Social Worker III

A Permanency Planning/ Adoption Services Caseworker must develop, plan and provide substitute, out-of-home placement for children in agency's custody. Employee must develop and implement permanent plan for each child. All state mandates and standards for services must be met and documented by social worker. Employee must assess current plan for permanence and make recommendations for alternative plans when necessary. Employee must follow state statute in regards to court reviews and involvement. If adoption is the plan for permanence, employee must recruit and recommend the appropriate family for each child. Adoption services encompass all aspects of the adoption procedure including adoptive home recruitment and training, preparation of children for the adoptive placement, supervision of adoptive placements, all necessary adoptive paperwork, and post adoptive services. Employee is also responsible for coordinating with other agencies to provide the family with any and all services identified, not limited to Child Protective Services. Social Worker interacts with attorneys, judges, GAL, and other court officials in establishing permanent homes for children. Social Workers provide court testimony, develop recommendation to the court, and prepare documents for submission to the court.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques, and practices, and their application to complex casework, groupwork, and community problems. Considerable knowledge of a wide range of medical, behavioral, and/or psychosocial problems and their treatment theory. Considerable knowledge of family and group dynamics and a range of intervention techniques, governmental and private organizations, and resources in the community, laws, regulations, and policies which govern the program. General knowledge of the methods and principles of casework supervision and training. In certain settings, considerable knowledge of medical terminology, disease processes and their treatment as they relate to decisions regarding clinical interventions and appropriate therapies based on medical or psychological diagnosis. Skill in establishing rapport with a client and in applying techniques or assessing psychosocial, behavioral, and psychological aspects of client's problems. Ability to supervise, train, or instruct lower-level social workers, students, or interns in the program. Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with members of case load and their families, as well as civic, legal, medical, social, and religious organizations. Ability to express ideas clearly and concisely and to plan and execute work effectively.

Master's degree in social work from an accredited school of social work; Bachelor's degree in social work from an accredited school of social work and completion of the Child Welfare Collaborative (Child Welfare positions only); Bachelor's degree in social work from an accredited school of social work and one year directly related experience; Master's degree in a human services field and one year of directly related experience; Bachelor's degree in a human services field from an accredited college or university and two years directly related experience; Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university and three years of directly related experience