).  At Joyful Beginnings, we believe every family deserves a trusted guide through pregnancy, birth, and the early years of a child’s life. The CHE provides maternity navigation, health education, lactation support, and care coordination to pregnant, postpartum, and pediatric patients served at NTACHC. Lactation access and breastfeeding support are critical components of this role; candidates must have experience working with lactating families and the ability to provide lactation support independently. The ideal candidate is rooted in their community, embraces reproductive justice and health equity across the perinatal continuum, and brings genuine passion for walking alongside families during one of the most important seasons of their lives.

Position Goal

Provide patient-centered support, health education, and care coordination to pregnant, postpartum, and pediatric patients served by the Joyful Beginnings program, with compassion, cultural responsiveness, and integrity.

Schedule/Compensation

Full-time, 1.0 FTE. Evening and weekend hours may be required for outreach events, group activities, or community health fairs. Excellent and competitive benefits package offered which includes medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance. Company matching retirement plan and generous paid time off to include vacation and sick leave accruals starting from the date of hire.

Responsibilities

1. Provide culturally responsive prenatal and postpartum education on pregnancy changes, warning signs, birth planning, postpartum recovery, lactation, safe sleep, and family planning within scope of practice.
2. Enroll eligible patients into Joyful Beginnings services and complete clinic, home, virtual, and community visits according to program protocols; manage an active caseload across prenatal, postpartum, and pediatric populations with timely follow-up, documentation, and continuity of care.
3. Support birthing patients through the postpartum period with check-ins focused on physical recovery, mental health, infant feeding, and linkage to primary and specialty care; provide basic lactation support and warm handoffs to appropriate professionals as indicated.
4. Provide anticipatory guidance and health education on infant and early childhood development, immunizations, safe sleep, and chronic conditions common in childhood; screen for developmental or behavioral concerns and assist families with referrals to early intervention and pediatric services.
5. Conduct community outreach at Joyful Beginnings sites, OB and pediatric clinics, WIC, health fairs, and partner locations to identify and engage pregnant and parenting families; travel to community locations and hospitals as required to coordinate care, deliver presentations, and facilitate appointment scheduling on behalf of patients.
6. Participate in planning and delivery of Joyful Beginnings outreach activities including health fairs, group classes, and community engagement events; serve as a visible program ambassador, sharing information on services and available resources.
7. Participate/collaborate in the design, planning, coordination and delivery of innovative programs and initiatives that are aligned with NTACHC patient’s overall wellness. Ensure effective communication occurs between the wellness program, wellness committees, employees to ensure successful delivery of program components.
8. Practices excellent time management skills and completes tasks according to the program’s strategic plan within the patient’s established time frames.
9. Build and maintain trusting, long-term relationships with assigned families using strengths-based, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive approaches; bridge communication gaps between families and providers and promote patient self-advocacy and self-management skills.
10. Document all encounters, screenings, care plans, referrals, and outcomes in the EHR and program tracking systems in a timely and accurate manner; meet required productivity, quality, and grant documentation standards for Joyful Beginnings and the FQHC.
11. Participate in team huddles, case conferences, and interdisciplinary meetings with medical, behavioral health, social work, and administrative staff; attend required CHW, perinatal, pediatric, and health equity trainings and incorporate new learning into practice.
12. Other duties as assigned. 

Minimum Qualifications

1. High school diploma or GED required.
2. Required: Active Certified Community Health Worker (CHW) certification (state-recognized).
3. Minimum 1 year of experience in community-based work, peer support, outreach, or direct services with pregnant people, parents, infants, or young children (formal or informal experience accepted).
4. Demonstrated ability to manage an active caseload across multiple stages of care (prenatal, postpartum, and infant/child populations) simultaneously, with strong organizational and time management skills.
5. Demonstrated ability to build trust, maintain appropriate boundaries, and work respectfully with people of diverse racial, cultural, linguistic, gender, and family identities.
6. Must possess a valid driver’s license, reliable personal transportation, and willingness to travel locally to homes, health fairs, and hospitals for outreach and care coordination.
7. Strong understanding of health behavior change theory and community health education principles.
8. Ability to work a flexible schedule, including some evenings and weekends as needed for outreach and community events.
9. This role requires travel up to 50% based on business needs.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Associate’s or bachelor’s degree in a health-related field preferred.
2. Experience in an FQHC, Healthy Start, home visiting, WIC, doula, or similar maternal-child health program.
3. One-on-one and group coaching or health education experience.
4. Familiarity with EHR navigation and data entry, or willingness to learn.
5. Exceptional administrative and computer skills (MS Office Suite); strong verbal and written communication skills.
6. Ability to engage and motivate individuals and groups, strong program planning and community outreach skills.
7. Bilingual (English/Spanish) highly preferred.