Program Coordinator/Community Health Worker - Merced

Youth Leadership Institute•Merced, CA

About The Position

Youth Leadership Institute (yli) builds communities where young people and their adult allies come together to create positive community change that promotes social justice and racial equity. For over 20 years the Youth Leadership Institute has sparked the leadership of young people to solve pressing social issues and serve our communities. yli’s community-based programs are located in San Francisco, Marin, San Mateo, Merced and the Central Valley, Long Beach, and the Eastern Coachella Valley. In addition to serving 7 California counties, yli provides customized trainings, consulting, evaluation, and technical assistance services nationally. yli is committed to engaging and developing young people of color, low-income youth, and other non-traditional youth as researchers, advocates, and agents of social change. With support from yli staff and through authentic partnerships with other key adult allies, young people build the skills necessary to research the issues that most affect them and their communities, develop campaigns to advocate for change, and partner with local stakeholders to implement these changes in their respective communities. PRIMARY FUNCTION The Program Coordinator/Community Health Worker (PC) works in partnership with youth (ages 12 – 24) to organize, empower and mobilize youth and their communities to win real improvements for Merced County area young people. The PC will train and support youth leaders to develop and deepen political consciousness, assess and understand issues impacting their health and well being, build relationships and partnerships with youth and community supporters, and drive countywide and local community campaigns that mobilize supporters, create long- term systems and/or policy change, and build power for future victories. The PC is responsible for managing all of the logistics and functional tasks necessary for meeting the goals and objectives of the assigned campaigns, and for ensuring that the young people are experiencing high quality and culturally relevant leadership opportunities. The Program Coordinator will work to support overall Merced area campaigns, initiatives and staff, prepare appropriate materials, collaborate with community partners, and develop and lead training for youth leaders and other campaign partners. The PC will assist the Program Manager with the logistics and coordination of the Youth Wellness Center, including attending monthly coalition meetings, developing promotional items and related community events within Merced County. The PC is responsible for implementing yli’s core strategies of Leadership Development, Youth Led Action Research, Storytelling and Campaigns. In addition, the PC will assess youth needs entering the space for the appropriate services that are offered in the center. PROGRAM DETAILS AND REQUIREMENTS The PC will recruit up to 10 youth for the Youth Advisory Board (YAB) that is reflective of the community and develop promotional materials for the Youth Wellness Center. Establishing authentic relationships with the Youth Advisory Board (YAB) is essential for the Youth Wellness Center as it reflects yli’s core values of establishing authentic relationships with youth leaders. The program will identify and assess the mental health challenges Merced county young people are having to navigate in their lives and begin to build the political capacity of the youth around addressing these issues by using youth participatory research methods. In addition, after the research process, a policy and advocacy campaign will be launched by youth for youth supported by the Program Coordinator, informed by the data collected. The PC will ensure to coordinate all program evaluation by using various research and data collection methods. The PC is responsible for coordinating and providing direct educational curriculum delivery, youth prosocial and leadership activity development, youth leadership skill building and training, parent education delivery, community education/awareness outreach, and social norms campaign development and implementation in Merced area. They will also serve as the liaison between school and community leaders in the Merced area and yli.

Requirements

2-3 years relevant experience in the field of youth development
Bachelors Degree OR 4 years health care, social services, or community advocacy experience
Commitment to social justice, public health, and community organizing as strategies to affect change
Experience facilitating youth-driven campaigns or projects
Experience with social media and media relations
Demonstrated capacity to work with youth and adults from communities of color and low-income communities
Significant experience in project management
Strong written and verbal communications skills
Excellent follow-through skills; detail-oriented, organized, professional
Experience with community based research or assessment
Able to work some evenings and weekends
Able to work in a fast-paced, multifaceted environment
Computer literate in Mac Platform; proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and Google Applications
Capacity to be self-motivated
Commitment to YLI’s values of community, inclusion, innovation, and social justice
Access to a personal vehicle and clean driving record is required

Nice To Haves

Experience with supervision and/or mentorship of youth
Experience training and providing technical assistance to youth and adult leaders
Knowledge of Merced Area neighborhoods and communities very helpful
Familiarity with social media as a tool for organizing and advocacy

Responsibilities

Assist community members and their families in taking an active role in their health management, promote positive health practices through coaching, education, navigation, and referrals to appropriate care and community based resources.
Encourages and supports community members in making concrete steps towards promoting their health and managing their chronic illnesses.
Assess community members and their home environment to identify physical, social, and emotional/knowledge barriers to optimal health outcomes.
Facilitate community members health goals through advocacy, support them with understanding and using their medical benefits, assisting them in scheduling appointments, developing a support system, and reinforcing self management and organizational strategies.
Responsible for contacting members and community partners in assigned areas and is responsible for performing ongoing functions to support the Social Service department
Responsible for contacting identified members to inform and educate them on health care programs, responding to inquiries from members, and supporting the clinicians in the Physical and Behavioral Health Management department with their provider and member activities
Using yli curriculum, plan for and deliver developmentally appropriate and engaging workshops and training that build leadership and organizing skills, deepen issue and community knowledge, and strengthen connections among members, as well as spark transformation that leads to impactful advocacy
Supervise and mentor youth leaders to develop and implement youth-led campaigns that offer multiple youth leadership development opportunities
Plan and arrange meetings and events, including: preparing sites, agendas, and materials
Conduct strategic follow-up activities after meetings and events including: preparation and distribution of minutes and other records, carrying out tasks assigned at the meeting
Align program curriculum with the different and innovative aspects of media
Utilize positive youth development and youth-adult partnership principles to guide the work
Represent YLI to networks and community in professional way
Develop relationships with local leaders and decision makers
Attend local government meetings and events when needed
Hold 1:1s with youth
Sustain recruitment to ensure diverse youth membership in the campaigns
Develop this program alongside youth.
Conduct outreach to recruit and attract dynamic and diverse team of youth leaders and adult leaders
Ensure balanced, demographically diverse groups of youth and adults
Produce appealing and relevant materials, and outreach materials
Attend several different coalition meetings and set up a network
Manage coordination of media and press coverage for campaigns as necessary
Employ social media tools as a method to organize youth base
Develop the capacity of youth and adults to facilitate youth-led community level data gathering and analysis in support of campaign actions
Manage coordination of key campaign events, like rallies, assemblies, press conferences or legislative hearings as needed
Secure support of campaigns by key stakeholders including school administrators, teachers, parents, community members, policy leaders and other youth groups
Maintain and regularly update a database of allies, constituents, and opponents for use during mobilization and regular communication with campaign supporters
Contribute to development of internship programs
Attend City Council and County Board of Supervisor meetings as needed during campaigns.
Keep accurate, current records of participant demographics
Maintain event summary and monthly records of activities
Document the timely completion of contractual goals and objectives, including internal and external reports
Maintain supervision logs and track youth and staff progress towards goals
Produce regular reports as required by funders
Create content that are educational leaflets for recruitment
Scan local and state list serves and websites
Track local policy related to projects
Bring issues and opportunities to the attention of supervisors and share knowledge and resources with staff