Youth & Family Specialist

Language Bank•Waltham, MA

About The Position

The Youth & Family Specialist works within Child and Family Services, supporting youth in home-like settings and helping them achieve permanency, while also recruiting and supporting foster families. The position may serve in differing youth-focused or foster-family-focused roles. It requires close collaboration with school personnel and educational teams, child welfare staff, Family Networks lead agencies, therapists, lawyers and court personnel, the public, and agency colleagues. The specialist provides clinical case management across multiple systems and settings for foster children, foster families, and biological families. Depending on training, the role may include counseling, coaching, mediation, and guidance, as well as facilitating supervised family visits and parent coaching. The specialist advocates for youth, coordinates health, educational, and community supports, responds to assigned on-call crises, and facilitates treatment meetings and foster-care reviews. The role also supports foster-care recruitment and family preparation. Responsibilities include developing and implementing recruitment plans, recruiting qualified foster homes, supporting families through recruitment and training, participating in matching, and maintaining relationships with regulators and funding sources. The specialist completes assessments, home studies, service plans, progress notes, licensing documentation, court updates, and case and foster-care files in accordance with applicable standards and laws. The position requires independent judgment, flexibility, travel to client sites, and the ability to work cooperatively with a team and respond calmly to unpredictable situations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Social Work or a related field is listed for both MA and NH.
Ability to work within the agency’s mission.
Possession of a valid driver’s license and a good driving record.
Ability to provide documentation of a valid driver’s license, automobile insurance, and a clear criminal record check.
Ability to use independent sound clinical judgment and make decisions regarding the best interests of children and families.
Ability to work flexible hours and be available for emergency situations.
Ability to manage client behavior, foster independence, and maintain perspective and a sense of humor.
Ability to handle people and situations with compassion, diplomacy, and tact.
Ability to work independently, set priorities, organize resources, and complete tasks in a timely manner.
Ability to work cooperatively in a team and calmly problem-solve unexpected or unpredictable circumstances.
Knowledge of federal, state, and local regulations, protocols, or procedures.
Computer skills.
Ability to travel to meet client needs.
Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills.
Ability to use independent judgment and discretion; investigate, analyze, and draw professional conclusions.
Ability to work under stress or in a fast-paced environment and perform detailed work with a high degree of concentration.
Ability to stand, walk, sit, talk, hear, use hands to finger, handle, or feel, and reach with hands and arms; occasional lifting or moving of up to 40 pounds; and vision abilities including close, distance, peripheral, and depth vision and adjusting focus.
Ability to sit for long periods; the job requires infrequent light physical effort.

Nice To Haves

Significant experience working with children with social, emotional, or physical problems is desirable.
Mediation and conflict-resolution skills are helpful.
Word-processing skills are preferred.
Openness to new ideas and a desire to grow professionally.
Flexibility in thinking and scheduling.

Responsibilities

Demonstrate a human-centered, strength-based, trauma-informed, nonjudgmental, and respectful approach with clients, families, and professional contacts.
Build trusting, safe relationships with clients and encourage their personal growth.
Advocate for youth to ensure equitable and quality care.
Provide clinical case management across multiple systems and settings for foster children, foster families, and biological families.
Depending on training, provide group or individual counseling, coaching, mediation, and guidance to children and their biological or foster families.
Facilitate supervised family visits and provide parent coaching as appropriate.
Use discretion and independent judgment when assessing and making decisions in the best interests of children and families.
Perform assigned on-call duties and respond to crises independently by phone or in person, maintaining a calm, professional approach and assuring safety.
Facilitate treatment meetings and foster-care reviews, invite appropriate participants, and support effective interagency collaboration.
Coordinate dental, medical, psychological, and community support for youth.
Ensure educational needs are met, including advocating for special education services.
Attend meetings called by professional contacts and support a team approach to serving children, youth, and families.
Support and participate in developing and implementing program-specific foster-care recruitment plans in coordination with agency-wide recruitment.
Recruit qualified foster homes on an ongoing basis to meet client needs.
Support foster families through recruitment and training.
Participate in the matching process and prepare foster parents to work with the child or youth and the family of origin.
Promote the program through community networking and positive representation to internal and external committees, government entities, and other groups.
Maintain relationships with state or private funding sources and authorities that regulate foster homes or child-placing agencies.
Maintain expertise in regulatory requirements for foster-parent qualification and renewal, including record checks, evaluations, and file updates.
Complete documentation required by state licensing regulations in a timely manner, including home studies, background checks, annual foster-care reviews, and waivers.
Perform other related duties that support program or agency goals.
Document contacts and incidents and keep files current.
Develop and complete assessments, home studies, service plans, progress notes, and other required documentation.
Provide written and in-person updates to the court.
Maintain organized, up-to-date case and foster-care files in accordance with contractual standards and state and federal law.
Keep the supervisor informed about incidents or concerns involving clients and foster families.
Attend weekly staff meetings and other meetings or events required by the agency.
Complete mandatory training promptly to meet certification standards, including 20–30 hours of specialized annual training.
Travel to meet client needs.
Drive a personal vehicle to various sites.