Community Based Resource Coordinator

Description

JOB PURPOSE
The centralized Intake Initiative is a collaborative project of Allegheny County Department of Human Services, various community partners, and service providers. The community connector will work closely with collaborative network to assist in the overall coordination of services and opportunities to ensure adherence to the organization mission and values of authentic youth engagement, building community, equitable practices that promote race equity, SOGIE, diversity and inclusion, and strengths-based practice. The Community Based Resource Coordinator (CBRC) will serve as a community liaison for partnering agencies.

The CBRC can explain the nature, goals and policies of Gwens Girls services and programs. Will be able to assess which program will best fit the callers needs and provide them with the necessary resources. In addition, will work closely with community providers in the Diversion community to serve as a resource of the best services to meet the needs of referring families.

The CRBC is responsible for maintaining a robust partner network, with a particular focus on cultivating relationships with direct service providers.

This is a full-time position with benefits.

POSITION SUMMARY

During the COVID-19 pandemic these duties will require virtual and some in-person engagement with social distancing. The community connector works closely with the collaborative network to collectively support young people, families, and community partners, and works to:

• Cultivate relationships across diverse communities and connect young people and families to resources and opportunities around housing, education, employment, financial capability, health/mental health, social capital, and permanence that are responsive to their cultures and identities.
• Provide continual education around equitable opportunities for housing, education, employment, financial capability, health/mental health, and social capital to staff, young people, families and community partners as they provide these opportunities to young people and families.
• Some of the community supportive services include financial, psychological/emotional, social, educational/academic, safety, employment/vocational, medical, legal, as well as community services.
• Coordinate and lead monthly community meetings to foster relationship building, collaboration, and promote equitable services for young people and families. This includes strengthening relationships with partners, identifying and addressing improvements to working together to authentically support young people and families including implementation of equitable and best practices and continued communication strategies.
• Create and maintain a holistic binder of up to date vetted and relevant resources
• Facilitate a warm handover (do with not for) to the recommended service providers, agencies, supports or partners.
• Foster a climate of collaboration among all collaborative partners, services and programs.
• Provide ongoing input, information, and materials (as requested) that support internal and external communication efforts about programming and opportunities.
• Participate in the continuous quality improvement and data-driven decision-making processes to assess the efficacy of programming and to drive programmatic refinements. Ensure adherence to data collection requirements.
• Provide ancillary support for other Gwens Girls projects by coordinating with and supporting colleagues as needed or requested.
• Desire to educate the community about the unique issues facing young people transitioning from foster care, juvenile justice, and homelessness
• Incorporates Sanctuary tools and practices into everyday interactions to create a trauma-informed environment. Upholds the principles of Sanctuary to provide a therapeutic framework and culture.
• Actively participates in all required team meetings, trainings, and supervisory sessions. Meets regularly with supervisor, communicates openly needs, concerns, and ideas; utilizes feedback given in supervisory sessions.
• Performs in accordance with established system-wide competencies and receives satisfactory performance evaluations annually.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

WORK ENVIRONMENT
Works in a community setting with both girls and boys with diverse backgrounds. Staff must think fast in the event of a crisis and be aware of community resources.

Physical Requirements: Sitting, standing, kneeling, bending, stooping, reaching over head, speaking, hearing, reading comprehension and the ability to lift and carry 50 pounds.

General Requirements: 1) Working in the community and indoors in busy office, working in close proximity to co-workers; 2) Frequently required to work at a fast pace; 3) Requires considerable concentration and creativity; 4) Weekend and evening work required; 5) Travel required (transporting clients).

Qualifications

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
Education: High school Diploma required with at least 2 years of direct experience working with young people and families. A bachelors degree in a relevant field is a plus but not required. An equivalent combination of education and/or experience may be substituted. Preference will be given to candidates with a working knowledge of community resources and a track record of collaboration, as well as experience working with youth transitioning from foster care or juvenile systems or who have experienced homelessness.

Minimum Requirements:

• A strong desire to engage in the difficult and transformative work of challenging systems of oppression, institutional and structural racism, and implicit bias is required
• Ability and willingness to work some evenings and weekends
• Ability to work remotely and/or in an alternative workplace
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office applications
• Ability to apply evidence-based practice
• Familiarity and willingness to utilize social media
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities at once
• Ability to work well independently and as a member of a highly integrated and diverse team
• Set priorities, monitor progress towards goals, and effectively track activities and data
• Be able to exercise excellent judgment, decorum, confidentiality, gratitude, and diplomacy in all interactions with internal and external stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to assess problem situations/conflict, which includes identifying causes, gathering and processing relevant information, generating possible solutions, and making recommendations and/or resolving problems
• Willingness to have authentic and courageous conversations internally with colleagues and externally with partners to enact systems change
• Capacity and willingness to self-reflect
• Strong desire and ability to work with youth ages 8 19 from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and gender diverse communities
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate effectively with people from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and gender backgrounds
• Strong analytical writing skills and oral communication skills
• A valid Pennsylvania drivers license is required

Clearances Required: PA Act 33 (Child Abuse) / Act 34 (Criminal History) / Federal Criminal History Record (FBI Fingerprint) / National Sex Offender Registry

Salary : $20 - $21