Expedited Engagement Program-Family Connection Specialist

The Child Center of NY•New York, NY

4d•$50,000 - $50,000

About The Position

The Child Center of NY strengthens children and families with skills, opportunities, and emotional support to build healthy, successful lives. Founded in 1953, The Child Center of NY has become a powerful community presence throughout the city. With 50 locations and 100 programs in NYC’s most under-served communities, our 1,000+ results-oriented professionals make a difference for more than 40,000 children and their families each year. Summary: The Family Connection Specialist (FCS) will be able to provide telephonic and in person assistance in connecting individuals/families to mental health and community-based services. The FCS will provide workshops to young adults ages 18 - 25 who are directly or indirectly impacted by trauma, racism and racial inequity. The FCS will assist the youth to have better access to mental health care and assess for additional supportive services needs. The FCS will serve the following neighborhoods in the Bronx and Brooklyn: Mott Haven or Community District , Hunts Point, East New York, Brownsville , East Flatbush , and Canarsie .

Requirements

Ability to work amongst diverse social, cultural, and economic groups.
Excellent written, verbal, and listening skills
Proficiency in Microsoft Office.
Ability to plan and carry out assignments independently.
Ability to prioritize, adhere to timelines and multi-task.
Good time management skills

Nice To Haves

Bilingual (highly preferred) in one or more of the following: Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Bengali and others, as depending upon the needs of the client and their family.

Responsibilities

The FCS will perform constant and regular outreach so they can recruit clients, and understand the communities’ needs.
The Family Connection Specialist will establish relationship with community-based organizations that are situated in the aforementioned community districts.
The FCS will provide site visits to the community-based organizations and events to build relationships and linkages.
The FCS will partner with these organizations to help distribute outreach materials, and will host workshops at their sites to help support their treatment outcomes. The FCS will organize and lead the workshops to reach the targeted population
The FCS will develop and provide psychoeducation workshops that allows the young adults to come together to explore the impact of trauma, racism and racial inequity and learn how to begin the healing process by providing referrals.
The FCS will explore and provide psychoeducation to the youths along with activities that will promote wellness.
In addition, the FCS will assess and provide referrals to mental health and supportive services
They will connect the youth to The Child Center’s Benefits Access program (in-person or virtually), which provides free counseling on entitlements, health insurance, financial guidance, social services, and legal services
At the same time, the FCS will work closely with The Child Center’s Communications Department to create linguistically and ethnically current culturally competent, culturally sensitive ways of reaching the community, multi-lingual flyers and other collateral materials for distribution to community-based organizations, community centers, NYCHA housing, religious institutions and hospitals in the Bronx and Brooklyn.
Demonstrate knowledge working with topics such as disability, mental illness, juvenile justice, special education, substance use disorder, and/or foster care to assist in supporting youth in their resiliency/recovery and wellness.