Social Worker II- Foster Care

Harnett County • Lillington, NC

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

The primary purpose of this position is to provide Foster Care, Family Support, and Interstate services to strengthen family functioning, enhance the protection and care of children, and achieve permanency for children. Services are provided to assist in preventing the neglect and abuse of children and to develop and implement case plans to help remediate family problems that have caused the abuse or neglect of children. This involves on-going assessments of risk for children who have been abused or neglected and the provision of comprehensive services to achieve reunification or other permanent goal as needed. This position is part of Children's Services Section in the Harnett County Department of Social Services.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in social work from an appropriately accredited institution; OR bachelor's degree in a human services field from an appropriately accredited institution and one year of directly related experience; OR bachelor's degree from an appropriately accredited institution and two years directly related experience; OR an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Considerable knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices and their application to individual casework, group work, and community problems.
• Knowledge of the psychosocial, socioeconomic, and behavioral problems and their treatment.
• Knowledge of governmental and private organizations and community resources.
• Knowledge of laws, regulations, and policies that govern the program.
• Skill in establishing rapport with a client and applying techniques of assessing psychosocial, behavioral, and psychological aspects of a client's problem.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with administrative superiors, members of caseload and their families, and with civic, medical, social, and religious organizations.
• Ability to train or instruct lower-level social workers, students, or interns.
• Ability to express ideas clearly and concisely and to plan and execute work.
• Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices, and their application to complex casework, treatment, and investigation of abuse or neglect of children.
• Thorough knowledge of policies and procedures as evidenced by the ability to cite the authority of federal and state law.
• Thorough knowledge of a wide range of medical, behavioral, and psychosocial problems and their treatment.
• Thorough knowledge of family and group dynamics and a range of intervention techniques.
• Thorough knowledge of governmental and private organizations and resources in the community.
• Ability to interact and motivate a resistant, involuntary client population and the public who may not agree with the laws, rules, or policies of the process or the programs.
• Ability to prepare documentation such as written investigative reports for the court, case records, and treatment plans.
• Ability to act as an expert witness.
• Ability to employ advanced case management interview techniques to establish a supportive relationship and involve families in the initial assessment for the need of services.
• Ability to quickly assess the risks and safety of the client environment during daylight hours, after dark, and in high crime areas.
• Ability to employ expert negotiation skills in the most complex cases.
• Ability to analyze and assess child development safety issues in relation to risk factors.
• Ability to analyze tense family situations and make decisions about removing children when the decision has to be made with limited direct information and limited access to consultation.
• Ability to communicate effectively and establish supportive client relationships.
• Ability to perform manual work exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects.

Nice To Haves

• General knowledge of medical terminology, disease processes, and their treatment is required in certain programs or settings.

Responsibilities

• Independently perform assessments to identify needs and establish an appropriate service/treatment plan.
• Provide supportive/ directive counseling to clients and families in addressing needs.
• Serve as an inter/multi-disciplinary team member.
• Refer clients and families to a variety of services to meet financial, psychological, emergency care, emotional, or other needs.
• Assume a case manager role to follow the client through agency and external services.
• Provide prevention services to promote the well-being of children and families and increase the family's strengths and stability.
• Assess and provide services needed to address issues such as family relationships, substance abuse, housing, poverty and finances, childcare, juvenile delinquency, and health concerns.
• Supervise a plan of substitute care for children removed from their home for abuse, neglect, or dependency.
• Assess service needs of families and children, develop a plan of services to address identified needs, and evaluate on-going risk for children if returned to the care of their families.
• Make recommendations to the Court regarding the appropriate plan to achieve permanence for children in the foster care system.
• Manage emergency shelters at times of natural or man-made emergencies.
• Provide on-call coverage for Children's Services on a rotating basis, responding to crisis situations involving children in the custody of the agency.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level