Resource Specialist

Description

In 1879, Father Bernard Donnelly established Mount St. Bernard’s Orphanage in Kansas City. With that one act of faith, hope and charity, many lives — and a community — were transformed.

And, from that humble beginning a strong tradition of compassionate care and social service took root, thrived, and grew to become Catholic Charities of Kansas City-St. Joseph.

Catholic Charities empowers at risk people to create a pathway out of poverty by alleviating their immediate crises to create stability; then providing robust support to lift them to dignity and self-reliance.

Today, millions of lives have been transformed, in the communities we serve. We have office locations in the Kansas City metro-area, St. Joseph, Missouri, a Food Pantry in Kansas City and another in Cameron, Missouri, while serving a 27-county region. 

While performing job duties, staff will:

• Follow the Catholic Social Teachings in all aspects while performing job duties.
• Work collaboratively to achieve goals and resolve conflict to achieve the greater good.
• Respect the diversity of talents and gifts of others and believe in cultivating those to promote personal and professional development.
• Demonstrate compassion and commitment for helping others improve their own lives.

The Resource Specialist will provide advice, support, financial assistance, and internal/external resources to households in the Kansas City area. The Resource Specialist will utilize the Client Centric Service Model to address the needs and barriers of clients, and to encourage self-sufficiency.

  Responsibilities

• Acquire and maintain in-depth knowledge of Kansas City area community resources specific to housing, transportation, rent and utility assistance, mental health, physical health, food, employment, and substance abuse needs, in addition to various client needs which may arise.
• Acquire and maintain in-depth knowledge of internal programming and resources, including eligibility criteria for each program.
• Build relationships with local business partners for emergency assistance resources.
• Develop comprehensive resource list for individual and agency use.
• Develop partnerships with other community agencies and organizations to maximize available resources in meeting the emergency assistance needs in the community.
• Maintain and update resource list on a monthly basis.
• Provide short term, same day service coordination for individuals seeking support from Catholic Charities.
• Maintain budget and track expenditures.
• Track data and complete reports as required.
• Attend program meetings weekly regarding agency policies, services, and updates.
• Provide short term, immediate needs assistance for individuals currently engaged in Catholic Charities programming who have encountered a need the program cannot properly address.
• Develop ongoing professional relationships with current and potential agency referral sources.
• Assist in the training of new staff and volunteers regarding Resource Solutions.
• Represent and interpret the mission and the work of the agency to the community.
• In conjunction with other staff members, identify and implement actions to improve processes to ensure quality services are offered.
• Assist with Catholic Charities Marketing department opportunities for media to promote success stories.
• Meet with community agencies and organizations on a pre-determined basis to determine emergency assistance needs.
• Represents the work of the Agency in a positive manner to community partners.
• Provide assistance with disaster case management.
• Greet each person who comes to the agency in a professional manner.
• Provide quality experience for everyone served.
• Receive service inquiries from the community by phone, email, or walk-ins.
• Conduct screening and assessment of needs for individuals/families that contact Catholic Charities.
• Return telephone calls and emails within 24-48 hours of receipt.
• Facilitate client connections to Catholic Charities programs and provide information and referral to community resources.
• Connect clients to volunteer mentors where appropriate and possible.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in social work or human service-related field from an accredited institution or program required. Candidates with no degree may be considered if they have 10 or more years of relevant experience. 

• A minimum of two years’ experience in direct services or case management and/or substantial knowledge of Kansas City social services resources.