Housing & Community Support Specialist 1 (OPEN & PROMOTIONAL)

Spokane County•Augusta, GA

8d•$63,877 - $88,962•Hybrid

About The Position

This recruitment is open to all applicants meeting the minimum requirements. Priority consideration will be given to Spokane County employees in a position covered by the 1553 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) submitting applications between 7/16/26 and 7/23/26. The position allocated to this class provides medically necessary behavioral health case management and individualized support services for adults diagnosed with serious mental illness and/or co-occurring disorders. Incumbents provide direct behavioral health services to assist program participants in obtaining housing, facilitating independent living, enhancing community integration, and improving participant quality of life through achievement of treatment goals. Work is performed independently, within well-defined guidelines, under the direction of the Integrated Behavioral Healthcare Manager. Duties are performed both in the office and in the field and require detailed documentation. Positions of this class differ from those of Housing and Community Support Specialist 2 classification by degree and experience requirements and assigned duties.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Counseling or other advanced degree in one of the social sciences or an affiliated field, or Associate’s degree in a Human Service-related field and two (2) years of experience in the behavioral health field, or Meeting the experience and credentialing requirements under Department of Health (DOH) Registered Agency Affiliated Counselor (AAC) pursuant to RCW 18.19, with at least five (5) years of related experience, which may include experience gained as a student intern, juvenile rehabilitation counselor, or peer counselor-preferably in the field of Mental Health or providing Behavioral Health service and/or crisis intervention services.
Possession of Registered, Certified or Licensed Agency Affiliated Counselor (AAC) Credential pursuant to RCW 18.19 and RCW 71.05.020 and/or ability to gain an AAC License within sixty (60) days of hire. Submission and processing time by DOH do not count toward sixty-day requirement.
Obtain National Provider Identifier (NPI) within 30 days of hire and maintain throughout employment.
May not be a State or Federal (OIG) and System for Award Management (SAM) excluded provider, in any capacity for the Medicare, Medicaid, and all Federal healthcare programs.
Maintain professional credentials required for the service being provided, including the completion of training or coursework to receive any required Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits needed to maintain the credentials.
Possession of a valid driver's license at time of hire and for the duration of employment
Knowledge of housing and other community resources, including federal and state entitled benefits individuals may qualify for.
Knowledge of challenges faced by socioeconomically disadvantaged or individuals with disabilities.
Knowledge of case management approaches, service referral and available community resources, organizations and supports for the mentally ill.
Knowledge of the Spokane RSA System of Care including mental health agencies and substance use disorder and recovery services.
Knowledge of common mental health and substance use disorder diagnoses.
Knowledge of relevant confidentiality requirements, policies and procedures.
Skilled in communicating effectively both orally and in writing, sufficient to exchange or convey information and to give and receive work direction.
Skilled in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with clients, co-workers and community agencies/partners.
Ability to deal with the public in a pleasant, courteous and calm manner, often under stressful situations.
Ability to work both independently and as a member of a team.
Ability to accept persons who may be different from yourself.
Ability to exercise tact and discretion in obtaining cooperation of others.
Ability to maintain a professional demeanor during stressful and/or hostile situations.
Ability to develop a therapeutic alliance with individuals in services, demonstrating empathy and unconditional positive regard.
Ability to work on a long-term basis with individuals with serious mental illness and/or co-occurring disorders understanding the complexity of challenges and life stressors each individual experience(s).
Ability to understand modest achievements demonstrate progress for individuals with serious mental illness or co-occurring disorders.
Ability to accurately and professionally implement and document the services provided to clients.
Ability to manage a caseload of approximately 30-40 individuals.
Ability to collaborate and coordinate with Enrolled Responsible providers and allied systems in the community.
Ability to demonstrate effective time management skills in coordinating daily activities, appointments and completing necessary paperwork.
Ability to facilitate effective resolution of conflicts between clients and others.
Ability to operate standard office equipment, including a personal computer.

Nice To Haves

Prefer experience working with individuals with complex life issues who have chronic or serious mental illness.

