Peer Specialist

Services For The Underserved, Inc.•New York, NY

5d•$22 - $24•Onsite

About The Position

The Peer Specialist engages participants in peer-based services to identify and overcome barriers to community integration. The role uses peer relationships to foster connection, trust, understanding, and validation with community providers and supports. The Peer Specialist works with participants, families, and the team to support engagement, recovery, wellness, advocacy, and connection to community resources.

Requirements

Minimum high school diploma or equivalent.
Two years of active participation in mental health self-help activities, peer support or peer advocacy programs, participant-run organizations, or similar experiences or programs.
Ability and willingness to disclose one's recovery story, where appropriate, for empowerment purposes.
Excellent judgment and ability to understand boundaries when working with participants of mental health services.
Good interpersonal communication skills and ability to empathize with, relate to, and work effectively with participants of mental health services.

Nice To Haves

New York State Certified Peer Specialist.
Lived experience of mental health challenges, preferably including experience with psychosis during youth.
Young adult, or able to relate well to young people.
Understanding of the community where the team is based and awareness of available community resources.
Positive and productive progress toward one's own recovery.

Responsibilities

Facilitate engagement with teams by building strong connections with participants and families, conducting outreach to promote awareness of S:US services, encouraging help-seeking, and sometimes bridging communication between team members and participants who are ambivalent about treatment.
Develop authentic relationships with individuals and families through empathy, sharing experiences, listening, and collaboration.
Understand, share, and discuss multiple frameworks for understanding life experiences, including psychosis; use language to listen and make space for personal stories of recovery and resilience.
Advocate with and for program participants in the community and on the team.
Collaborate with participants to clarify their personal visions and develop wellness tools; support self-awareness, life skills, and connections to resources and community.
Help positively influence team culture by advocating for clients, promoting a youth-friendly approach, encouraging recovery-oriented language, and supporting an environment that recognizes human potential and diversity.
Maintain open and frequent communication with the team, report safety and other concerns, and keep required notes on participant visits. Co-collaborating on reporting with participants is encouraged.
Adhere to the on-call cell phone system to facilitate crisis intervention, emergencies, and other situations requiring immediate action.