Street Outreach Specialist

About the role

The City of Durham is seeking three Street Outreach Specialists to join the first-ever Street Outreach Team. This role involves providing compassionate care and housing solutions to neighbors experiencing homelessness.

Responsibilities

• Champion a Housing First mentality that sees housing as an immediate solution for neighbors experiencing homelessness.
• Meet neighbors where they are to develop trusting relationships leading to housing stability.
• Demonstrate persistence and creativity in connecting neighbors to appropriate services and finding stable housing options.
• Provide culturally competent engagement and peer counseling services to neighbors experiencing homelessness.
• Work closely with team members and supervisors to coordinate outreach, care, and housing efforts.
• Collaborate with 911 crisis response staff on interactions with unhoused neighbors and assist in developing person-specific protocols.
• Nurture productive and collaborative relationships with external providers on behalf of neighbors seeking housing and additional services.
• Maintain standards around and fully comply with federal, state, local, and departmental policies on documentation and records related to supervision, neighbor care, and monitoring.
• Contribute to strategic planning activities and conversations regarding the performance and direction of the department, particularly as related to street outreach and homelessness.

Requirements

• Two year associate's degree, or equivalent.
• One or more years of relevant experience in street outreach, crisis response, or programs working with the unhoused population.
• A valid, unrestricted, North Carolina Class C driver’s license, or willingness to obtain one within 60 days of start date.
• Completion of (or willingness to complete within six months of employment) a mental health certificate program, peer support specialist certificate, or equivalent education.
• Personal lived experience with symptoms of mental illness, Intellectual Developmental Disabilities, alcohol or other drug use, justice involvement, and homelessness.
• A track record of demonstrating initiative and sound judgment when handling ambiguity.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality, particularly HIPAA confidentiality, at all times.
• Must be able to travel to and from worksite and other locations within Durham.
• Must be able to walk/stand up to 75% of any assigned shift.

Preferred Skills

• Significant experience with outreach/engagement of unhoused neighbors.
• Strong knowledge and experience with service delivery, including counseling/treatment planning, documentation, clinical coverage policies, utilization review, and data management.
• Knowledge of signs and symptoms of mental illness and methods and techniques used in crisis intervention and crisis de-escalation.
• Ability to speak two or more languages, with a high priority on Spanish.
• Familiarity with Durham health systems and community resources/services for physical health, behavioral and mental health, substance use, Intellectual Developmental Disability, family dynamics, sexual/physical abuse, Veterans' Services, vocational rehabilitation, housing, justice involvement, referral processes, and other services.