Foster Care Coordinator - CA

The Foster Care Coordinator is responsible for providing foster care services to children in state custody. As a Care Coordinator, you will work closely with our children in care, their biological parents, Childhelp resource parents and other involved stakeholders (e.g. DCFS workers, court staff, attorneys, therapists) to help these children and families reach their goals and achieve permanency. Childhelp Care Coordinators help ensure that the children we serve receive all needed services, including medical, educational, developmental, behavioral health, and psychiatric, as well as safe, caring and structured, foster home environments. Care Coordinators provide crisis intervention when/as needed and advocate for the best interest of children and families in the hope that we can achieve permanency.

This position does not have direct reports.

Essential Functions:

· Attends and participates in all court hearings, CFTMs, treatment team meetings and other child-related meetings

· Conducts home visits, face-to-face visits and family visits in accordance with DCFS state policies and COA standards

· Ensures accurate and timely completion of assessments, Service Plans, daily case notes, Significant Incident Reports, quarterly home inspections, updated home studies, and other required documentation

as well as ensuring that documents required for the youth and foster parent charts are up to date and in the Electronic Health Record.

· Develops timely, individualized and comprehensive service plans for all assigned cases in partnership with foster parents and biological parents. Service plans must be completed in accordance with agency policies and procedures and must meet COA guidelines

· Implements individual service plans for children and ensures referrals to needed resources, services and supports in the community.

· Assists foster family in providing a safe and nurturing environment and is knowledgeable of mental health issues and behavioral management supports

· Supervises the care and service that the Foster Parents provide through on going home visits and provides foster parents with ongoing support, resources and coaching on how to best meet the children’s needs.

· Provides crisis intervention services for children and foster families

· Transports children and families, as necessary

· Develops and maintains professional working relationships with all necessary community agencies and services in order to fully implement treatment plans

· Communicates daily activities to the Supervisor, Foster Family Agency

· Attends workshops, conferences and/or seminars to enhance professional growth

· Assists with the retention and recruitment of foster families

Qualifications

Requirements

Education & Experience, Knowledge/Understanding

- Master’s degree (M.A.) or equivalent; or four to ten years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience

- Minimum of one year of casework experience  (can be substituted for 27 quarter hours in behavioral sciences, such as social work, psychology and sociology)

- Clear full three-tier background clearance

Skills

- Strong verbal, written, and active listening communication skills to include communicating clearly, effectively, tactfully, and patiently with a diverse population

- Strong interpersonal skills and demeanor with the ability to build rapport and garner trust with others

- Proficient in the use of a PC; in a Windows environment; in the use of the Internet; and in the use of MS Office Applications such as Outlook, Word and Excel

Abilities

- Ability to apply a strong ethic of care and support throughout the therapeutic experience

- ability establish and maintain healthy boundaries with the people they help in treatment

- Ability to apply strong critical thinking skills

- Ability to train participants in camping, hiking, fishing, and other outdoor activities

- Ability to drive large vehicles and pull trailers for transporting camping gear

- Willingness and ability to embody Childhelp’s core values of Acting with Honor and Character, Being Open and Receptive, Caring About and Relating to Others; Nurturing Diverse Relationships; Performance Excellence; and Inspirational Leading & Managing

Physical Demands

- Ability to frequently stand, see, hear, speak, and be physically flexible; occasionally sits walk, stoop, lift up to 50 lbs, carry, run and drive; and at times may bend, climb, squat, kneel, push/pull

- Ability to spend 90% of time outdoors, withstand moderate noise levels including voice levels 90% of the time, extreme heat up to 111 degrees; wind, rain cold weather; to operate household appliances; to drive an automobile; occasionally work alone; work with others 90% of the time

- Employees may be exposed to children who may ask inappropriate personal questions, display socially unacceptable personal behaviors, insult your physical appearance, age, sex, and race, use profanity, sexually explicit phrases, exhibit defiance, dishonesty, threats, accusations, and theft, assaultive behaviors and self-destructive behaviors.