Family and Community Engagement Specialist (3522)

Lutheran Services Florida•Largo, FL

13h•Hybrid

About The Position

Lutheran Services Florida (LSF) is seeking a talented Family & Community Engagement Specialist to make an impact in the lives of others. This role requires advanced knowledge in social services to provide appropriate services and support to children and families in the Head Start/Early Head Start program. Key responsibilities include managing eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance (ERSEA), facilitating parent engagement, providing health, mental health, and nutrition support, building partnerships with families to help them identify goals and needs, assisting with family partnership agreements, and managing comprehensive family files.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work, Human Services, or related human services field.
At least two years of experience working with children and families in a social services environment.
Certification in First Aid and CPR within three months of the date assigned to this position.
Successful completion of a Level II background screening and drug screening prior to hiring.
Considerable knowledge of the principles and practices of social work and human behavior.
Knowledge of human development and health.
Knowledge of social services and health services available in the area.
Knowledge of computer data entry processes.
Knowledge of family-centered practices.
Ability to communicate ideas and instructions orally and in writing.
Ability to write reports and business correspondence.
Ability to speak before groups of individuals, such as Committees and Staff meetings.
Ability to calculate amounts by adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing and figuring percentages.
Ability to interpret an extensive variety of instructions.
Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions.
Ability to make recommendations and develop implementation strategies.
Basic computer skills.
Must demonstrate sensitivity to our service population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics and needs.

Nice To Haves

Head Start/Early Head Start experience preferred.
Bilingual preferred: English/Spanish or English and other languages present in the local area.

Responsibilities

Conduct eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance (ERSEA).
Facilitate parent engagement.
Provide high-quality health, mental health, nutrition support, and resource linkage.
Build partnerships with families to assist them in identifying their own goals, strengths, needed services, and support systems.
Assist with developing and implementing family partnership agreements that outline families' strategies and timetable for achieving their own goals.
Manage and maintain the family comprehensive file.
Initiate collaborative partnerships with parents to establish mutual trust and respect.
Assess family needs for social services and develop individualized plans.
Deliver or coordinate social services through referral or direct services, and review/update plans as necessary.
Conduct and document follow-up on all referrals.
Establish Family Partnership Agreements (FPA) with families, identifying strengths, needs, and interests to help parents develop and achieve goals within 45 days of enrollment.
Facilitate follow-up on FPA goals with families within 90 days and on-going at a minimum of 90 days or more frequently if necessary.
Provide comprehensive community resource information to families, individualized to their needs and concerns.
Refer families to community agencies/programs and assess the accessibility, relevance, and usefulness of assistance received.
Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with community organizations responsive to the concerns of families with children birth through age 5, pregnant women, and their families.
Participate in community awareness events.
Report suspected child abuse and/or neglect following program procedures and Florida law.
Serve on a community board located in the area of the assigned Head Start/Early Head Start site.
Develop a working knowledge of community resources and visit major agencies annually for service delivery and resource guide updates.
Implement, document, and report on recruitment, selection, and enrollment of potentially eligible children birth through age 5, pregnant women, and their families.
Recruit prospective families and complete the enrollment process.
Maintain funded enrollment and fill Head Start/Early Head Start vacancies within 30 days.
Accurately verify and determine eligibility for Head Start/Early Head Start enrollment.
Monitor attendance and maintain an average daily attendance above 85%.
Follow up with families experiencing participation or attendance problems.
Coordinate and implement monthly parent committee meetings at assigned center site(s).
Maintain accurate records and documentation for parent committee meetings.
Ensure elected Policy Council representative and/or alternate attends the Program’s Policy Council monthly meeting.
Coordinate monthly parent engagement activities through the A Man Everybody Needs (AMEN) and Ladies of Victory and Empowerment (LOVE) support groups.
Implement a comprehensive, individualized, and developmental parent engagement and education program responsive to parent needs, concerns, and requests.
Ensure comprehensive, timely two-way communication between parents, Head Start staff, and community individuals/organizations.
Encourage parent volunteerism throughout the program.
Provide parents regular opportunities to work together and with community members on activities they helped develop and expressed interest in.
Encourage parents to take an active role in making community services more responsive to their goals and needs.
Promote full child/family participation in program activities and assist with monitoring and resolution of any problems.
Assist parents, including pregnant women, with the transition process into Head Start from Early Head Start or other settings, and from Head Start to kindergarten.
Assist with the completion of child health screening, other required screenings and assessments, and be familiar with referral requirements.
Promote child and family wellness and the establishment of a medical and dental “home” for each HS infant, toddler, preschool child, and pregnant woman.
Provide physical/dental/mental health and nutrition education activities responsive to parent needs.
Provide health, safety, and family literacy activities to parents.
Assist and support families with engaging and completing appropriate disability paperwork for their child requiring services.
Ensure an appropriate written transition plan is prepared for all Early Head Start children six months prior to their third birthday.
Document all efforts to assist families, track family partnership efforts and outcomes, record, monitor, and follow up on referrals, and submit reports as required.
Collect child and family data and enter into ChildPlus; monitor; update; prepare data reports for program use and complete all Program Information Report (PIR) indicators within ChildPlus.
Maintain accurate, objective, timely, and confidential records documenting all child, family, staff, and agency contacts; disseminate appropriately; and document recruitment and enrollment activities.
Coordinate with center staff to integrate family partnership goals with classroom efforts and ensure integrated child and family curriculum.
Regularly share information with teachers to ensure coordinated services that meet individual needs of children and families, while respecting confidentiality.
Attend parent/teacher conferences as requested.
Attend multi-team development meetings and staffings as requested.
Participate in team management functions of planning, implementing, and evaluating family and community engagement goals and objectives.
Participate in in-service, workshops, conferences, and college courses to enhance skills.
Attend all workshops and meetings as deemed necessary by the supervisor.
Maintain strict confidentiality with respect to Head Start/Early Head Start children, families, and staff.
Other related duties as assigned.

Benefits

Medical
Dental
Vision
Telehealth (24/7 online access to Doctors)
Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
Employer paid life insurance (1X salary)
13 paid holidays + 1 floating holiday
Generous PTO policy (starting at 16 working days a year)
403(b) Retirement plan with 3% discretionary employer match OR 3% student loan repayment reimbursement
Tuition reimbursement