Permanency Services - Social Services Specialist IV

State of Colorado•Denver, CO

11d•Hybrid

About The Position

This position is responsible for identifying barriers and solutions to the timeliness of permanency for children and youth placed in Qualified Residential Treatment Programs (QRTP) by county child welfare agencies. Primary duties include providing increased oversight, technical assistance, and support to county departments to improve performance measures and outcomes related to permanency; helping the Department identify and address systemic barriers related to timeliness of permanency; monitoring measures and outcomes for Colorado’s children placed in QRTP or out-of-home treatment experiencing barriers to permanency; and focusing efforts and resources on reducing the impacts of those barriers. Duties include outreach to other stakeholders to address barriers and identify strategies to overcome barriers to sustained permanency. Identification of strategies to address barriers to removing children and/or youth from their home needs to be considered at the individual, county, state, and other systemic levels. This position is expected to travel to all 64 counties to provide technical assistance and oversight of child welfare practice as it relates to utilization of Qualified Residential Treatment Programs and Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) for timely and sustainable permanency. This position makes recommendations for policy and practice improvements to the Ongoing Child Protection Administrator and Permanency Services Unit Manager in matters related to the timeliness of permanency; other areas of permanency; coordinating efforts between the County Department of human/social services and other state agencies or community stakeholders; and opportunities for collaboration with licensed providers (QRTPs, PRTF’s, and child placement agencies) and the placement services unit. This person will need the skills to be able to review multiple documents, including clinical notes, DHS reports, and assessments, to formulate recommendations to guide and inform agencies, county DHS, and other appropriate professionals involved to ensure children and youth are getting the placement and support that best meets their permanency needs. This may include attending staffings, Family Engagement Meetings, placement meetings, and working closely with Provider Services, HCPF, BHA, and the Child and Youth Medical Team. This position will give feedback directly to counties regarding best practice issues identified during reviews and communicate with the counties' assigned County Intermediaries. This position will develop up-to-date training on best practices for submitting QRTP Lifetime Limits referrals as well as rules and expectations for counties that have youth or children in QRTP level of care.

Requirements

Seven (7) years of relevant experience in an occupation related to the work assigned to this position.
A combination of related education and/or relevant experience in an occupation related to the work assigned equal to seven (7) years.
Certification as a child welfare caseworker in the state of Colorado or ability to certify within 6 months of hire as a child welfare caseworker and supervisor certified within 6 months.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's or graduate degree from an accredited college or university in Public Administration, Psychology, Social Work, Childhood Development, Sociology, or a closely related field of study.
Clinical experience in a QRTP, PRTF, or RCCF, or treatment facility, or extensive experience working with high-acuity youth or children.
Experience related to working in ABA Clinics or child-related settings (education, residential, foster care, casework).
Knowledge of Volume 7 licensing regulations and statutes.
Skills in interpreting and enforcing regulations.
Ability to establish collaborative partnerships and effective working relationships with a variety of internal and external customers and diverse public and private stakeholders.
Skills in interviewing children and adolescents, including those with complex-traumatic backgrounds.
Outstanding skills and abilities in verbal and written communication, and report writing.

Responsibilities

Provide Technical Assistance and Monitoring of Timely Efforts for Permanency: Research and assess promising practices in timeliness of permanency and other areas of permanency for children/youth in child welfare. Support the implementation of policies and practices in the 64 county departments of human/social services to improve outcomes for children who enter QRTPs and those experiencing other barriers to permanency. Implement best practices around reducing the length of stay for children/ youth in out-of-home care. Serve as the state’s subject matter expert for practices that ensure an increase in the timeliness of permanency and efforts to ensure family engagement in permanency for children in out-of-home treatment settings. Serve as the state’s subject matter expert for practices that ensure permanency for children experiencing out-of-home treatment, specifically in congregate care settings, and other issues that could impede or delay permanency.
Rule, Policy, Procedure, and Training Curriculum Development: Develop rules, policies, procedures, and guidance related to increasing timeliness to permanency and other permanency-related areas of practice for children/youth in Colorado. Develop, support, and assist with the implementation of best practices, policies, and procedures. Ensure the incorporation of best practices, policies, procedures, and guides into the training provided by the Child Welfare Training System for serving families. Maintain full knowledge of rules and statutes at the State and Federal levels. Remain informed and prepared to discuss such information with the Ongoing Child Protection Administrator and Permanency Unit Manager regarding county departments of human/social services. Coordinate within Child Welfare and other experts to provide a consistent scope of practice and to implement promising practices in a timely manner to permanency. Specifically, work with the Child and Youth Medical Team within the Office of Children, Youth, and Families to consider gaps in training or resources across the state of Colorado. Maintain training materials and opportunities for counties and partnering agencies to ensure sustainability for any new county child welfare and DCW staff. This would include, but not be limited to, creating and distributing memos, presenting at Town Halls, Sub-Pac, and individual county meetings. Support Permanency team members with any other training as needed.
Research and Best Practice development for permanency in child welfare: Perform research to recommend and implement practice improvements; ensure counties' compliance with program regulations; analyze trends to evaluate program performance; Ensure consistency of program practices; Research and investigate national best practices in timeliness to permanency. Responsible for the design, programming, and policies for implementation by county departments. Programming selected builds on Colorado's strengths and is operationalized within existing resources. Management relies on this position to research and recommend a course for the direction the division takes in response to policies for the improvements in timeliness to permanency. Management relies on this position to identify those areas in practice and rule that lack clarity of policy and make recommendations for change in practice that will help promote safety, permanency, and well-being.
External Stakeholder Collaboration: Initiate and facilitate relationships between the state, county departments of human/social services, QRTPs, child placement agencies, community stakeholders, and/or other partners. These stakeholders include but are not limited to judicial, the Court Improvement Program, the Office of the Child’s Representative, the Office of Respondent Parent Counsel, Behavioral Health Administration, Health Care Policy and Finance, and Child Placement Agencies. Track compliance and practice needs and assist with stakeholder collaboration to increase timeliness to permanency. Facilitate the county department of human/social services and outside stakeholder access to the Child Welfare Training System training and coaching on an as-needed basis.
Placement Support: Support counties with the complex issue of high-acuity placement by tracking children and/or youth who are in emergency placement settings. Report to the co-lead for a weekly cross-agency collaboration to review and analyze the needs faced by children & youth. Support the summarization of data obtained through a variety of reports (such as the lifetime limits, out-of-state placement, long stayers in congregate care settings, and Enhanced Standardized Assessment by placement type) to inform systemic gaps and trends and gaps in resources. Additionally, attend local multi-agency staffings and coordinate with licensed providers and the clinical support team to create movement for youth without placement. Serve as a placement navigator who coordinates with other division units, county departments, and other agencies in support of securing appropriate treatment and placement for high-acuity youth.
Other Duties as Assigned: Perform other duties as assigned to support department and division objectives. All other duties as assigned by leadership within the Division of Child Welfare.

Benefits

PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan plus 401(k) and 457 plans
Medical and dental health plans
Employer supplemented Health Savings Account
Paid life insurance
Short- and long-term disability coverage
11 paid holidays per year plus vacation and sick leave
State of Colorado Employee BenefitHub Resource Center
Employee Wellness program
Excellent work-life programs, such as flexible schedules, training and more
Remote work arrangements for eligible positions
Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (for some positions)