Family Services Specialist II

The Virginia Beach Department of Human Services is seeking candidates for the position of Human Services Family Services Specialist II (FSSII) in the Foster Care’ Independent Living (IL)/ Fostering Futures Program. This position is primarily responsible for providing case management for youth sixteen to eighteen years of age and young adults between the ages of sixteen and twenty-one.

The successful candidate will be motivated, and skilled at partnering with families to ensure child safety, well-being, and permanency. The ideal candidate has a successful record of ensuring permanency for children.

Duties:

• Provide case management services for families that have complex challenges.

• Provide client-centered, strength-based, and culturally sensitive case management and coaching services to a designated caseload of IL/Fostering Futures eligible foster youth, helping them with housing, education, employment, wellness, and permanency related matters.
• Regularly meet and assess the needs of each youth/young adult on assigned caseload, support them with achieving their goals, including those outlined in their service plan. Help them solve problems and address challenges.
• Review Casy Life Skills Assessments with each youth to determine progress toward life skills goals; meet with clients in the community to assist them with accessing local resources and support services.
• Monitor clients for safety and stability risks and provide immediate response to urgent client safety and stability needs when needed.

• Support pregnant and parenting teens, LGBTQ, with accessing additional services unique to their situation.

• Advocate for and refer program participants to appropriate services and programs (housing, mental health, health, employment, tutoring, mentoring, etc.).
• Attend continuing education and professional development training to strengthen capacity to deliver quality service and programming to youth on caseload.
• At minimum one face-to-face contact per month in the client’s home. This may require out-of-area and/or out of state trips.
• Collaborate with IL/Fostering Futures team members to develop innovative and culturally relevant programming for foster youth.
• Prepare written reports for the Court, and for preparation of oral testimony regarding facts of each case. Participate in proceedings in Juvenile Court.
• Document casework activity and records all contact in client case records and OASIS.
• Attend and provide support for program events; Facilitate and/or Co-facilitate life skills meetings.

A $3,000 hiring bonus is being offered for this position. Hiring bonuses shall only be for new hires of original full-time employment or reemployment as defined in Human Resources Policy No. 5.0.

• $500 will be awarded in the first paycheck.
• $1000 will be awarded upon completion of the six (6) month interim performance evaluation with an overall rating of “Meets Expectations”.
• $1,500 will be awarded upon completion of the employee’s one (1) year probationary period and a performance evaluation with an overall rating of “Meets Expectations”.

The City offers a generous benefits package, which includes health, dental and life insurance, retirement and savings plans, maternity/paternity and parental leave, holidays and Paid Leave.