Company Description

CASES keeps people out of jail and prison by engaging them in effective services that help them achieve success in the community. We specialize in serving youth and young adults and people with behavioral health needs. CASES is a leading New York City provider of alternatives to incarceration, a key solution for a fairer criminal justice system. This is an important time at CASES. New York City is on track to create a smaller, safer, and fairer criminal justice system. Working at CASES is more than a job. It is an opportunity to promote justice for New Yorkers with access to high-quality and evidence-based court services.

CASES Short-term Alternatives and Referrals to Treatment (newSTART) program is a short-term alternative-to-incarceration (ATI) program that provides rapid screening, identification of need, and brief interventions (individual and group) for individuals with extensive low-level involvement in the criminal legal system. The program serves individuals with a range of needs, including severe substance use disorders, serious mental illness, education/employment needs, homelessness, tenuous engagement in treatment/social services, and repeated misdemeanor arrests primarily for theft and drug possession.

newSTART is seeking two Peer Specialists who are responsible for providing individual and group rehabilitation support to participants using brief interventions targeting mental health, substance use, education, employment, and vocational needs. The Peer Specialist provides services within the framework of the core principles of recovery and self-determination. The Peer Specialist will work at various sites to connect with participants, including the Manhattan courthouse, CASES’ Harlem office, and will visit participants in the community.

Come join our team to reduce the City's reliance on correctional institutions, promote justice, and help NYC achieve its goal to close Rikers Island in 2026. At CASES, we offer clinical supervision (which can be used toward licensure), free continuing education credits for LMSW/LCSWs, LMHCs, and CASACs, as well as a comprehensive training curriculum available to all employees. We are a diverse team at CASES, and we welcome candidates of all genders, races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and abilities to apply.

All applicants must comply with CASES/NYC's vaccination policy. Individuals selected for employment cannot begin working until they provide verification that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (with an FDA-authorized vaccine) or submit and gain approval for a Medical or Religious Exemption. Individuals approved for exemption must submit weekly PCR test results.

Location: Manhattan

Reports to: Team Leader

Travel or Special Conditions/Requirements: some travel within New York City

We believe that in-person operations are the best way to serve our clients, both directly and through essential operational support. This job requires work in our offices and the community, including courthouses in Manhattan

Job Description

• Utilize Motivational Interviewing techniques to engage participants and support them in successfully completing their mandates.
• Conduct group counseling sessions.
• Conduct physical outreach to connect participants to newSTART and other community-based providers.
• Plan and deliver peer support services, including using self-disclosure as an intentional strategy, and advocacy that address risk factors for criminal recidivism (e.g., navigating housing system, income support, medical/mental health care).
• Complete timely and accurate documentation following newSTART and CASES policies and guidelines.
• Provide culturally sensitive services and participate in CASES’ antiracism efforts.
• Any other duties as required by newSTART or CASES leadership.

Qualifications

• Participant or graduate of a recognized peer specialist training program, such as the Howie the Harp Peer Advocacy and Training Center Forensic Peer Specialist Program.
• High school degree with related work experience.
• Must be a mental health treatment consumer with a history of involvement in the criminal legal system. As an individual in recovery from mental illness and substance use, must be willing to utilize their recovery experience to engage and support ATI participants.
• Strong knowledge of wellness, recovery, and self-help.
• Effective communication and written skills.
• Proficiency with computers and databases.
• Bilingual skills in Spanish preferred.

Additional Information

Salary: Competitive and commensurate with experience 

CASES is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment with CASES is based solely on qualifications and competence for a particular position, without regard to race, color, ethnic or national origin, age, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or marital, military, or citizenship status. We also actively recruit individuals with prior involvement in the criminal justice system. Your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines