Re-Entry Coordinator

City of New York•New York City, NY

About The Position

The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) protects and promotes the safety and well-being of children and families through child welfare and juvenile justice services and community supports. ACS manages community-based supports and foster care services, and provides subsidized child care vouchers. ACS child protection staff respond to allegations of child maltreatment. In juvenile justice, ACS oversees detention, placement and programs for youth in the community. The Division of Youth and Family Justice (DYFJ) provides a wide range of services and programs for youth at every stage of the juvenile justice process. Our goals are to (a) build stronger and safer communities and advance public safety by preventing juveniles from entering the New York City's juvenile justice system, (b) provide therapeutic treatment and services to youth in our custodial care, and (c) help juveniles access the tools they need to leave the justice system for good. We strive to help families and young people by providing supportive services that are responsive to the needs of individual youth and families. Juvenile Justice Program Services (JJPS) ensures that youth served by DYFJ (from detention to placement) are receiving comprehensive and consistent medical, mental health, case management, social and educational services throughout their involvement with our system by: overseeing ACS’ entire array of programming and services for court involved youth, developing innovative programming and services for youth and families, strengthening mental health services, working together with stakeholders to identify trends, track data, and implement effective interventions, and coordinating training and staff development around specific clinical, mental health, and programmatic issues such as LGBTQ youth issues, family engagement, substance abuse, and the impact of trauma. In addition, JJPS organizes our family engagement and parent support work, and provides staff training on mental health, trauma, LGBTQ issues and Commercially Sexually Exploited Children. The Re-entry Coordinator is responsible for coordinating the development of service and discharge plans with the secure detention milieu to deepen connections in the community that will help facilitate the successful reintegration of youth into the community upon their release.

Requirements

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and two years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties described above; or
2. High school graduation or equivalent and six years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties as described above; or
3. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least one year of experience as described in "1" above.

Responsibilities

Manage relationships within detention to coordinate and support the development of service plans and discharge plans for youth in detention.
Establish relationships with community-based organizations to develop a network of providers that will work to assist youth and their families in connecting to resources in the community upon the youth’s release.
Engage youth in the identification of their individual strengths, needs, and interests.
Coordinate with DYFJ case management, programs, and detention services staff, as well as DYFJ-partner and contracted health services and DOE staff.
Ensure youth are exposed to services that address their needs, including mental health, medical, literacy, substance use, emotional regulation, conflict mediation, life skills, prosocial development and enrichment, recreation and vocational and career support.
Collaborate with other City agencies, including the Department of Youth and Community and Development, Department of Education, and the Department of Correction for planning and continuity purposes.
Perform field visits as needed to coordinate with other stakeholders to ensure continuity in the areas of medical and mental health, education, career readiness, and prosocial programming, and promote greater family engagement to support continuity for kids as they are being released from detention.
Participate in detention, milieu-based meetings, conferences, team meetings, and weekly program meetings to support the planning, development of programs across youth living spaces and other designated programming space. Coordinate the care, behavior plans and discharge recommendations for youth that will enable them to return to the community with reduced risk of reoffending.
Prepare and maintain reports by utilizing information obtained from forms, service plans, discharge plans, youth surveys, databases, and other sources.
Perform Case Management duties as assigned.