SAFY is seeking a full time Lead Licensing Specialist for our Dayton and Cincinnati divisions in Ohio.

As a Lead Licensing Specialist, you will be responsible for the licensing and retaining of quality foster homes and/or adoptive parents. Ensure licensed homes and foster parents meet or exceed community and organizational needs and requirements to meet the needs of the youth we serve.

Who We Are

At SAFY, our mission is Preserving Families & Securing Futures. For 40 years, our work has rested on a single, radical idea – children belong in families. We believe that every child and family deserve the opportunity to reach their full potential. We are a team of 500 employees across seven states providing services such as Family Preservation & Reunification, Behavioral Health, Therapeutic Foster Care, Adoption Services and Older Youth Services so the families and children we serve can build resilience and thrive.

What You’ll Do

• Lead, coach and develop the divisional/state licensing team. Provide onboarding, guidance, and direction to licensing staff. Ensure staff work schedules are balanced and detailed.
• Responsible for the knowledge and implementation of all foster parent onboarding and retention rules, regulations, and organizational policies.
• Provide development and training of prospective foster parents in understanding needs of the youth and their home environment; provide ongoing training and support to licensed foster homes as required by the state.
• Establish and maintain a supportive and positive working relationship with youth, foster parents, community organizations, referring agencies, and other SAFY stakeholders.
• Complete home visits with each potential families to answer questions, assess families for ability to foster, provide recommendations for needed training in growth areas and assist in the licensing process.
• Develop comprehensive home studies for families in accordance with all local regulatory and contractual requirements.
• Provide all required information and assist families in completing paperwork in a timely manner; maintain and update all records in appropriate systems.
• Ensure all documentation and compliance requirements are met to re-certify foster parents and homes required by the state. May need to complete documentation to ensure compliance.
• Collaborate with internal partners to implement a strategy for recruitment, retention, and foster parent support.
• Support foster parents by providing information on education, meetings, support groups, retention activities and on-on-one discussions.
• Provide coverage for various positions during absences and/or turnover.
• Establish and maintain a positive working relationship, sensitive and responsive to the cultural differences with all levels of SAFY staff, clients, families, and vendors.
• Ability to work nontraditional hours daily/weekly to fulfill position duties; may include weekends.
• Ability to maintain confidential and sensitive information.
• Assist with reviewing, interviewing, and hiring clinical and non-clinical positions for the Licensing Team.
• Assign and evaluate performance goals, conduct monthly supervision, and perform scheduled evaluations for all direct reports.
• Maintain and adhere to recruitment goals by assisting Foster Parent Recruiter if necessary.
• Other duties or special projects as assigned.

What You Bring

We are looking for people from diverse backgrounds and experiences who are inspired by our noble mission to make a difference in the lives of the children and families in our care. You’ll be right at home if you are willing to learn from successes as well as setbacks, persevere in challenges and adversity, cultivate collaborative relationships, understand and leverage diversity, advocate for equity, aspire to work inclusively, and partner to drive your work and that of your team to the next level.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in field of social work, counseling, psychology, sociology, child and family studies, etc.
• LSW or LPC and Ohio Adoption Assessor certification required, can obtain following hire
• 2-5 years of relevant work experience in human services or child welfare.
• Comfortable with public speaking and facilitation of group training.

What We Offer

• Targeted hiring range: $42,000-$62,000
  • Compensation is commensurate with transferrable experience, education and licensure of candidate, location of the position, along with internal equity and budgeted amount for the role.
• Comprehensive benefit plan options including Medical, Dental, Vision, Disability, Life Insurance, Flexible Spending and Health Savings account options to meet your needs
• 401(k) Retirement plan with company match
• 12 paid holidays per year, generous sick & vacation time and an additional day off for your birthday
• All regular full and part time staff are eligible for quarterly and/or annual bonuses
• Tuition Reimbursement up to $5,000 each year
• CEU Reimbursement up to $1,000 each year
• On demand access to earned wages through Zayzoon
• Gain leadership skills, develop your clinical expertise, or earn CEUs with access to over 1,000 courses on our learning platform or through our talented in-house training department
• Clinical Supervision Reimbursement up to $300 per month
• Employee Assistance Program with 6 free visits per year
• Free Financial Advisor Services
• Support Services for alternative Health Insurance and benefit credit reimbursement options
• Employee and Foster Parent Referral bonus program
• Leave donation program
• Adoption Assistance
• Mileage reimbursement
• Your choice of company paid cell phone or phone stipend

SAFY is proud to be an equal employment opportunity employer and is committed to maintaining a non-discriminatory work environment. SAFY does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, arrest record, conviction record, or any other personal characteristic protected by applicable law. This policy covers all programs, services, policies, and procedures of SAFY, including recruiting, hiring, training, promotion, and administering all personnel actions, such as compensation, benefits, transfers, layoffs or terminations.