Housing Outreach Specialist

Kitsap Community Resources • Bremerton, WA

7d • $23 - $23 • Onsite

About The Position

Join our team as a Housing Outreach Specialist and connect individuals experiencing homelessness with the services, resources, and housing support they need to build a brighter future. If you're passionate about community impact, relationship-building, and helping people overcome barriers, we'd love to hear from you.

Provide coordinated entry navigation services to individuals experiencing homelessness through outreach efforts in encampments, treatment centers, hospitals, jails or institutions. Our Housing Solutions Center Outreach Specialists partners with social service organizations to provide care to homeless and low-income individuals, identify long-term housing solutions, and support households secure permanent housing. The Outreach Specialists will provide intake, assessment, referral and case management for persons who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The Outreach Specialists will also be responsible for documenting information and services into the Homeless Information Management System (HMIS). They will establish and maintain effective partnerships with other area service providers and landlords.

Client barriers may include but are not limited to mental health, substance use disorders, eviction history, unemployment, and medical illnesses. The Housing Outreach Coordinator will collaborate with other service providers in order to ensure each household is connected to the resources they desire for their success.

Special assignments for Housing Outreach Specialists include HEART outreach specialists and Recovery Outreach Coordinators ROAST. The HEART Outreach Specialist works alongside the HEART Coordinator and other community partners employed by Kitsap County to perform coordinated entry services in encampments in Kitsap County. The Recovery Outreach Specialists focuses on coordinated entry services in treatment centers and jails, with the goal of bridging people straight from treatment into housing and reducing relapse or recidivism.

Requirements

• Lived Experience; High School Diploma or GED with 2+ years working experience may be substituted for educational requirements.
• Capable of using Microsoft Office applications including Excel, Word, and Outlook.
• Ability to pass State and/or Federal Background Checks as determined by position (prior to hire date).
• Must demonstrate recognition and compassion for low-income peoples.
• Must be aware and sensitive to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the American with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Demonstrated ability to input, aggregate and analyze data including generation of accurate and complete reports.
• Demonstrated successful experience in preparing and processing documentation following relevant process and guidelines (such purchase requests, requests for payment, etc.).
• Reliable transportation to work.
• Ability to obtain proof of insurability for operating an automobile.
• Current Immunizations per Washington Administrative Code (can be obtained upon hire).

Nice To Haves

• Multi-lingual (especially Spanish).
• Experience working with individuals with high barriers to housing stability including mental health, substance use disorders, and medical illness, familiar with resources for families or individuals who are low-income or unhoused, understand the socio-economic systems at the root causes of poverty.

Responsibilities

• Meets with individuals who may be homeless to determine their emergency and/or permanent housing needs, screens individuals for program eligibility, and coordinates referrals with the appropriate housing providers.
• Identifies other household primary barriers (employment, substance abuse, mental health, education, domestic violence, and health) and coordinates resource referrals for these services.
• Assists the team in tracking and collecting and compiling client statistics and in the completion of program reports.
• Is current on all community resources and assures all resource materials are updated in a timely manner.
• Participates in meetings, conferences, training sessions and workshops as assigned.
• Report to and accept assignments from the Housing Solutions Center Supervisor.
• Service delivery of the Foundational Community Support (FCS) program for each qualified household on caseload including, but not limited to, submitting reauthorizations before expirations and meeting monthly FCS billing targets.
• Demonstrate personal compliance with KCR Polices & Procedures, grant guidelines, and federal & state regulations.
• Maintain recordkeeping and reporting systems to ensure accurate information, with timely completion and follow-up. Daily web-based data entry. Includes HMIS, CCL, Sharepoint, and other databases as assigned.
• Work with individuals experiencing behavior health and substance use and other high-barriers.
• Provide direct services to unhoused, at-risk of becoming unhoused, and recently housed individuals
• Establish knowledge of and develop positive professional relationships with community programs.
• Proactively reach out to and maintain communication by performing home visits (including hotels and encampments, phone calls, texts) when appropriate with clients. Ensure translation of knowledge to appropriate individuals.
• Develop and utilize skills when working with individuals including trauma-informed care, motivational interviewing, progressive engagement and strength-based coaching.
• Work with Individuals, landlords, and community partners to ensure all program requirements are met.
• Maintain positive working relationships with other staff. Actively participate in a team-oriented approach including attending all required team meetings.
• Keep immediate supervisor promptly and fully informed of all salient information pertinent to the current discussion. Salient information includes prior case notes and suggested courses of action. Take prompt action when necessary.
• Prompt communication with supervisor regarding when work activities extend beyond KCR working hours.
• Seek out, participate in, and research for presentations in meetings, conferences, training sessions and workshop opportunities.

Benefits

• Paid time off for vacation, sick days, and holidays
• 100% employer-paid medical, dental, vision, life, and disability coverage for employees
• 6.5% employer contribution to 401K after the first year
• Employee assistance program
• Wellness initiatives
• Professional growth and development training programs

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED