Foster Care Specialist

Basic Function:
Identifies and manages the individual needs of foster youth served by the agency, ensuring their overall safety, well-being, and goal achievement. Develops and implements customized service plans, advocating for youth needs and guiding them through complex life transitions. Serves as a family engagement specialist, behavioral support mentor, and cross-system coordinator. Provides referrals and supportive services for transitional living, pregnant and parenting, aftercare case management, and kinship care. Provides and facilitates training, professional development, and oversight for assigned foster/adoptive/kinship families while maintaining compliance with Children’s Hope policies, state and federal regulations, and all agency guidelines.

Duties

• RESPONSIBILITIES/TASKS:

1. Understands and follows the Children’s Hope Philosophy and Treatment Model, supporting the Area Director in ensuring its consistent implementation in the care and services provided to youth.

2. Meet regularly with youth in a trauma-informed manner, documenting all contacts in case notes.

3. Supports and promotes a trauma-informed culture consistent with Children’s Hope mission, philosophy, and Treatment Model, ensuring that all services for youth and families are delivered with a trauma-informed approach.

4. Routinely visits foster/adoptive/kinship homes to evaluate, assess, and monitor safety and compliance in the home, utilizing training, experience, and sound judgment.

5. Completes comprehensive supervision notes to document observations, impressions, and ensure all aspects of youth safety and regulatory compliance are addressed within seven days of contact.

6. Develop individualized service plans tailored to each youth, outlining goals, required services, and strategies that promote safety, goal progression, and overall well-being; regularly reviews and updates plans to reflect progress and evolving needs.

7. Responsible for ensuring the requirements of the service plans are executed and completed by assigned deadlines and accurately depicts the youth’s needs, strengths and weaknesses.

8. Facilitates family outreach and engagement with approved relatives and supportive individuals throughout service planning and aftercare. Works to strengthen family connections by ensuring involvement in significant decisions, clear communication of progress and concerns, and participation in activities related to the youth’s care.

9. Coordinates and supports school enrollment, advocating for youth to receive necessary educational testing, individualized plans, and accommodations to ensure academic success.

10. Serves as a back-up for ensuring Transitional Living Support services are provided for youth 14-17 years of age, and young adults 18-22 years of age, to support their preparation and planning for a successful transition into adulthood to include resources for federal and state benefits the youth are eligible for while in, and after they transition out of, the foster care system.

11. Serves as a back-up for ensuring pregnancy and/or parenting resources and coordination of services are provided to young adults who are pregnant or actively parenting their biological child(ren), which may include submitting applications and other documentation to obtain benefits.

12. Responsible for the cross-system coordination of services based on the child’s determined needs. This may include, but not limited to, maintaining, and supporting the child’s school, medical, dental, mental and behavioral health documentation, Early Childhood intervention (if applicable), and other service needs.

13. Serves as a back-up for educating kinship caregivers on state and federal benefits to include the timing for, and process required to complete and submit applications or other necessary documentation to obtain assistance.

14. Serves as a back-up for creating a comprehensive aftercare plan to ensure referrals and resources are provided to children for continued treatment and services, crisis management, education, health and well-being, life skills, specific needs and goals, pregnancy and parenting, kinship support, and employment and housing, if applicable.

15. Actively surveils and manages each youth's chart and therapeutic needs from the time of admission until discharge and the closing of the youth's chart.

16. Completes all assigned paperwork, submitting for review to the supervisor prior to the assigned deadline and making changes as requested.

17. Assists in the coverage of on-call duties as assigned.

18. Attend meetings regarding the youth's care including ARDs, Service Plan staffing, court hearings, or any other type of meeting as outlined by the Area Director.

19. Reviews Service Plans with the youth prior to implementation, encouraging and facilitating active participation, obtaining their signature, and providing the youth with a copy.

20. Serves as the liaison between the agency and DFPS or other managing conservators as well as to the School District, CASA, and other involved parties.

21. Notifies Managing Conservators of Serious Incidents, as well as any plans for travel, Intermittent Alternate Care episodes, etc.

