Assistant Director, Programs, Outreach

Breaking Ground•New York, NY

About The Position

Breaking Ground’s Street to Home programs makes regular contact with more than 2,000 street homeless individuals and connects more than 500 individuals to housing, medical and mental health services, substance abuse counseling, and other essential supports each year. The caring, individually tailored attention clients receive at each stage of their journey from street to home ensures that more than 95% of people who Breaking Ground places remain stably housed. Reporting to the Director, Programs the Assistant Director, Programs, Outreach is responsible for supporting 24/7 outreach and housing placement work in Breaking Ground’s catchment area in Manhattan, which spans from 59th Street-23rd Street, river to river. With the goal of moving people off the street and into transitional and permanent housing, the Assistant Director supports the Director with collaborations with the Manhattan Outreach Consortium (MOC) and other outreach providers, city agencies, and a broad array of community stakeholders to help reduce street homelessness. The Assistant Director supports outreach activities and program operations including 311 responses, canvassing strategies, and managing encampments and hotspots. The Assistant Director supervises Team Leaders and supports Harm Reduction and Housing First strategies and other best practice clinical interventions. The Assistant Director works primarily during business hours Monday-Friday, with off hours availability in case of emergency or for special projects/initiatives. The position requires oversight of 24/7 operations and flexibility in work schedule as needed. Program staff will be required to find and assist street homeless individuals under the most extreme weather situations and leadership presence during winter alerts will be required. Must be willing and able to engage with street homeless individuals and can handle multiple tasks in a fast paced, dynamic team environment and demonstrate a willingness to shift easily between various responsibilities with diverse populations.

Requirements

NYS Licensed Masters Social Worker (LMSW) required. Must obtain LMSW within first six months of employment
Minimum 2 years of supervisory experience
Thorough clinical understanding of relevant service delivery concepts and structures including Housing First, client centered motivational interviewing, Harm Reduction models, behavioral and medical health systems, and the ability to access and negotiate the full range of services for recipients
Experience with crisis intervention, including, risk assessments and incident management '
Ability to work successfully with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders
Demonstrated success in working in a fast-paced environment with multiple priorities
Ability to delegate and motivate staff to achieve deliverables
Ability to communicate (verbally and written) with diverse populations and stakeholders
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite programs including Word, Excel, Outlook, and Microsoft Teams; familiarity with Access-based databases and the ability to learn new programs are required
Valid NY, NJ, CT, or PA driver’s license with a good driving record, as defined by Breaking Ground is preferred

Nice To Haves

Bilingual Spanish/English preferred

Responsibilities

Supervise Team Leaders
Provide regular, structured supervision meetings for direct reports
Implement outreach and engagement strategies to identify areas where individuals are staying on the street and provide services to support these individuals
Ensure high quality service delivery by supporting best practice interventions with street homeless populations, collaborating with on-site psychiatric/street medicine team, and providing crisis intervention, including 958 removals and risk assessments
Promote effective strategies for effective outreach, case management, and placement of clients following Housing First, Harm Reduction, Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI), Motivational Interviewing and trauma-informed care models of practice
Coordinate delivery of care with multiple service providers, particularly transitional housing teams
Provide support and guidance to front line staff in managing difficult situations and successfully de-escalating conflict
Provide guidance for incident management, crisis interventions, risk assessments, and ensure all documentation is submitted to appropriate oversight entities in a timely manner
Promote a staff and resident culture that emphasizes housing placement as a measurement of success; ensure that clients are ready for housing placement
With direction from the Director, respond and engage with external partners, including service partners, government representatives, community stakeholders, hospital personnel, and other agencies to ensure responsive and effective service planning and program operations
Perform other duties as assigned