SYEP Year Round Coach

SGA YOUTH & FAMILY SERVICES NFP•Chicago, IL

12h

About The Position

SGA provides social services in underserved Chicago communities and works to create long-term, community-wide change. The Year-Round Employment Program (YREP) provides employment opportunities to youth ages 16–24 and helps them pursue permanent career paths, apprenticeships, and educational opportunities. Through career exploration and related initiatives, the program aims to help youth achieve their career goals and transition to the next phase of their career journey within a year. Youth work 37 weeks, including six weeks during the summer for One Summer Chicago. The SYEP Year Round Coach works at least 20 hours per week for a 40-week commitment. The role coordinates youth recruitment, enrollment, retention, worksite support, career-readiness activities, documentation, attendance, and program reporting. The Coach also helps match youth with employment placements or specialized training based on their interests and skills, with a goal for 50% of youth to transition to long-term employment, post-secondary or vocational programs, or the military.

Requirements

High school degree required.
Experience working with youth from diverse backgrounds required.
Sensitivity to cultural diversity required.
Ability to communicate and cooperate with diverse families, professionals, and community groups.
Ability to maintain a positive attitude in a high-intensity environment.
Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
Ability to speak effectively before groups of service providers, at community events, or within the organization.
Ability to exercise discretion and independent judgment in executing tasks.
Ability to handle emergency and crisis situations.
Ability to take initiative.
Must have access to a computer.
Competence with Microsoft Office tools and entering services in an online database.
Must be able to work on a computer screen for an extended period and deliver supplies to youth, if needed.

Nice To Haves

An associate degree in human services, education, psychology, social work, or a related field is a plus.
One to three years of related experience, or a combination of training, education, and experience, is preferred.
Knowledge of youth development is a plus.
Bilingual Spanish/English is preferred.

Responsibilities

Coordinate outreach, recruitment, onboarding, and retention of youth participants for the program duration.
Facilitate recruitment, intake, and enrollment activities.
Provide administrative support to SGA partner worksites serving youth ages 16–24.
Develop and maintain positive relationships with partners and employers.
Communicate program policies and procedures to youth.
Track and follow up with site leads and youth to ensure mandatory forms are completed.
Track, manage, and verify youth timesheets for payroll approval; enter attendance and timesheets into the City Span system.
Plan and facilitate weekly job-readiness and financial-literacy workshops and work-readiness skills assessments, and ensure participants complete required assignments.
Build positive relationships with youth and facilitate team building among participants.
Facilitate the DFSS Career Development curriculum to help youth transition to future opportunities.
Attend mandatory DFSS, SGA, and funder trainings and meetings, including training related to City Span, job-readiness and financial-literacy curricula, MCMF, trauma workshops, and designated technology platforms.
Facilitate youth-development and educational programs, workshops, and events in person as appropriate.
Ensure DFSS and SGA surveys are implemented and completed by youth and employers.
Help prepare and deliver supplies and materials to youth, if needed.
Respond in a timely manner to written correspondence, emails, and phone calls.
Meet timesheet submission, reporting, and activity deadlines.
Attend supervision, team meetings, and professional workshops to enhance job skills.
Follow up with youth who have inconsistent attendance.
Enter required weekly data, including enrollment, daily attendance and activities, work plans, intake and enrollment forms, activity entries, contractual certification information, outputs, and outcomes.
Match youth with employment placements or specialized training programs based on demonstrated interests and skills.
Maintain participant files, bus card logs, timesheets, and required DFSS documentation.
Work toward ensuring that 50% of youth transition to long-term employment, post-secondary or vocational programs, or the military.
Implement other services requested by SGA or the funder and perform other duties as assigned.