Responsibilities

Coordinates services with the Spokane Regional Service Area (RSA) behavioral health agencies for individuals enrolled in primary behavioral health care services with the providers.
Provides direct behavioral health services to individuals enrolled in division programs.
Participates in intake interviews; assists in completion of intake documentation; completes individual treatment plan-recovery goals, per Department of Health (DOH) standards; and completes all other necessary forms.
Assesses individuals for program eligibility and assists in gathering necessary documentation for housing programs.
Designs person-centered treatment plans based upon individual strengths; encourages and promotes a strength-based environment to assist individuals in meeting their individual life goals.
Assists individuals with decreasing isolation, depression and the exacerbation of other mental health symptoms.
Mails calendars and flyers to participants of upcoming events.
Conducts housing searches with individuals who may have substantial barriers to independent living, to secure placement in safe and satisfactory housing; advocates to prospective property management; advocates with Northwest Fair Housing Alliance for individual rights if a person is being discriminated against when attempting to obtain housing.
Navigates complex HUD paperwork for access to housing for chronically homeless, low income, disabled individuals/families.
Orchestrates lease signing, condition reports, and coordination of moving services; schedules and facilitates physical moves through contracted moving services; and assists individual in establishing utility services.
Maintains stabilization and integration into the community once housing goals have been achieved.
Assists individuals in maintaining their housing arrangement and in resolving crisis situations; mediates between individuals and property management with tenancy problems as they arise, (e.g. lease violations, eviction notices, etc.).
Maintains knowledge of and regularly collaborates with local governmental agencies (e.g. Department of Social and Health Services, Department of Motor Vehicles, Social Security Administration, Immigration Authorities, HUD housing programs and Spokane Housing Authority).
Determines additional community resources necessary and/or helpful in assisting an individual in reaching their treatment plan goals in recovery and independent living.
Educates individuals on activities of daily living.
Connects individuals to services in the community for basic health and dental services, vocational programs, legal representatives, money management including payee resources, food banks, shelters, low cost household items, clothing banks, Fair Housing, SNAP money management program, Responsible Renters class, etc.
Provides transportation for housing searches, attendance at various events and access to community resources.
Assesses severity of threats, felony charges and possession of weapons for safety of individual and housing providers.
Assists with the Community Centralize Individual/Family intake process for placement of Permanent Supportive Housing, Transitional Housing or Rapid Rehousing programs.
Coordinates all Community Integration Program (CIP) social events, including preparation and completion of monthly calendar and weekly fliers.
Complies will all contract requirements, meets minimum standards for service productivity as established by contracts and program management.
Completes all necessary documentation, including charts, records of service, Daily Service Activity Logs (SAL), monthly progress reports, Raintree data information, etc. within the timelines established for service delivery and to meet the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA), DOH, Managed Care Organization (MCO), and SCRBH (ASO) standards.
Ensures all pertinent documentation meets medical necessity and golden thread standards.
Utilizes the Electronic Medical Record to complete service documentation in a timely manner while supporting medical necessity.
Audits files to ensure accuracy of information.
Participates in development and implementation meetings to ensure the accurate usage of the system.
Coordinates and collaborates all individual behavioral health issues to the MCOs and behavioral health partners in a timely manner to troubleshoot and coordinate appropriate supportive services for individuals, to maintain residence in a least restrictive environment, to ensure safety of the individual in the community.
Assesses individuals for risk, including danger to self or others.
Provides appropriate care and referral to individuals deemed at risk, including, but not limited to: developing a safety plan, contacting the individual’s primary behavioral health care provider, contacting the regional behavioral health crisis line, and contacting 911.
Follows federal and state laws on compliance, confidentiality, and security protocol.
Participates as a team member of the Agency by attending staff meetings and actively participating in agency meetings.
Communicates regularly with leadership to keep them abreast of activities, plans, and concerns.
Completes all training required by the WAC and RCW’s within the required time frames and attends training to improve clinical skills.
Follows the laws of the State of Washington and the federal government as they pertain to mental health practice.
Encourages and participates in community networking.
Supports treatment team meetings developed by other agencies.
Works closely with and acts as liaison between contracted outpatient providers and MCOs to facilitate resources and to assist in identifying challenges and addressing barriers to utilization.
Provides direction and guidance to individuals, contracted providers, and allied systems to ensure alignment with the CSD mission and desired outcomes.
Identifies solutions to non-standard requests.
Maintains collaborative and collegial working relations with all provider employees.
Builds and maintains strong system working relations with the behavioral health delivery system and with allied service systems.
Maintains records in accordance with requirements of law, contractual requirements and agency policy.
Adheres to Service Encounter Reporting Instructions and other contract reporting requirements.
Assists with setting up and tearing down client events; shopping, organizing and preparing for client events; and monitoring clients at events and documenting progress towards goals.
Coordinates community donations, including arranging furniture pick up, etc.
Performs other related duties as required/assigned.