Washington County Public Health Division is seeking a Public Health Nutritionist to join our Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program.
The WIC program focuses on nutrition education, breastfeeding support, health and diet screening, growth monitoring, and program referrals for pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women, infants, and children up to 5 years of age. WIC serves families from diverse cultural and ethnic traditions, languages, backgrounds, and abilities. It is designed to promote positive health outcomes, strengthen life course nutrition and health, and reduce health disparities of the populations we serve.
Washington County is committed to building a workforce that reflects the community we serve. In that spirit, we encourage applicants of diverse backgrounds and experience to apply.
About the position:
The Public Health Nutritionist in WIC is responsible for participant enrollment, orientation, benefit issuance, and maintaining participant files. In this role, you will identify and make nutrition and other health-related referrals, perform participant risk assessments, and provide professional nutrition education in individual and group settings. You will also provide participant-centered nutrition and breastfeeding information, education, and high-risk counseling to WIC participants. In addition, you will assess participants’ nutrition status and eligibility for the WIC Supplemental Food Program.
This position is required to work in-person at the work sites/offices located in Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Tigard, travel to those clinic locations, and conducting home visits, as needed.
What we are looking for candidates possess:
- Experience in screening, counseling, and providing information or education to WIC participants.
- Training or experience in the WIC Program regulations for eligibility, food benefits, and education.
- Ability to represent Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) communities and/or familiarity of WIC services.
- Education or experience in the principles of public health, maternal and child nutrition education, and breastfeeding education.
- Training and experience with participant-centered counseling and assessment techniques for culturally diverse participants.
- Experience in delivering trainings, presentations, and/or public speaking.
- Knowledge and understanding of the origins and results of the disparities experienced by individuals and families related to racism and social-economic injustices.
- Direct breastfeeding experience or formal lactation education is highly desired.
Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they can perform every job description task. We are most interested in finding the best candidate for the job and that candidate may come from a variety of backgrounds and lived experiences. If you are interested in applying, we encourage you to think broadly about your background and skill set for the role, even if you believe you do not meet all the hiring criteria described above.
Why Washington County?
Are you interested in challenging, meaningful, and rewarding work? Join Washington County in our commitment to advancing racial equity. Our Board of Commissioners worked closely with various community stakeholders and subject matter experts to develop an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Resolution . Adopted in February 2020, this resolution commits to the equitable delivery of Washington County’s services, resources, and opportunities for growth and development to every county resident.
ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES
Classification descriptions are typically written broadly. To review this classification, please use this link: Public Health Nutritionist .
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Education and Experience:
- A Master’s Degree in Nutrition; OR
- A Bachelor’s Degree in Nutrition/Dietetics; AND Completion of a dietetic internship within an accredited program; AND Are a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND); OR
- A Licensed Dietitian (LD) in the state of Oregon; OR
- Registered Dietitian eligible (must be able to obtain Registered Dietitian status within six months of appointment)
Preferred Qualifications:
- Bilingual/Multilingual skills preferred.
Additional Licenses, Certificates, Physical Abilities and Specialty Requirements:
- Must possess a valid driver’s license and have an acceptable driving record per Washington County policy. To review the Driver’s License and Record Policy for Washington County, please use this link: Driver’s License & Records Policy .
- Must be prepared to respond to public health emergencies or exercises at any time, except while on scheduled vacation or other leave.
- Must successfully complete basic incident management courses and participate in emergency response trainings as requested.
Background Investigation:
Please be advised that this position is required to pass a criminal background check post offer.
Please be clear and specific in the applicable sections of the employment application about how your background is relevant. This information must also be consistent with your supplemental question responses. Please note: Answers to the supplemental questions are typically evaluated separately from your application.