Family Support Specialist

Must have Masters in Social Work or School Counseling

The Family Support Specialist (Social Worker) is a grant funded position that is responsible for working in collaboration with professional social/educational services and agencies to obtain health, financial, vocational, and social services for students and families while modeling and enforcing company policies and procedures.  The Family Support Specialist reports to the Regional Director or Executive Principal and works collaboratively with the entire staff, students, and their families to address, mitigate, and/or remove the personal, social, and behavioral barriers that prevent students from being successful.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:  

• Coordinate, develop, and implement support systems to meet students’ social, emotional, behavioral, medical, financial, and life skills or other needs in alignment with the School’s vision and mission.
• Use counseling strategies or ensure that on-site providers use counseling strategies to help students so they can be emotionally and socially prepared to maximize their instructional time.
• Build and maintain positive, cooperative, and effective relationships and conduct skill-building seminars with staff, students, families, community, and colleagues.
• Secure MOU’s with local colleges and universities to establish ALS schools as clinical internship sites for students in the schools of Social Work, Mental Health, School Counseling and any other related programs. Perform all required tasks relating to the supervision of clinical interns in each of these programs.
• Support the student orientation process.
• Effectively document all services provided to students and families as defined by ALS policies and procedures and any other regulatory reporting requirements.
• Conducts home visits to facilitate home-school connections.
• Coordinates home, school, and community resources in addressing the crisis situation.
• Responsible for leading all tasks and initiatives defined by the School’s Mental Health Plan to include all required outcome reporting.
• Stay abreast and informed of current trends, research, and community agency providers and keep teachers, staff, and administrators informed of same.
• Perform all other duties as deemed necessary, which are aligned in accordance with Company’s policies and procedures to ensure student educational and behavioral goals and objectives are achieved.

Knowledge of

• Counseling and/or social work theory and practice
• School, local, state, and federal policies and laws relevant to student services, including Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), child abuse, and bullying/harassment
• Community social and family resources, trends, and opportunities
• Correct English usage, grammar, spelling, punctuation and vocabulary
• Record-keeping techniques
• Oral and written communication skills
• Telephone techniques and etiquette

 JOB REQUIREMENTS AND PREREQUISITES:

• Master’s Degree from an accredited college or university with major course work in social work with credentials required to serve as official clinical field supervisor for clinical interns in Social Work and Mental Health as defined by local and state postsecondary institutions. License in social work or mental health counseling preferred.
• Minimum of three (3) years experience working with over age and/or at-risk youth is preferred
• Experience in education, social services, and community services that will utilize all skills necessary to assist students to become high school graduates and to acquire 21^st Century skills to become productive and participating members of their communities is required
• Valid driver’s license required
• Effective oral and written communication skills required
• Computer literacy required
• Bilingual preferred