Family Services Specialist I

Virginia Department of Social Services • Alexandria, Virginia, United States • $44.96k - $59.19k / year • 2m ago

The City of Alexandria is bordered by Washington D.C. and the Potomac River, Arlington and Fairfax counties, and Maryland. The small city has a cosmopolitan feel with 150,000 people living within its 15.75 square miles. At the Department of Community and Human Services, we provide essential safety net services to help city residents enjoy a sense of well-being, safety and self-sufficiency. Our behavioral health programs provide compassionate services that support self-determination and recovery. The beauty of our diverse and resilient people and our commitment to race and social equity, coupled with a historic district dating to 1749, charming waterfront, vibrant arts community and unique places for foodies and shopping, make the City of Alexandria a uniquely wonderful place to live, work and play. We invite all qualified candidates to learn more and apply for our Family Services Specialist I position. The Family Services Specialist I is distinguished from the Family Services Specialist II by the latter’s functioning more independently as a full performance Family Services Specialist.

General Statement of Duties:

A Family Services Specialist I in the Child Care Subsidy Case Management Unit provides social work services to low0income families from diverse backgrounds who qualify for childcare assistance. A family Services Specialist I engages in active case management with families toward reaching self-sufficiency goals; Offers supportive counseling and crisis support to families who experience difficulties; Provides parent education, information and support to facilitate the selection of appropriate child care placement and authorizes services accordingly; Analyzes and mediates child care concerns and issues; Provides information about early childhood education opportunities available in Virginia through the Head Start, Early Head Start, and Virginia Preschool initiatives; Offers supportive counseling and crisis support to families who experience difficulties; Provides parent education, information and support to facilitate the selection of appropriate child care placement and authorizes services accordingly; Analyzes and mediates child care concerns and issues; Provides information about early childhood education opportunities available in Virginia through the Head Start, Early Head Start, and Virginia Preschool initiatives.

Examples of Duties:

Conducts program intake interviews, eligibility determination and needs assessments to identify family priorities, resources and goals;
Develop individual service plans addressing issues such as employment, job skill readiness, housing, and family or individual dynamics which may impact economic and employment stability;
Maintains appropriate documentation according to federal, state and departmental requirements;
Authorizes services and maintains documentation in the current state case management system;
Monitors client's progress toward self-sufficiency and work with clients to develop strategies to meet their goals;
Provides resources for information and training on topics related to quality childcare and family self-sufficiency, school readiness, family engagement, child development, financial literacy, navigating services for children with special needs;
Builds and maintain partnerships with childcare providers;
Participates in complaint resolution process;
Conducts site visits to programs to assess goodness of fit and makes appropriate recommendations for children and families who are experiencing difficulties within child care setting;
Participates in multidisciplinary case consultation team meetings;
Supports parent access to developmental screening using the ASQ-3 and ASQ-SE (children birth – 5 years);
Provides walk-in support for child care and provider services;
Provides crisis intervention and supportive counseling;
Identifies and assesses service delivery gaps and recommends solutions; Performs other duties as assigned.

Essential Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing; Ability to work collaboratively with others; Ability to create service plans; Ability to understand and interpret laws, policies and regulations.

Minimum Qualifications:

Minimum of a Bachelor's degree in a Human Services field or minimum of a Bachelor's degree in any field with a minimum of two years of appropriate and related experience in a Human Services area (Section 22VAC40-670-20 of the Administrative Code of Virginia). Employees must possess a valid driver's license issued by the state of their residence if they are in a position with driving responsibilities. Some Knowledge of the principles and practices of social work which includes knowledge of individual, family and group therapy techniques, as well as crisis intervention, and some knowledge of community resources or the ability to readily acquire such knowledge.

Preferred Qualifications:

Experience in childcare subsidy services; Case management experience; Education, training or experience in early childhood development. Bilingual in English and a language significantly represented in the population served.