WIC-Competent Professional Authority

In this role, you’ll provide nutritional certification, education, and one-on-one counseling for participants in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program. You’ll guide parents and caregivers through healthy choices, support infants and children in getting a strong start, and help families access the resources they need to thrive. Additional related duties will support the overall success of the WIC program and its mission. Apply today to empower families and strengthen community health.

This is skilled technical and administrative work involving counseling high-risk clients in dietary and nutritional health. The work is performed under the general direction and supervision of the WIC Program Manager, but considerable leeway is granted for the exercise of independent judgment and initiative. The nature of the work performed requires that an employee in this class establish and maintain close cooperative working relationships with Health Department employees, supervisors, clients, family, and the general public.

• Evaluates the nutritional needs of high-risk clients, including preparation of a care plan;
• Provides client education in food selection, dietary needs, and nutrition;
• Develops educational materials relative to client nutritional health;
• Maintains required client documentation and program records;
• Documents client visits and completes all related medical records, including assessment and care plans;
• Maintains current dietary and nutritional research findings, incorporating them into the WIC program services;
• Refers high-risk clients to appropriate agencies or health care professionals;
• Promotes and supports breastfeeding;
• Prescribe and issue food packages;
• Operates centrifuge, draws blood for iron levels, and reads iron levels;
• Gathers anthropometric data;
• Collaborates with and provides consultative services to community organizations to promote community understand
• of nutritional health;
• Gives presentations to community groups as requested and assists with staff training;
• Attends meetings, conferences, and workshops as requested and authorized;
• Performs related work as required.
• Performs all duties and work assignments in a safe, healthy, and environmentally sound manner. Specifically, complying with the Health & Safety Program; maintaining work areas in a safe and orderly manner; identifying and reporting unsafe conditions; reporting all accidents; wearing required personal protective equipment; and attending safety-related meetings, training sessions, fit testing, etc.
• Performs all duties and work assignments in compliance with project quality requirements.
• Acts responsibly and ethically, and in conformance with generally accepted business, occupational, and professional standards.
• Local Agency Retail Coordinator (LARC) – Primary contact between WIC and authorized food retailers. Conduct retailer monitoring and compliance checks, handling retailer questions and complaints. 
• Processes new retailer applications, training store personnel on WIC procedures, and ensuring vendors stock authorized foods.
• Acts as a liaison between WIC and other local programs and service providers.
• Responsible for retention of participants, including but not limited to sending reminder cards and phone call reminders if participants have not certified with WIC.
• Acts as liaison between other local programs and service providers
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Thorough knowledge of dietary health and nutritional education principles;
• Thorough knowledge of the functions and programs of community and other health and social service agencies and their available public health resources;
• Good knowledge of counseling and teaching techniques;
• Good knowledge of the needs and problems of low-income families;
• Skill in interpersonal communications and persuasion;
• Ability to establish effective working relationships with patients, health care professionals, health care agencies, departmental employees, and the general public;
• Ability to maintain client confidentiality;
• Ability to communicate well with departmental employees, health care professionals, patients, health care agencies, and the general public, both orally and in writing, using both technical and non-technical language;
• Ability to prepare accurate and reliable reports containing findings, conclusions, and recommendations;
• Ability to operate a personal computer using standard word processing, spreadsheet, and database applications appropriate to assigned duties;
• Ability to drive in all types of weather and road conditions;
• Ability to use logical thought processes to develop solutions according to written specifications and oral instructions;
• Ability to perform a wide variety of technical and administrative tasks with accuracy and speed under the pressure of time-sensitive deadlines and emergency situations;
• Ability to quickly learn and put to use new skills and knowledge brought about by rapidly changing information;
• Ingenuity and inventiveness in the performance of assigned tasks.

Acceptable Experience and Training

• Must have a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) certification or the ability to obtain one within 6 months of hire.
• Registered Dietitian (RD)/Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) 
• Nutritionist with a bachelor’s or master’s degree from any college/university which is accredited/approved by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND); or
• Dietetic Technician, Registered (DTR)
• Registered Nurse (RN)- this does not include Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN)
• Physician (Medical Doctor or Doctor of Osteopathic medicine)
• Physician’s Assistant (PA), or
• Other professional with a health and/or science related degree with adequate coursework (within the last 10 years if not actively working in the field of health and/or nutrition) which will include, at a minimum: Basic Nutrition, Nutrition in the Life Cycle, Completed series of Anatomy/Physiology, One additional course in nutrition such as Community Nutrition, Weight Management, Culinary Nutrition, Nutrition in Chronic Disease, Motivational Interviewing, or equivalent counseling class.
• Current Montana WIC CPA; and
• Considerable experience in nutritional health or a closely related field; or
• Any equivalent combination of education and experience which provides knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work.

Required Special Qualifications


Essential Physical Abilities

Due to the need for all Health Department personnel to respond to public health emergencies, the employee must be assessed for his/her ability to meet the physical demands of performing the following activities:

If unable to demonstrate these abilities based upon a standardized, objective assessment, all reasonable accommodations will be made, in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and any other applicable federal and Montana law. 

The City-County is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, physical disability, or veteran status. 

This job description is a summary of the typical functions of the job, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities. Tasks and duties of the employee may differ from those outlined above.

ADA Accommodation Notice

The City-County of Butte–Silver Bow is committed to providing equal access to employment opportunities. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process or participate in the hiring process, please contact us.