Supervisor of Peer Mentors Together We Rise

Salary: $67,500

Benefits

• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance
• Life insurance
• Short-Term and Long-Term Disability
• 5 days of Paid Time Off
• 16 Paid Wellness Days and Holidays (including the week of Christmas off)
• 403b retirement plan
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Year-round employee wellness and appreciation initiatives

About the Role

This is a professional position providing peer recovery support in the Together We Rise program under the Families First Division. The Families First Division was created as a result of the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA), which focuses on keeping children safely with their families to avoid the trauma that results when children are placed in out-of-home care.

The Families First Division operates with the understanding that children do best in a strong family, and that children and their families thrive with community support. To increase the number of children who can remain safely at home, the law provides families with greater access to mental health services, substance use treatment, and improved parenting skills.

The Families First Division ensures families have time-sensitive access to mental health, substance use treatment, and supportive services focused on strengthening families and proactively supporting children at risk of child abuse, neglect, and separation. All Families First programming works alongside parents/caregivers using a solution-focused, family-centered approach and evidence-based or research-supported practices to assist families in meeting needs and goals while preventing further incidents of child abuse, neglect, and abandonment.

Staff in Together We Rise will work specifically with parents/caregivers and children who have come to the attention of the child protective investigation division of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and have been determined to be safe but at high or very high risk of future child abuse and neglect. Together We Rise (TWR) will work with all family members using a team-based approach in a supportive, empowering, and respectful manner to assist the family in creating safe and stable parenting practices for long-term behavior change, ensuring children remain safe in their home.

Responsibilities

• Oversee a team of Peer Mentors serving families at risk of involvement in the child welfare system in Pinellas County, specifically parents with substance abuse, mental health, or co-occurring concerns.
• Guide Peer Mentors acting as system navigators to support parents in treatment and recovery.
• Ensure peer mentor services are individualized, recovery-focused, and help individuals learn to manage their own recovery and advocacy process.
• Serve as a subject matter expert on peer support interventions that enhance natural supports, coping, and self-management skills.
• Ensure peer services emphasize personal safety, self-worth, confidence, growth, community connection, boundary setting, planning, self-advocacy, personal fulfillment, social supports, and effective communication.
• Monitor peer services to ensure the acquisition, development, and expansion of rehabilitative skills needed for recovery.
• Collaborate with clinical service providers such as Behavioral Health Case Managers, therapists, and psychiatrists. If parents are not engaged in these services, notify the program supervisor/director, educate peer mentors, and help coordinate initiation as clinically appropriate.
• Document and monitor cases where recommended services are not yet accepted by parents.
• Ensure an annual productivity target of 4,140 hours (minimum 1,380 hours per Peer Mentor on the team). Achieving required productivity hours is an essential function of this position.

Requirements

• Minimum of a High School Diploma or GED.
• Real-life experience receiving and successfully navigating social services (e.g., involvement in the child welfare system, criminal justice system, and/or homelessness).
• Comprehensive understanding of trauma-informed care and the ability to educate others on trauma resolution skills.
• Knowledge of community resources (must be acquired within 3 months of employment).
• Computer literacy with proficiency in Outlook and Microsoft Word; ability to work in a Windows environment and learn other software applications quickly.
• Must be vaccinated against COVID-19 or willing to be vaccinated immediately upon hire (exemptions must be addressed in advance with HR).
• Must become a Certified Recovery Peer Specialist (CRPS) within 6 months of hire and maintain certification throughout employment (preference given to those already certified).

Additional Information

This is a field position. Directions for Living is an essential services provider, and all team members must be willing and able to provide vital support during emergencies, pandemics, or other disaster situations.

For safety, weapons or firearms are not permitted in any Directions for Living facilities. If you carry a weapon, it must remain secured in your vehicle (ref: Fla. Stat. 790.251).