GUARDIAN AD LITEM OFFICE, 14TH CIRCUIT- CHILD ADVOCATE MANAGER - 21013987

State of Florida•Panama City, FL

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The Statewide Guardian ad Litem Office is Florida’s award-winning, state-funded child advocacy organization that provides independent legal representation to abused, abandoned and neglected children in Florida’s dependency court proceedings. The Office assigns a multi-disciplinary team which is comprised of a guardian ad litem attorney, a child welfare professional, and hopefully a community volunteer or pro bono attorney, to represent each child the Office is court appointed to. The Child Advocate Manager serves as the child welfare professional on the multi-disciplinary team and is responsible for overseeing a team of guardian ad litem volunteers for which they assign to serve on individual cases. As an employee with the State of Florida, your benefits are a significant part of your compensation with 19 percent of your total compensation coming from the benefits that the State offers. As a full-time employee, your insurance rate will be significantly low due to the contribution of the State of Florida. In fact, single coverage is as low as $50 per month, with family coverage costing only $180 per month. While the rates are higher for half-time employees, health insurance options are still available if you are in a salaried position.

Requirements

Must possess a valid Florida Driver’s License.
Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a major in sociology, social work, psychology, child development, education, juvenile justice, communications, or a related social science is preferred but prior experience will be considered to meet the degree requirement. Experience could include time as Child Protective Investigator, Dependency Case Manager, Juvenile Probation Officer, Law Enforcement, Military, Educators, or other professional experiences working with children and families.
Two years of experience in a program focusing on child welfare, social service, counseling, teaching, managing people or supervising volunteers is desired but not required.
Experience with critical decision making, planning, organizing, coaching, leading, or supervising will be helpful to a successful candidate.
All individuals hired after February 1, 2020, must be able to obtain a Child Advocate Manager Certification offered by the Florida Certification Board within 12 months of hire date.
Maintain Child Advocate Manager certification during the duration of employment.

Nice To Haves

Self-motivated and achievement oriented.
Strong desire to learn and pursue personal development.
Ability to take direction and work as part of a team.
Ability to effectively interact with and/or influence people of diverse backgrounds.
Ability to exercise discretion, respect privacy and maintain confidentiality.
Strong organizational/time management skills and ability to meet deadlines.
Excellent oral, written and computer literacy skills.
Able to maintain a professional and effective demeanor in emotional or traumatic situations.
Ability to coach, instruct and motivate volunteers.
Knowledge of case management, social support services and concepts of child development.
Knowledge of the dynamics of child abuse, domestic violence, substance abuse and mental health.
Knowledge of the Florida State Courts System.
Knowledge of Florida Statutes relating to child welfare and protection.

Responsibilities

Collaborate with the Guardian ad Litem Office multidisciplinary team, management, Department of Children and Families, contracted service providers, Department of Juvenile Justice, Department of Education, Law Enforcement, etc.
Overseeing the work of Guardian ad Litem Office volunteers.
Gathering and documenting independent pertinent case information.
Providing best interests advocacy recommendations to the Guardian ad Litem Office multidisciplinary team, to the court and to our child welfare partners.
Preparing written reports to the court.
Provide testimony to the court.
Attending internal and external case-related court hearings, depositions, case plan conferences, dependency mediations, staffing’s and meetings.
Visiting and contacting assigned children, parents, caregivers, schools and service providers.
Utilizing the organization’s database and reporting systems.
Participating in internal and external training, meetings and conferences.

Benefits

State of Florida Retirement package – Pension or Investment plan (3% employee contribution required)
State group insurance coverage options, including health, life, dental, vision, and other supplemental insurance options
Flexible spending account
Nine paid state holidays each calendar year
One paid personal holiday each fiscal year
13 paid sick leave days accrued within the calendar year
13 paid annual leave days accrued within the calendar year with an increase after five years
Life insurance of $25,000 is provided by the state at no cost to you for all FTE positions. Employees may purchase additional coverage
Public Loan Forgiveness Program
State tuition waivers
Child Advocate Manager training and professional certification with the Florida Certification Board
No State of Florida income tax for residents of Florida