Family Finding Program Coordinator I / ITR Specialist

CHILDRENS NETWORK OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA LLC•Fort Myers, FL

25d•Onsite

About The Position

This position is responsible for the coordination of the Family Finder Program to locate, engage, and recommend safe placement of children with relatives and non-relatives in collaboration with Child Protective Investigators (CPI) and Case Managers (CM). This position will support CPI and CM staff in family finding efforts by identifying all possible connections of the child through engagement of the child and family members. This position must have a strong value and belief system that children do best when placed with kin, which minimizes trauma for the child(ren) being removed from their home and enhances child well-being. As an ITR Specialist, this role is responsible for coordinating and facilitating district-wide staffings between the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Case Management Organizations (CMOs), for the purpose of transferring cases from CPI (Child Protective Investigations) to CMO. These staffings may include parents and their supports in discussion to identify needs and strengths to determine appropriate services.

Requirements

A Bachelor’s Degree from a four-year accredited college or university with a minimum of two (2) years of child welfare related experience OR an advanced degree in social work or a comparable human service field.
Must be able to operate standard modern office machinery, including fax, telephone, calculator, computer, scanner, printer, copier, and mail machine.
Excellent word processing skills.
Must be competent with Microsoft Office Suite programs, including Word, Excel, Power Point, and Outlook.
Must be competent with basic e-mail protocol and procedures including sending, receiving, replying, attachments, and meeting scheduling; excellent written and oral communication skills; effective listening skills; ability to work as a team member, and the ability to work in a multi-cultural environment.
Must possess excellent organizational and problem-solving skills and abide by the highest standards of confidentiality.
Valid driver’s license required, with proof of insurance
Clean Driver’s License check is a requirement
Criminal background screening (fingerprinting) (Local Law Enforcement and FBI/FDLE)
Drug Screening is a requirement
Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals.
Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.
Ability to speak effectively before groups of customers or employees.
Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.
Ability to compute rate, ratio, percentages, ability to draw and interpret bar graphs.
Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagram form.
Ability to be proactive, as well as handle problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations.
This job requires the ability to sit for extended periods; walk; stand; use hands to finger, handle or feel; reach with hands and arms; stoop, kneel or crouch; talk and hear.
This job requires visual acuity sufficient to read and operate standard modern office machines.
The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.
A commitment to empowering others to solve their own problems
Valuing a nurturing family as the ideal environment for a person
A conviction about the capacity of people to grow and change
The ability to establish a respectful relationship with persons served to help them gain skills and confidence
The ability to work collaboratively with other personnel and/or service providers or professionals
The capacity to maintain a helping role and to intervene appropriately to meet service goals
The ability to set appropriate limits
Safety and permanency of children
Must pass a Level II Background Check.

Nice To Haves

Child Welfare Certification preferred
Certification as a Child Protection Professional is preferred

Responsibilities

Coordinate the implementation of the Family Finders program to identify and locate familial connections and possible placements for children in licensed out-of-home care.
Interview and assess potential family connections.
Conduct visits with children and youth to assess potential familial connections.
Attend shelter hearings to engage with biological parents to assess potential familial connections.
Conduct case file reviews, internet searches and other family finding techniques to identify potential familial connections.
Conduct follow-up with all individuals who have expressed interest in the child.
Provide overall coordination of the Family Finding program in accordance with major program goals.
Facilitate communication with Child Protective Investigators and Case Managers.
Ensure all family finding efforts are documented in FSFN.
Develop and maintain positive working relationships with other departments, agencies, and community partners.
Coordinate training of case management staff on Family Finding program.
Provide technical assistance as needed.
Provide on-going support to case managers as they support children and families by modeling a nonjudgmental trauma-informed approach to building familial connections.
Assist in the development of the Family Finding program goals and assistance in locating community resources as needed.
Maintain data collection tracking system.
Produce periodic reports as requested.
Coordinate and schedule district-wide staffings between the Department of Children & Families; specifically, the transfer of cases from the child protective investigative units to the Case Management Organizations.
Act as facilitator for district wide case transfer staffings which may involve facilitation of family team conferences.
Prepare initial authorization of paid, purchased and contracted services funded by the Lead Agency within three (3) working days of Intake, Triage and Referral (ITR) staffing for child(ren) that require ongoing protective services.
Produce monthly reports for the Lead Agency on the number, demographics, timeliness, and status of staffings.
Enter appropriate data into automated systems and produce reports from the data system.
Cultivate an effective communication system with the Child Protective Investigators and the CMO case managers for the exchange of all appropriate program information.
Assess identified kin caregivers through the homestudy process.
Advise Case Manager and Supervisor of recommended outcome of the homestudy and file with the court.
Other duties may be assigned as special projects may be requested.