Family Services Specialist IV

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ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the essential duties satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Additionally, employee shall:

• Interprets and applies laws, policies and regulations to specific area(s) of responsibility; areas of responsibility include Child Protective Services, Adult Protective Services and/or Foster Care/Adoption.
• Provides direct intervention and service delivery for difficult, complex social work cases, and coordinates casework;
• Functions as a lead worker providing guidance and training to other staff and is a support to supervision;
• Provides guidance, consultation and supervision to other staff in the absence of the supervisor;
• Acts as a mentor to Family Services Specialists by providing training, consultation and support;
• Develops and conducts training for staff, interns and other professionals in the community;
• Supervises social work interns by guiding them in their service delivery, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, and communicating with the school liaison about their progress;
• Coordinates program functions, develops programs, and evaluates materials,
• Monitors, coordinates and administers specific programs as assigned;
• Coordinates services within specific area of responsibility;
• Conduct off-site visits in clients' homes, schools, service provider sites and other locations. Overnight travel required periodically;
• Transports children and families as needed;
• Interviews and assesses customer strengths, needs and other relevant factors — such as education/skill levels, abilities, interests, and support systems;
• Provides crisis intervention services;
• Administers uniform assessment instruments as recommended by best practice standards and/or funding criteria;

• Conducts family finding as appropriate and engages families as the core of a wraparound service team; Facilitates or participates in Family Partnership meetings, as needed;

• Conducts utilization review as part of a team;
• Conducts home studies;
• Informs clients of related service programs rules/regulations, and right to participate;
• Presents cases to determine appropriate services and writes/implements service plans;
• Provides reliable, comprehensive court testimony;
• Provides case management services to monitor compliance;
• Tracks expenditures, prepares/submits budget estimates and ensures payment for services; Prepares complex statistical reports as requested;
• Completes necessary federal, state and local planning and reporting requirements;
• Coordinates with other agencies and participates effectively in multi-disciplinary and interagency teams providing services to customers;
• Conducts overall monitoring of programs in specific area of responsibility;
• Serves as resource to clients and the community in area of expertise;
• Performs back-up supervisory on-call duties for after hour on-call coverage.
• Provides after hours on-call coverage and responds to emergencies in Child Protective Services, Adult/Adult Protective Services and/or Foster Care/Adoption.
• Works assigned shift(s) to set up temporary emergency shelters should Winchester declare a state of emergency, and;
• Within 90 days, driving commute must be within a one-hour time frame of the City of Winchester limits.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

Education and/or Experience: Minimum of a Bachelor's degree in a Human Services field or minimum of a Bachelor's degree in any field and a minimum of two years of appropriate and related experience in a Human Services area (Section 22VAC40-670-20 of the Administrative Code of Virginia). Considerable experience in assigned program area and completion of required training programs. Work experience in a leadership role. Equivalent combination of training and experience which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities. Possession of a BSW or MSW degree and a Commonwealth of Virginia Social Work license are desirable.

PREFERRED:

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations: Possession of a valid and appropriate driver's license, with demonstration of a safe driving record.

Language Skills: Ability to read and comprehend. Ability to speak and communicate effectively. Bilingual English-Spanish preferred.

Other Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Comprehensive knowledge of social work principles and practices; human behavior and motivational theory; laws, policies, and regulations relating to human services program areas; investigating and interviewing techniques; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders; principles and processes for providing customer and personal services to include needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of satisfaction; principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance; and therapeutic treatment technique. Some knowledge of supervisory practices and principles if required in specific assignment. 

Demonstrated ability to provide guidance and training in program areas to other employees if required in specific assignment; write court reports, home studies, evaluations, mediation agreements, letters, committee reports, presentations, and general information; make clinical judgments, assess clients' needs, and formulate plan of action; communicate effectively both orally and in writing; interview, assess needs, counsel and refer clients to other resources as needed; investigate high profile cases; testify in court proceedings; develop and present training programs and other presentations; interpret program laws, policies and regulations; develop and implement service plans in order to insure the delivery of appropriate services to the client; analyze case information to make sound judgments within the framework of existing laws, policies, and regulations; respond to the client's emotions in order to accomplish services objectives; develop speeches and represent the agency on program training and workshops; work in stressful situations and maintain diplomacy; plan and manage own work activities including service delivery preparing reports, and correspondence, record keeping responsibilities and related activities; establish and maintain effective relationships with others; and stay abreast of current trends and developments in the social work field.

PHYSICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

Required Physical Activities: Requires light physical effort working almost exclusively with lightweight materials (up to 25 pounds) including but not limited to walking, talking, stooping, kneeling, light lifting, bending, reaching and gripping.

Vision Requirements: Minimum requirements set by the Division of Motor Vehicles.

Environmental Conditions: At least 50% of the duties are performed out in the field, in varying environmental conditions and circumstances. Frequent travel, occasionally overnight, is required. Worker will be assigned on a rotating basis to on-call duty shifts during nights and weekends.

Within 90-days, driving commute must be within-in one (1) hour time frame of the City of Winchester limits. 

Bi-lingual preferred.