Conference Facilitator

City of New York•New York, NY

About The Position

The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) protects and promotes the safety and well-being of children and families through child welfare and juvenile justice services and community supports. The Office of Family Team Conferencing facilitates conferences and performs related duties in support of Child Protection best practices, including processing out-of-home foster care placements for children deemed unsafe or at risk in their natural environment. The work focuses on family support, well-being, child safety, risk, and permanency. Child Safety Conferences aim to develop appropriate safety decisions and plans to prevent removal when safe, or identify suitable out-of-home placements that protect children from imminent danger and harm, using family and fictive kin resources to support placement and permanency. The selected candidate will facilitate Family Team Conferences, address concerns raised by children, families, provider agencies, divisional partners, and Family Court, and use stakeholder decision-making to recommend referrals and resources. The role also includes documentation and administrative work, kinship home study packages and support requests, consultation with interagency resources, case conferencing, and community-based conferencing when appropriate, necessary, and safe. The offered salary is between $84,863 and $97,593. Candidates are encouraged to take and pass the next open competitive civil service exam for the title. Permanent Child and Family Specialists are encouraged to apply.

Requirements

Master’s degree in Social Work from an accredited school of social work.
A valid New York State registration as an LCSW and at least one year of full-time, satisfactory, post-graduate experience in qualifying practice modalities; or a valid New York State registration as an LMSW and at least three years of qualifying experience; or at least three years of qualifying experience with an LCSW or LMSW registration obtained within one year of appointment.
Qualifying experience includes facilitation of family team conferences or family group decision-making meetings using a family-engagement and consensus-based conferencing model; clinical group work with children, youth, parents, or individual families; or professional training on child and family services topics.
Up to two years of the experience required under the LMSW pathway may be in supervision of the specified social work practice areas.
At least one year of required qualifying experience must have been obtained within the last five years.
Candidates must obtain an LCSW or LMSW registration within one year of appointment. Failure to obtain the license by the end of the probationary period will result in dismissal; the probationary period may be extended by no more than six months if the license is not obtained within the first year.

Responsibilities

Attend and facilitate scheduled Family Team Conferences focused on child safety, risk and well-being, permanency, and family support, ensuring placement and discharge decisions reflect Children’s Services commitments, values, and principles.
Address critical issues and concerns raised by children and families, provider agencies, divisional partners, and Family Court during conferences.
Use a decision-making process involving key stakeholders, children, families, service providers, and community resources; recommend referrals and resources when appropriate.
Prepare and complete administrative functions, including timely conference documentation, data, action plans, and related reports.
Complete expedited home study packages (5300 series) with kinship resources in the community.
Submit DOAS requests for items to support children in kinship resource homes.
Request emergency funds or miscellaneous reimbursement payments for kin resources caring for children.
Interface with interagency critical support resources, including the clinical consultation team, MCHU, and Investigative Consultants, to identify issues, barriers, and concerns related to child safety.
Provide case conferencing and consultation to reassess decisions and service plans; consult with FCLS attorneys regarding legal posture and court orders when assessing family readiness for change and caretaker protective capacity.
Provide conferences in the family’s natural community when appropriate, necessary, and safe.