Social Worker III - Foster Care

Nash County•Nashville, NC

13h•Onsite

About The Position

The primary purpose of the social worker in this position is to execute the agency's mandate to arrange and support substitute care appropriate to a child's needs and work towards obtaining permanence. This involves providing services to children in agency custody or placement responsibility due to inadequate care or protection from parents/caretakers, and offering services to biological families/caregivers to improve conditions and facilitate reunification. The role also includes supporting foster families or other substitute caregivers, developing alternative permanence options if reunification fails, and working towards a safe, permanent home within one year for children in agency custody/placement responsibility.

Requirements

Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices and their application to complex casework and community problems.
Considerable knowledge of family and group dynamics and a range of intervention techniques.
Considerable knowledge of developmental stages and tasks of human behavior, and socioeconomic problems and their treatment.
Considerable knowledge of governmental and private organizations and other resources within the community.
Considerable knowledge of laws, regulations, and policies which govern Child Protective Services.
General knowledge of methods and principles of casework supervision and training.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with clients, associates, administrative superiors, and social, medical, legal, civic, and religious organizations.
Ability to supervise, train or orient lower-level employees, students or interns.
Ability to express ideas clearly and concisely — orally and in writing.
Ability to plan and execute work effectively.
Ability to operate an automobile.
Ability to use a personal computer and access the State Network.
Ability to effectively function under stress and to deal with conflict situations and personalities.
Ability to function with a high level of autonomy.
Minimum North Carolina automobile liability insurance.
Valid North Carolina driver's license.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree from an accredited School of Social Work
Bachelor's degree from an accredited School of Social Work and completion of the Child Welfare Collaborative
Bachelor’s degree in social work from an accredited school of social work and one year of directly related experience
Master's degree in a human services field and one year of directly related experience
Bachelor’s degree in a human services field from an accredited college or university and two years of directly related experience
Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and three years of directly related experience

Responsibilities

Participates in Child and Family Team Meetings prior to children coming into care to help identify relatives and/or other options to prevent children coming into care.
Prepares children and families for separation and placement into substitute care.
Places and monitors children in foster care.
Provides or arranges for counseling and other supportive services for children and their families.
Prepares children and biological family/caregivers and foster families for re-entry into the home or other permanent plans.
Develops a case plan with input from the family and other members of the Child and Family Team meeting, identifying problems that lead to the need of substitute care.
Prepares written court studies and testifies when needed in judicial reviews of children in foster care.
Completes room and board payments for foster families.
Participates in the determination of eligibility for services for Medicaid, state foster home funding and/or IV-E funding.
Keeps documentation of all casework current within 7 days of last contact.
Participates in supervisory conferences and staff development activities.
Engages in public speaking, participation on community boards and committees, and participation in community affairs relating to substitute care and child welfare.
Handles Disaster Relief and occasional on-call duties for emergency child welfare issues.