Foster Care Specialist ($2,000 Sign-On Bonus & $3,000 Stay Bonus)

Brightpoint • Chicago, IL

3d • $52,416 • Hybrid

About The Position

Brightpoint invites you to join our team of mission-driven staff who share a common vision: an equitable world where all children and families thrive in strong communities. As a leader in the human services sector for 140 years, we aim to advance the well-being of children by investing in families and strengthening communities through data-informed, collaborative, and preventative solutions. The Foster Care Specialist is a critical member of the region’s child welfare team, working collaboratively within and across programs to ensure a relentless focus on keeping children safe and supporting families, consistent with our agency's Blueprint of Impact , which includes replacing what we currently think of as child welfare services with what we know to be child, family, and community well-being solutions. As a Foster Care Specialist, you will gain experience in collaborating with families who have an indicated report of abuse or neglect to work towards a safe reunification or an alternative permanency plan to ensure the wellbeing of every child. Your daily routine will involve providing comprehensive and trauma-informed case management services to a reduced case load of families involved in the child welfare system and providing supplemental services to families assigned to Advanced and Lead Specialists. Case management services include assessing the safety and needs of children and families, engaging biological families to assist them in strengthening their parenting skills and knowledge, providing support to foster families to ensure the needs of the foster children are consistently and appropriately met, establishing collaborative relationships with service providers and institutions that play a role in the family’s situation, m onitoring biological families’ efforts and progress towards goals aimed at family reunification and providing testimony in the Juvenile Court System regarding the best interest of children and families. With support from your supervisor and the Lead Specialist on your team, you will be supported in developing the required competencies to be promoted into an Advanced Specialist position within 6-12 months of hire.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work or a closely related field required.
• Child Welfare Employee License (CWEL), Child Endangerment Risk Assessment Protocol (CERAP), and Child Abuse and Neglect (CANS) certification required, or the ability to obtain within 90 days of hire.
• Ability to attend in-person meetings and events as needed required.
• Valid driver's license, insurance, and a reliable vehicle required.

Nice To Haves

• Experience providing collaborative, strength-based services to kids and families preferred.

Responsibilities

• Manage a reduced caseload of families with children in the care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) due to an indicated investigation of abuse or neglect.
• Partner with families to assess strengths, needs, and natural support systems.
• Collaborate with families and support networks to develop solutions that promote reunification, permanency, or ongoing family connections.
• Provide comprehensive and consistent engagement with family , including needs assessments, service planning, coordination, child safety monitoring, resource referrals, and progress tracking.
• Participate in required meetings with agencies, community providers, and other systems to support family goals.
• Prepare and present court reports , attend hearings, and testify on behalf of the child’s and family’s best interests.
• Plan home visits , including scheduled and unannounced visits, in alignment with best practices and policy.
• Address safety concerns and report suspected abuse or neglect to DCFS in compliance with the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.
• Maintain accurate documentation , records, and billing in accordance with program requirements.

Benefits

• Medical/dental/vision insurance
• 3+ weeks paid time off in the first year including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day (PTO increases with tenure)
• 11 paid holidays
• supplemental insurance options
• 401(k) with match
• Student Loan Forgiveness : Brightpoint is an approved agency for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level