Legal Counsel - Office of Childhood

Job Location: This position will be located at 205 Jefferson St., Jefferson City, MO 65101.

Why you’ll love this position:

This is a full-time professional position in the field of early childhood education law with primary emphasis on the development and coordination of policy, legal issues, and regulations affecting early childhood programs, providers, and recipients of services.

• Provide legal counsel to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Special Education, specifically, in connection with the development and interpretation of applicable law, regulation, policy.
• Provide litigation support for the Office of Childhood (OOC) and act as a liaison between the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) and the Office Attorney General.
• Represent the OOC at administrative hearings.
• Assist in the development, writing and review of contracts, agreements, policy, and guidance for the OOC, and for other Department offices as requested.
• Manage and coordinate Sunshine Law and other record requests for the OOC and act as a resource for records retention management and related questions.
• Assist the Department’s Chief Counsel and the OOC Assistant Commissioner by researching and responding to internal and external inquiries relating to case law, legislation, regulations, and federal and state statutes.
• Act as an OOC resource for the rulemaking process, including drafting orders of rulemaking and responses to administrative rules comments.
• Provide guidance to the Department and the OOC on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and other privacy matters.
• Assist in responding to Office of Civil Rights, Missouri Commission on Human Rights, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaints against the Department.
• Address and respond, or assist in preparing responses, to constituent and legal counsel questions regarding the OOC from legislators, legislative staff, other local and state officials, and legal counsel on behalf of clients.
• Provide other legal support to the Office of the Chief Counsel as assigned.
• Serve as a hearing officer for the Department as designated by the Commissioner of Education.
• Serve on and participate in DESE and OOC program teams as needed.
• Demonstrate regular, reliable, and engaged attendance.
• Perform other related work as assigned.
• Demonstrate regular, reliable, and engaged attendance.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Juris Doctorate from an ABA approved law school.
• Member of the Missouri Bar in good standing.

The State of Missouri offers an excellent benefits package that includes a defined pension plan, generous amounts of leave and holiday time, and eligibility for health insurance coverage. Your total compensation is more than the dollars you receive in your paycheck. To help demonstrate the value of working for the State of Missouri, we have created an interactive Total Compensation Calculator. This tool provides a comprehensive view of benefits and more that are offered to prospective employees. The Total Compensation Calculator and other applicant resources can be found here .

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• State of Missouri

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