Family Support Specialist: REGIONS-Site Secure Residential Treatment Program

About the role

The REGIONS Site Secure Program is a secure residential treatment program for up to 16 male youth. The mission is to provide a home-like environment with a trauma informed, culturally responsive, gender-specific, linguistically appropriate, strengths-based, and relationship-driven milieu for the youth to improve their social, physical, and emotional well-being.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Reintegration Mentor and Clinician to engage the youth, family, and community resources in preparation for program admission.
• Support the family's ability to participate in the treatment of their child by helping them to create a support network.
• Treat each family with dignity and respect while promoting hope and teaching self-advocacy.
• Develop and implement family engagement and empowerment strategies that are responsive to the unique needs of each youth/family.
• Participate as a member of the treatment team and help to facilitate family participation.
• Participate in monthly ITP and, as appropriate, weekly MDT meetings.
• Share the "family perspective" with program staff and administrators, including barriers affecting the youth and family.
• In partnership with the Reintegration Mentor and Juvenile Probation Officer, assist the family with the transition to community after-care services.
• Analyze and evaluate the accomplishment of program objectives.
• Perform quality assurance audits to ensure compliance with applicable standards.
• Comply with all funding and reporting requirements.
• Serve as a role model to youth and staff, modeling pro-social behaviors.
• Utilize approved verbal and/or physical de-escalation techniques to eliminate youth's harm to self, harm to others, significant property/program destruction, and escape, maintaining communication with necessary parties.
• Work collaboratively with internal and external providers.
• Participate in all required trainings.
• Perform all other duties assigned.

Requirements

• A high school diploma/GED or higher with lived experience and at least two years' experience directly working with system-involved families.
• Certified peer specialist preferred.
• Understanding and knowledge of gender specific, trauma-informed, culturally responsive and linguistically appropriate issues and needs.
• Knowledge of behavior motivation and psychosocial interventions.
• Knowledge of child psychology and development.
• Strong emotional intelligence; ability to interact with multi-cultural populations.
• Leadership, decision making, communication, interpersonal and organizational/prioritization skills, adaptability, flexibility and resourcefulness.
• Must share the belief that people can change and individuals in need deserve quality services and an opportunity to succeed.
• Familiarity with relevant state and federal laws.
• Must have and maintain a valid CT driver's license and reliable transportation, and be able to transport to appointments as appropriate, and to facilitate family visitation/sessions and home passes.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred.
• Requires flexible schedule including evening and weekend coverage.

Qualifications

• High school diploma/GED or higher with lived experience and at least two years' experience directly working with system-involved families.
• Certified peer specialist preferred.
• Understanding and knowledge of gender specific, trauma-informed, culturally responsive and linguistically appropriate issues and needs.
• Knowledge of behavior motivation and psychosocial interventions.
• Knowledge of child psychology and development.
• Strong emotional intelligence; ability to interact with multi-cultural populations.
• Leadership, decision making, communication, interpersonal and organizational/prioritization skills, adaptability, flexibility and resourcefulness.
• Must share the belief that people can change and individuals in need deserve quality services and an opportunity to succeed.
• Familiarity with relevant state and federal laws.
• Must have and maintain a valid CT driver's license and reliable transportation, and be able to transport to appointments as appropriate, and to facilitate family visitation/sessions and home passes.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred.
• Requires flexible schedule including evening and weekend coverage.

Skills

• Strong emotional intelligence.
• Ability to interact with multi-cultural populations.
• Leadership, decision making, communication, interpersonal and organizational/prioritization skills.
• Adaptability, flexibility and resourcefulness.
• Ability to share the belief that people can change and individuals in need deserve quality services and an opportunity to succeed.
• Familiarity with relevant state and federal laws.
• Ability to maintain professional boundaries with all staff, youth and providers.
• Ability to utilize approved verbal and/or physical de-escalation techniques.
• Ability to work collaboratively with internal and external providers.
• Ability to participate in all required trainings.

Benefits

• Compliance with all funding and reporting requirements.
• Professional development opportunities through ongoing training and workshops.
• Flexible scheduling to accommodate personal and family life.
• Competitive salary of $28.24 per hour.
• Health insurance benefits.
• Retirement savings plan.

Pay

• $28.24 per hour.

Schedule

• Tuesday-Wednesday: 12:00 PM-8:00 PM
• Thursday-Friday-Saturday: 10:00 AM-6:00 PM
• Sunday-Monday: Off