Community Engagement Manager- East Region (3E)

Position Function:

The Community Engagement Manager plays a critical role in building and maintaining relationships with internal and external community stakeholders throughout OCOK’s ten-county catchment area. This position is responsible for integrating and implementing a well-designed tactical community engagement and adoption recruitment plan that advances the mission of Our Community Our Kids (OCOK). As the Community Engagement Manager, you will supervise a staff of Community Engagement Specialists.

Working Conditions: The position is sensitive to the service population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics. Occasional work on weekends and some evening as necessary.

Please note, this position oversees an engagement team primarily serving the Eastern counties of Region 3 including: Collin, Grayson, Fannin, Hunt, Rockwall, Kaufman, Ellis, and Navarro counties. The service area will require travel between areas and flexibility in schedule, as some activities fall after normal business hours.

Exposure to Confidential Information: Must maintain confidentiality and follow policies related to financial information, personnel records, and client records.

Key Expectations/Responsibilities:

• Maintain high ethical standards which are outlined in the OCOK Services Code of Ethics.
• Represent the Our Community Our Kids in the community, especially with partner organizations and foster parents.
• Demonstrate ability to interact authentically with multiple constituencies from within the community to the boardroom.
• Encourage and facilitate dialogue, discussion, and problem solving among interested parties, particularly partner organizations.
• Track and report progress toward team goals and other success metrics.
• Participate in the setting of annual and quarterly goals aligned to achieve short-term tactical plans. Primary liaison for implementing and executing these plans.
• Build consensus across various stakeholder groups, i.e., CASA’s, Child Welfare Boards, Judicial decision makers.
• Coach and supervise a team of Community Engagement Specialists.
• Coordinate and facilitate projects within Our Community Our Kids
  • Steering Committee
  • Ad Hoc Committees
• Assist in the distribution of all recruitment related materials and information.
• Coordinate and facilitate presentations to community stakeholders.
• Coordinate with Child Placing Agencies for trainings related to recruitment and retention of foster and adoptive parents.

Educational Requirements:

Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university and 5 years relevant management experience, or commensurate combination of relevant experience and education.

Experience Requirements:

• Minimum three years of experience in social services, education, government, or behavioral health.
• The successful candidate must be able to navigate comfortably across multiple constituency groups, including individuals from state and local government agencies, foster parents, and community partners within the ten-county region.
• Demonstrated experience with working in community relations for a fast-paced, ever-changing organization is important.
• Working knowledge and experience recruiting foster and adoption candidates.
• The employee must have outstanding writing, presentation, and communication skills.
• The employee must have a proven track record of teambuilding and people management.
• Must have comprehensive knowledge of a variety of computer software applications in word processing, spreadsheets, database, and presentation software (including Word, Excel, other MS Office products.

Functional Requirements:

The Community Engagement Manager will lead a team building and nurturing the external and internal critical relationships in each of the counties we serve and establish processes to effectively advance the mission of Our Community Our Kids—including foster and adoption parent recruitment. This position will successfully establish partnerships with community-based providers and administrative and clinical staff. Independent judgment is required to plan, prioritize, and organize the diversified workload. The person in this role recommends and executes improvements in organizational procedures.