POSITION TITLE: Family Support Specialist STATUS: Exempt,FT GRADE: 3

DEPT: Early Childhood Services PROGRAM: Strong Families Suburban

REPORTS TO: Program manager – Strong Families SUPERVISES: N/A

SALARY: $54K/yr

SUMMARY: The Family Support Specialist will provide mentoring and educational support services from Birth to 17 to parents with home visits while focusing intensely on building protective factors within the family and increasing effective parenting skills to reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect. This position will also directly work with and support students. This position will work for either Glen Ellyn or Willowbrook.

COLLABORATES WITH: Collaborations are frequent with the Program Manager, team members, community partners, school social workers, other staff members and community groups and members.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITY:

Direct Service

• One-on-one supportive services with identified students in the school including weekly student session strengthening social and emotional-growth.
• Facilitate a weekly social emotional group - creating content, presenting on material, and ongoing communication with parents on need/concern that may arise.
• Present parent education workshops for parents and provide professional development opportunities for professional staff as needed.
• Coordinate Uber pickups for parents.
• Provide crisis intervention as needed.
• Provide in-person support to families in the Glen Ellyn or Willowbrook community.
• Maintain contact with families via designated work cell phone provided by the agency during designated work hours.
• Create quarterly family goal plan for each assigned family and update it every three months - Monitor, evaluate, and record progress with respect to family goals and modify goal planning as needed.
• Provide activities to encourage healthy family relationships, including parental skill development using Active Parenting curriculum.
• Provide education around parenting skills, child development, stress management, relationship building, problem solving, and community resources for individual families as needed.
• Strengthen families’ protective factors.
• Provide support and assistance to parents in meeting the physical, emotional, and educational needs of their children.
• In partnership with families, help them to identify strengths, needs, and goals for the establishment of a strength-based action plan.

Collaboration and Communication

• Coordinate with school administrators to reserve a space in the school to see children one-on-one emphasizing need for privacy.
• Coordinate with teachers and special services on time slots to see children in school weekly.
• Ongoing comprehensive communication between parents, children, and school staff.
• Weekly check ins with full service team grant on caseload needs and referral update.
• Collaborate with full service team on referral services per resources offered via the Bensenville welcome center.
• Bridge gap between miscommunications or understating between home and school. If needed, update staff and parents weekly on child needs, progress, and action plan.
• Establish presence of service provided with school administration and staff.
• Collaborate with either Glen Ellyn or Willowbrook

Paperwork and Reporting

• Collect data per service grant requirements on weekly one-on-one with students and home visits.
• Collect data on hours worked for service grant to turn in monthly to Strong Families Program Manager and the assigned school district.
• Maintain required files for Strong Families for families served with home visits.
• Monthly report out to full service coordinator on referrals, case notes, and assessments as needed.
• Complete client file documentation, maintain electronic files information, and input all required data into ETO and designated data excel sheet.

• ---

NON-ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES: Attend special events and programs as needed.

OTHER DUTIES AS ASSIGNED: Other duties outside of the responsibilities of the position may be assigned, whether for a project, special needs task or other assignment.

QUALIFICATIONS: Home visiting experience preferred. Strong interpersonal and collaborative skills with cultural competence for working with diverse cultural backgrounds.

EDUCATION REQUIRED: Masters Degree in Social Work or similar field Preferred.

CERTIFICATION(s) REQUIRED: N/A

OTHER REQUIREMENTS: N/A

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

WORK SCHEDULE: Ability to work flexible schedule, home visits, and travel within DuPage County area.

M-F days 8am – 4pm with some nights or weekends needed based on the program’s needs.