22. Help to organize, plan, and facilitate holiday programs, special events, etc., for families and youth.

23. Solicits seasonal donations and gifts for foster children, assists in acquisition.

24. Assists with medical appointments including psychotropic medication monitoring appointments as needed to ensure compliance with required deadlines.

25. Consults with Area Director, Foster Parents, and other treatment team members regarding the needs of the youths, including medical needs.

26. Interacts with youths in the home and other settings; available to respond to crisis situations, provide support, training, coaching de-escalation techniques, and serve as a behavior support mentor in person, or by phone/video conference 24 hours/day, 7 days/week.

27. Supports supervisor in assessing improvement opportunities for case management and aftercare responsibilities.

28. Assists with transportation of youth to outside appointments and events as needed.

29. Participates in a discharge planning meeting at least 30 days prior to the youth's estimated graduation from the program and completes a discharge plan and summary, maintaining a copy for the youth's chart and giving a copy to the managing conservator at discharge.

30. Complete all paperwork prior to the discharge meeting so the chart can be closed at the time of that meeting and arranges for the youth's change of address.

31. Ensures the development and growth of Foster Parents, providing support as needed for their success and satisfaction with the agency.

32. Provides guidance and direction to Foster Parents in the implementation of a therapeutic milieu environment for youths.

33. Manages and submits expenses for self and foster parents.

34. Understands the rights and limitations of foster parents and advocates accordingly/appropriately.

35. Frequently surveils and manages foster family’s home file in order to maintain compliance with agency and state standards.

36. Requests documentation from DFPS, Therapists, Medical Providers, etc. as necessary to maintain compliance with agency and state standards.

37. Seeks resources, referrals, etc., as needed to address specific needs of foster family or youth.

38. Reports suspected child abuse, neglect, or exploitation immediately to DFPS and agency leadership as per mandated protocols.

39. Maintains compliance with all required personnel training.

40. Maintains compliance with all federal, state and local laws and Children’s Hope, DFPS, T3C, SSCC, and Joint Commission policies, procedures, licensing and contract standards.

41. Performs additional duties as assigned.

Qualifications

1. Bachelor's degree in related field required, some graduate work in applicable area preferred.

2. At least one-year experience with children in a child-placing setting preferred but not required.

3. Competent in STAR Health services to ensure that children, youth, and young adults in need of Mental and Behavioral Health Support Services and Intellectual or Developmental Disability (IDD)/Autism Spectrum Disorder Support Services maximize benefits based on eligibility and meeting medical necessity criteria for the service(s).

4. Ability to work under moderate supervision with awareness that error may have serious consequences.

5. Exercises patience, tactfulness, initiative, judgment, and prudence in confidentiality (following established guidelines as well as in being respectful of clients, other agencies, and co-workers).

6. Personality is attuned to the requirements of meeting needs of the employees and ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with other employees and the public.

7. Must be at least 21 years of age.

8. Ability to communicate orally and in writing, computer skills required.

9. Ability to drive assigned vehicle(s), with appropriate state license, following all laws applicable, must be eligible to be insured under Children's Hope insurance policy.

10. Ability to recognize differences in sound, such as voices/noises that are loud and playful instead of angry and combative; and ability to differentiate tones and volumes in conversations.

11. Ability to observe and make accurate assessments of situations.

12. Ability to work with frequent interruptions and in stressful situations; ability to respond in crisis situations.

13. Sufficient good health to properly discharge duties. Employees shall not be permitted to work who have infectious disease or skin lesions, for the duration of communicability.

14. Work deals mostly with areas such as preparing and reading data and figures, client records, reports, visual inspection involving small details. Visual work is primarily close to the observer. Depth perception and field of vision (peripheral) are not as critical as the ability to distinguish small details and markings very near the observer.

15. Ability to use up to 100 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to a small amount of force frequently or continuously to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects, including people. Work can be done while sitting most of the time. Walking and standing are required occasionally.

16. Ability to be on-call as assigned.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: From $35,568.00 per year

Benefits:

• 403(b)
• Flexible schedule
• Life insurance
• Mileage reimbursement
• Paid time off
• Referral program

Work Location: In person

Salary : $35,568