Job Description

Aftercare Specialist (Caseworker)

EDUCATION

• Master’s Degree in Social Work or a related field preferred
• OR Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work or a related field with 5 years of child welfare experience

EXPERIENCE

• Two years in community child welfare services within the mental health realm required.
• Experience in the Foster care/kinship care system preferred.

SUPERVISORY REQUIREMENTS

• None

STATUS

• Full-time; Non-Exempt

QUALIFICATIONS

• Knowledge of professional standards governing child welfare critical service
• Must possess the knowledge of kinship foster care programs and client/family services
• Must have experience in crisis prevention and intervention services
• Must possess the ability to work cooperatively with direct care staff
• Allegheny Department of Human Services, Office of Children, Youth and Families
• Must be able to intervene in emergency situations; Must have experience in developing training curriculum for staff and foster parent enrichment
• Must have experience in working with families and staff of various backgrounds with a primary focus on families of African American heritage

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Implement an Aftercare program for all families and children who achieve permanency to ensure ongoing stabilization through reaching out and notifying all families of the aftercare services, supports and goal of the program
• Complete pre-discharge assessments with kinship families, CYF and providers to assess and provide the appropriate level of aftercare services to assist families to move to permanency (reducing non-permanency discharges)
• Maintain an aftercare caseload providing direct services to children and families
• On an ongoing continuum check in with families who discharged through phone contact, emails, mailings, etc to ensure awareness of continuous support
• Organize, coordinate and host group aftercare support meetings and trainings for kinship caregivers, birth parents, and children/youth
• Implement and facilitate critical case management and crisis intervention plans for children and families to ensure a permanency disruption does not occur.
• Observe and assess progress in aftercare plans developed with families to sustain the progress ongoing independent of aftercare case management services
• Refer the family to community based mental health services and supportive services to provide ongoing stability
• Work with CYF as an SPLC Modification Liaison to assist with all requests for SPLC modifications through assessing the family needs, providing supports and documenting efforts to the courts
• Responsible for participating in an on-call rotation
• Other duties as assigned

Requirements

• Registered and insured vehicle
• Certificate of Insurance
• Current Act 33, Police Clearances and FBI Clearances
• City/County travel
• Medical examination and TB screening
• This position requires a flexible work schedule to include evenings and weekends

This position reports directly to the Child and Family Services Assistant Director

A Second Chance, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religious; national origin or ancestry; sex; gender identity or expression; sexual orientation disability; marital status; familial status; age (40 or over); or use of a guide or support animal because of blindness, deafness or physical disability of any individual or independent contractor or because of the disability of an individual with whom the person is known to have an association; or on any other basis prohibited by federal, state, or local law.

Qualifications