Family Finding and Resource Specialist

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Reporting to the Licensing Supervisor, the Family Finding & Resource Specialist interviews and recruits placement resources for youth in care. Must be comfortable in establishing rapport with families to identify family needs, supports and placement resources. Acts as a liaison to transition youth into the identified placement resources successfully. Requires knowledge of trauma exposure, knowledge of the 5 S’s of trauma: Safety, Self-Regulation/Soothing, Supportive, Strengths, Self-Care, and an understanding of and recognition of the signs of traumatic stress. Must be able to effectively use both verbal and physical intervention skills with individuals (6) to twenty-one (21) years of age. Physical intervention skills require the ability to kneel and return to standing without assistance. Flexible schedule is required as this position may work outside of normal business hours occasionally.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

· Understand implicit bias and how to work within a system that impacts decisions for youth and their families when locating placement options. Has the ability to have crucial conversations with staff and other child and family team members

· Will do extensive research, investigation, and outreach in locating absentee parents/guardians

· Identify and locate potential extended family/fictive kinship relationships

· Provides professional technical assistance and resource development support to casework staff who serve children with specialized and problematic behavior service needs

· Will assist the family caseworker with facilitating the expansion of resources needed to better serve children and their families involved in foster care

· Will drive to various locations to attend meetings, conferences, or to locate and assess family homes as needed

· Will utilize a family-centered, trauma-informed, strength-based, and EDI lens through which youth and family needs are assessed

· Have the ability to engage the youth (as age-appropriate), birth parents, family and social connections, foster parents, and staff to facilitate and support stability and permanency for the youth

· Possesses strong, creative problem-solving skills, and can use non-traditional search methods to identify and locate family members and supportive connections

· Has strong data analysis skills needed to conduct diligent search activities across multiple databases, systems, social media, and other websites. Will complete required forms and SACWIS documentation, send written correspondence, and log / track data for use by the foster care team

· Uses ecomaps, genograms, and other tools to map and locate prospective supports and placement resources for the youth and family

· Serves as a team member within the multidisciplinary team or Child and Family Team Meeting consisting of case manager, supervisor, foster parent, birth parents and youth to facilitate connections between newly found family/fictive kin members, supports, and other collateral resources to resolve complex and stalled cases to improve permanency outcomes

· Possess the ability to identify and engage familial supports and connections including relatives and fictive kin for the purpose of life-long connections and permanency achievement

· Assist in training potential foster parents and biological parents/relatives of foster children, as assigned

Family Finding & Resource Specialist

Job description pg. 2

· Engages in a variety of techniques to meet and communicate with potential foster parents, including attending events, networking, social media, and other strategies

· Support potential foster parents to provide information and encourage engagement through the licensing process

· Will take the lead in engaging in both proactive general and target foster family recruitment efforts for youth in the foster care system

· Targeted recruitment efforts will include specifically reaching out to potential families who are most likely to meet the needs for the specific youth, including but not limited to, attending, and participating in community events throughout the area

· Coordinates services and attends meetings with other agencies, systems, and communityproviders to meet the needs of the clients

· Uses active and reflective listening skills and affirmations to demonstrate respect and empathy, avoiding negative and derogatory labels that foster disrespect

· Understand that behaviors, responses, attitudes, and emotions are a collection of survival skills often developed in response to traumatic experiences

· Maintain confidentiality of employees, volunteers, and program participants to provide a safe environment

· Attend at least two trainings related to being trauma informed in a twelve-month period

· Ability to work effectively with program participants and family members, employees and vendors in a culturally diverse environment to support healing and recovery

· Maintains electronic calendar to provide accounting for daily activities and provides permissions for viewing to the appropriate individuals

· Other duties as assigned

QUALIFICATIONS

· Bachelor’s degree in social work or other human service field, criminal justice or communications

· Experience in investigation and person location preferred

· Strong communication skills, research skills and experience working with children and youth with special needs a plus

· Strong leadership and organizational skills

· Knowledge of childhood trauma and prior experience working in settings with youth and families that have been exposed to trauma or experiencing traumatic stress preferred

· Knowledge of youth development, adolescent issues, positive youth development/strengths-based approach preferred

· Personal vehicle or access to vehicle and proof of insurance

· Valid Illinois/Indiana/Wisconsin Driver’s license

· No history of child abuse or neglect

· Ability to pass background and drug screen

COMPENSATION:

· Compensation is determined by using a consistent base salary for each individual position. For this position, a candidate with a Bachelor’s degree starts at $. A Master’s degree candidate starts at $. Offer increases dependent on education and years of experience.

This position meets the FLSA requirements for Exempt

Job descriptions are not intended, and should not be construed to be all-inclusive lists of all responsibilities, skills, efforts or working conditions associated with a job. While this job description is intended to be an accurate reflection of the job requirements, management reserves the right to modify, add or remove duties from particular jobs and to assign other duties as necessary.

Family Finding & Resource Specialist

Job description pg. 3

Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: From $45,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Flexible schedule
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Day shift
• Monday to Friday
• Overtime
• Weekends as needed

Ability to commute/relocate:

• Chicago, IL: Reliably commute or planning to relocate before starting work (Preferred)

License/Certification:

• Driver's License (Preferred)

Shift availability:

• Day Shift (Preferred)
• Night Shift (Preferred)

Work Location: In person