Senior Education & Outreach Specialist

Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota•Saint Paul, MN

About The Position

The Senior Education and Outreach Specialist provides statewide education, outreach, and relationship-building support to increase awareness and understanding of Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) and PICS services. The role develops and delivers accessible presentations, webinars, training, and educational resources for community partners, prospective service users, participants, families, representatives, workers, and other stakeholders. Working in collaboration with the Director of Outreach and Engagement, the specialist implements assigned outreach priorities, builds and maintains community and referral relationships, represents PICS at conferences and community events, and provides navigation and defined enrollment assistance. This includes explaining service options, enrollment expectations, available resources, and next steps; following up on referrals; identifying potential enrollment barriers; and coordinating timely handoffs to the appropriate enrollment or service team. As an experienced individual contributor, the specialist independently manages assigned education and outreach activities, coordinates defined projects, tracks engagement outcomes, and recommends improvements based on stakeholder feedback and emerging community needs. The position contributes to participant engagement, service awareness, qualified referral opportunities, and PICS growth goals through independent execution of statewide education, outreach, and engagement priorities. Travel throughout Minnesota may be required, estimated at up to 20%, with occasional evening and weekend hours for events, conferences, and community engagement.

Requirements

Minimum of three years of relevant professional experience in Minnesota HCBS, human services, outreach, education, training, partnership development, or community engagement, including knowledge of services and supports available to individuals with disabilities, older adults, families, and caregivers.
Demonstrated ability to build trust and maintain productive relationships with prospective service users, participants, families, community organizations, lead agencies, referral partners, program leaders, and internal teams.
Demonstrated public-speaking and presentation skills, including experience delivering engaging and accessible presentations, webinars, and educational training to professional and community audiences of varying sizes in virtual and in-person settings.
Experience developing clear, high-quality educational materials, including presentations, toolkits, guides, training materials, and informational resources.
Strong written, verbal, public-speaking, facilitation, and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex information clearly and educate prospective service users and families through a relationship-based, person-centered approach.
Ability to independently plan, prioritize, and manage multiple outreach, education, partnership, event, and content-development initiatives while meeting deadlines.
Strong critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, including the ability to understand stakeholder needs, exercise sound judgment, and respond to changing circumstances.
Experience collaborating across departments and with diverse internal and external stakeholders to support shared goals, service improvements, and organizational initiatives.
Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and other technology used for presentations, webinars, educational resources, data tracking, and business communication.
Commitment to the organization’s mission and values and to improving the experiences and outcomes of participants, families, and workers.
Ability to maintain confidential information and exercise appropriate discretion.
Ability to pass a DHS NetStudy background check.
Valid driver’s license, acceptable driving record, and ability to meet the organization's motor vehicle record requirements.
Ability to travel throughout Minnesota for outreach, conferences, and events as required; estimated travel time is up to 20%.
Ability to work occasional evening and weekend hours for outreach events, conferences, and community engagement activities.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in social work, human services, education, communications, marketing, public relations, or a related field is preferred; equivalent combinations of education and relevant professional experience will be considered.

Responsibilities

Develop, design, and maintain educational resources, presentations, webinars, training materials, toolkits, guides, and informational content about PICS services, resources, systems, and support options.
Identify, coordinate, and schedule speaking engagements, conference presentations, and other educational opportunities.
Deliver training, educational presentations, and webinars about HCBS and PICS services to community partners and prospective service users.
Review and update educational materials for accuracy, consistency, and alignment with current program rules, regulations, and best practices.
Track training participation, collect feedback, and evaluate outcomes to support continuous improvement.
Provide navigation and education by explaining service options, enrollment expectations, available resources, and next steps to prospective service users, participants, representatives, and families.
Provide defined enrollment assistance, including referral follow-up, enrollment-readiness guidance, identification of potential barriers, and coordination or timely handoff to the appropriate enrollment or service team.
Assist in creating social media, blog, and resource content as needed.
Represent PICS at conferences and community events to educate and raise awareness about HCBS, self-direction, and PICS services.
Build and maintain relationships with prospective service users, participants, families, and caregivers; understand their needs, answer questions, explain available options, and connect them with appropriate resources and next steps.
Conduct phone, email, virtual, and in-person outreach with prospective service users, participants, families, representatives, workers, community partners, and referral sources.
Support customer-feedback initiatives through assigned outreach, identification of themes and trends, and recommendations for continuous improvement.
Identify, recruit, and engage participants, families, representatives, and workers to share experiences through spotlights, testimonials, videos, marketing campaigns, and other storytelling initiatives; obtain appropriate releases and permissions.
Maintain and coordinate updates to the PICS Community Resource Guide.
Collaborate with internal teams to support process improvements, provide appropriate training, and create or refine educational resources and content.
Provide planned or short-term organizational support and reasonable coverage across PICS as needed, within defined priorities.
Monitor industry trends and best practices through webinars, conferences, and professional development related to disability services, older adults, and HCBS.
Coordinate and complete special projects and additional assigned responsibilities, demonstrating initiative and independent judgment.

Benefits

Childcare assistance
Discounts on events and services
Employee assistance program
Financial counselling
Wellness program
UKG Wallet access to payroll dollars before payday
For employees working 30 or more hours per week: medical, dental, life, and vision coverage, a 403(b) plan with a match, and other ancillary plans
Generous PTO plan including paid holidays and float days
Paid training during orientation and throughout employment
Career growth opportunities across the organization's 24+ services