Education and Employment Specialist - Children's Aid Society : Job Details

Brooklyn Family Services Center (175 Remsen St)

$40,000 - $45,000

Position Summary: Education and Employment Specialists (EES) are members of our FAP teams consisting of the Program Director, Supervisor and Therapists/Case Planners. The primary role of the EES is to provide comprehensive educational and vocational supports, advocacy, and technical assistance to school-age children as well as other members of the family needing supports around employment and/or their vocational interests. In addition, the EES is responsible to support the work of the Therapists/Case Planners in performing case management tasks to assist families with concrete needs and services, entitlements, pro-social activities, and referrals to support services to alleviate barriers to their participation in treatment. Each FAP Program is staffed with an EES responsible for providing educational and vocational services to all families receiving services in that program. For FAP Programs serving multi-boroughs, the EES serves clients in all contracted boroughs.

The EES will obtain medical and educational records for all school age children and attend all school related meetings/hearings, to assist caregivers with advocating for their child's educational and social emotional needs in a school setting. Accordingly, the EES will ensure recommended educational support services are provided.

The EES will also be trained by the Columbia University Workplace Center in the Young Adult Work Opportunities for Rewarding Careers (YA WORC) curriculum. YA WORC is an evidenced informed model that focuses on helping young people to develop the relational competencies essential to being successful in the world of work and on providing young people with the support, skills and knowledge needed for career planning. The EES will be responsible for implementing the YA WORC curriculum in their work with young persons, including Career/Education Planning and Career Club.

The EES will also perform case management tasks such as conducting home and financial assessments as well as safe sleep assessments of infants and safety and risk assessments of all children in the home. Based on these assessments, the EES will provide families with direct case management and advocacy services to address their need for support in areas such as public assistance, housing, emergency food, clothing, furniture and referrals for community-based services such as parenting classes, mental health services, after school activities, SYEP, summer camps, and other pro-social activities, etc.

The EES will report to the Director of the program.

Essential Duties:

• Understand and promote the organization's Mission, Vision, and Core Values to ensure alignment with organizational policies and procedures.
• Obtain and review copies of education and medical records for all school-age youth in the home (report cards, IEPs, immunizations, etc.).
• In collaboration with Case Planners, participate in educational planning meetings including IEP/504, disciplinary hearings, Parent Teacher Conferences, suspension hearings and other educational meetings in support of students and their families.
• Advocate for children to receive quality, consistent educational experience through school visits, meetings with pertinent school personnel, dialogue with students and parents, and monitoring school documentation and attendance to ensure that appropriate academic interventions, mandated special education supports (as applicable), social-emotional supports (i.e. bullying), and opportunities to participate in extracurricular programming are provided as mandated or needed.
• Serve as the YA WORC liaison and implement the YA WORC curriculum with eligible youth, including the Career/Education Planning and co-leading the Career Club.
• Enroll youth in SYEP and provide supports to ensure their success in SYEP job placements.
• Develop resources in the community where youth can receive internship placements and connect eligible youth to these internships.
• Perform case management responsibilities in collaboration with Therapists/Case Planners, including
  • Collaborate with Office of Client Advocacy to assist families with concrete needs such as NY Times Neediest requests for rent arrears, utility shut-off, furniture, gift cards, food/formula, PA applications, etc.
  • Make referrals/schedule appointments to agencies/collaterals as needed, researching and identifying appropriate support services for families' mental health, substance abuse, work readiness, pro-social activities, etc. if necessary.
  • Gather information regarding home and financial resources for new intakes.
  • Provide families with emergency food, clothing, furniture, school supplies, etc. as needed.
  • Engage in outreach activities and cultivate partnerships with other CBOs, schools, support agencies, and businesses to attain required 20% utilization from self-referrals as required by contract and leverage resources in expanding employment opportunities.
  • Document all casework and collateral contacts and data in CONNX, PROMIS, and Prevention shared drive.
  • In rare instances, the EES can be assigned a case planner role for cases approaching closure in order to complete case management tasks on the assigned case. In these situations, the EES will be responsible for completing FASPs and/or Plan Amendments in coordination with the previously assigned therapist/case planner.
  • Participate in supervision, trainings, YA WORC trainings and technical assistance calls, team meetings etc.
  • EES who are part of a multi-borough FAP Program may be required to perform duties to support families in multiple boroughs.
  • Ability to work flexible hours, including in the field/community or various Children's Aid (CA) offices to meet the needs of families and improve efficiency and management of time and resources.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Minimum Bachelor's Degree in education, social work or related field required.
• Minimum of one-year experience working with children and families.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with children, youth and families.
• Bilingual (Spanish/English) preferred.

Key Competencies:

• Experience in working collaboratively as part of a team.
• Knowledge of the D.O.E and its Special Education programs preferred.
• Excellent oral, writing and organizational skills.
• Flexibility and ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.

It is the policy of Children's Aid to provide equal employment opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment and is dedicated to maintaining a work environment that is free from harassment and discrimination. Children's Aid will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or retaliation on any basis, including race, creed, color, national origin, ethnicity, alienage or citizenship status, gender/sex (including pregnancy), disability, religion, source of income, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, familial status, caregiver status, military status, marital or partnership status, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking, predisposing genetic characteristics, arrest or conviction record, credit history, unemployment status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Children's Aid is committed to complying with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Children's Aid will conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of all allegations of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or any violation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Policy in a confidential manner and will take appropriate corrective action, if and where warranted. Children's Aid prohibits retaliation against employees who provide information about, complain about, or assist in the investigation of any complaint of discrimination or violation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Policy.

The incumbent is expected to work a schedule, whether in-person or hybrid, as determined by the department's needs to facilitate effective collaboration with the team. This flexibility is essential for maintaining seamless communication, fostering teamwork, and ensuring the smooth operation of the department's processes. The position's requirements are subject to periodic review and adjustment based on organizational needs and changes in work dynamics.