Social Services Specialist - Safety / Jackson Co

Responsibilities

• Receive investigation assignments and conduct historical checks of records to determine if individuals in the reports have had prior agency involvement.
• Recognize signs and symptoms of child maltreatment (Abuse, Neglect, Exploitation).
• Investigates reports of child maltreatment (Abuse, Neglect, Exploitation) of children that are reported through the Mississippi Centralized Intake and Assessment, including human trafficking, maltreatment in care, and child fatalities through conducting home visits, visits to other settings where children/families live, and other structured interviews.
• Conducts safety and risk assessments to determine safety of children and make ethical and fact-based recommendations for continuation of services. This includes monitoring safety plans and making referrals for services as appropriate.
• Prepare for, attend, and testify in court hearings and administrative appeals on investigations.
• Participate in collaborative internal team meetings.
• Schedule and attend forensic interviews, autopsies, and other meetings regarding investigations.
• Document initial and ongoing work in accordance with established protocols, practices, and policies. This includes finalizing completed investigations with all supportive documents uploaded to a shared drive and sending final notifications per policy.
• Serve as mentor and peer support for new staff to the unit.
• Participate in scheduled staffing and other meetings.
• Build professional relationships and collaborate with law enforcement, legal, and other stakeholders to support the agency's work in the investigation process.
• Requires routine travel in personal vehicle (mileage reimbursed based on DFA guidelines). May require work beyond assigned geographic area and/or special assignments.
• Use data to manage and plan the workday for timely initiation and completion of work.
• On-call after work hours and on weekends in designated coverage area.

Qualifications

• This consists of 4 weeks (every other week) of on-site training and 4 weeks of On-The-Job Training, and must pass a comprehensive test prior to continued employment and/or advancement.
• MUST HAVE A VALID DRIVER'S LICENSE AND INSURANCE