Kinship Unit Supervisor (social Services Supervisor)

Job Announcement

This position includes a signing bonus of $2,500 (full-time) for new county hires.

This is an exciting time to join Fairfax County Government as we shape racial and social equity policies in the county through the One Fairfax Policy. Using this framework, we intentionally consider equity when making policies or delivering programs and services. To learn more, we highly encourage you to watch the Becoming One Fairfax—An Introduction to Key Concepts video by clicking here and visit the One Fairfax webpage here.

Please note, this job announcement may be used to fill other vacant Kinship Social Services Supervisor positions within the Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF).

ABOUT THIS POSITION:
The Kinship Unit Supervisor (Social Services Supervisor) provides direction, support, guidance and training to a team of practitioners serving kinship families. This position serves under general direction of the Family Engagement Program Manager; Children, Youth and Families (CYF) Division; in the Department of Family services (DFS). The Kinship Care team delivers clinical casework services to the kinship triad (parents, kin caregiver, and child who is at risk of abuse or neglect or has been abused or neglected). The team provides family support and/or parent reunification while minimizing the need for more intrusive measures. This position performs tasks independently to protect children and build family resilience as articulated by local, state, and federal policies and laws. Plans and monitors the assignment of cases, monitors caseloads, monitors case outcomes and ensures maintenance of client case files. Monitors and ensures overall quality of services to maintain their provision in accordance with Federal, State and local laws policies, procedures and social work practices. Works with all programs in the Children, Youth and Families Division to infuse quality service delivery for kinship families across the division, agency and other county human services agencies within the Systems of Care. The primary purpose of the CYF Division is to ensure child safety and improve outcomes in families. To ensure that the division can carry out its purpose and meet the agency’s responsibilities related to child safety, permanence, and wellbeing, the CYF director may reassign this position’s related work duties and responsibilities within the job class.

• Supervises a unit of Social Service Specialists in the Kinship Care unit in Children Youth and Families Division
• Overseas the daily operations of a team of Social Services Specialists who deliver clinical casework services for children who are at risk of abuse or neglect as well as children who have been abused or neglected
• Provides direct clinical and administrative supervision, mentoring, and coaching of staff. Plans and monitors the distribution of case assignments
• Guides and supports staff on the completion of comprehensive assessments and service plans, care coordination, crisis intervention, and client counseling
• Hires staff, conducts performance evaluations, and provides regular performance feedback
• Monitors service delivery to ensure consistency and compliance with state and local policies and procedures
• Tracks, monitors, and evaluates both unit and program outcomes. Works collaboratively with staff from the other Children, Youth, and Families' programs
• Represents the program, division, and agency on workgroups and committees
• Position requires regular travel throughout Fairfax County
• Be part of an on-call rotation that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field
• Performs other duties as assigned to ensure child safety and improve outcomes in families

Illustrative Duties

Provides day-to-day guidance and direction to a group of social services specialists

on case related issues, policies and procedures, and agency initiatives;

Ensures acceptable levels of quality and quantity in the delivery of services;

Plans caseloads, assigns cases and reviews case records and reviews and signs off on service plans, case assessments, and other reports which require supervisory review;

Identifies crisis situations and provides intervention as needed to address difficult or dangerous client situations;

Interviews job applicants and makes recommendations for hiring, prepares and conducts formal and informal performance evaluations, and handles performance and discipline issues in a timely manner and in accordance with County personnel policy;

Reviews the work of individual social services specialist and provides feedback and instruction;

Communicates performance expectations; monitors performance and outcomes of staff against the goals and objectives of the program;

Approves and monitors expenditures for client services consistent with the program budget and client outcomes;

Solicits concerns, issues and recommendations from staff regarding programmatic needs and systemic is sues;

Evaluates the effectiveness of policies and procedures and recommends changes;

Holds group and individual conferences with staff to discuss general policies and to interpret related rules, regulations or laws and to assess cases objectively based upon the significant risk factors and to monitor casework progress;

Facilitates open communication between staff and senior management to achieve agency and unit goals;

Plans for and facilitates social services specialists' professional growth and development. Provides staff development including training, mentoring, and encouragement for staff to improve professional skills in order to support access to human services;

Develops and implements ongoing team training plan;

Works with the community to identify families and children needing services and to coordinate these services;

Communicates effectively with social services specialists and senior management regarding the needs of the agency, social services specialist, and clients;

Participates in intra and interagency work groups, supervisors' meetings and special projects;

Provides oversight for required data systems and uses data systems for management of day-to-day work;

Prepares or oversees and presents narrative and statistical reports documenting the

work of the unit and/or in relation to case activity;

Promotes the attainment of agency and individual staff goals related to service access

components (Automatic Call Distribution service levels, case objective outcomes, time studies, silent monitoring, and customer service surveys) through the ongoing monitoring of service requests and subsequent service delivery;

Establishes and maintains ongoing collaborative relationships with public and private providers, community-based groups, and residents to coordinate and integrate services, improve access, and identify community needs and barriers to service delivery;

Participates as a team member in the continuous improvement of the human services access process.

Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities

Extensive knowledge of the principles, methods and problems of organization and management;

Extensive knowledge of regulations and guidelines relating to the assigned area of social service specialization;

Thorough knowledge of the principles and practices of social work and casework supervision;

Thorough knowledge of current social service problems and methods/approaches to address them;

Ability to accurately apply, interpret and administer regulations and guidelines relating to the assigned area of social service specialization;

Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing;

Ability to use automated technology;

Ability to maintain professional ethics and confidentiality of client information;

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals;

Ability to plan and direct the activities of a group of social service professionals.

Employment Standards

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor’s degree; plus four years of increasingly responsible, directly-related professional experience in the social services or human services field. A master’s degree in a related field may be substituted for one year of required experience.

CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES REQUIRED:
Valid Driver's license.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:
The appointee to the position must satisfactorily complete a criminal background check, a driving record check, and a Child Protective Services check.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in social work (MSW) or a related human services degree
• At least three (3) years of experience in child protective services
• At least three (3) years of experience in child welfare. Child welfare is the continuum of services designed to ensure that children are safe and that families have the necessary support to care for their children successfully
• At least three (3) year of experience in providing supervision

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:
Work requires performing tasks with risks of secondary traumatic stress (STS) Ability to navigate through and make decisions in stressful and crisis situations Sufficiently mobile to accompany staff to home visits and court appearances. Ability to communicate clearly and concisely both orally and in writing. Ability to use automated technology. Ability to lift up to 30 lbs. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

SELECTION PROCEDURE:
Panel interview; may include practical exercise.

The population of Fairfax County is very diverse where 39.8% of residents speak a language other than English at home (Spanish, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indo-European, and others) and we are committed to providing county services to individuals regardless of English proficiency. Qualified candidates who are bilingual in English and another language are encouraged to apply for this job opportunity.

Fairfax County Government prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetics, political affiliation, or military status in the recruitment, selection, and hiring of its workforce.

Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. Contact 703-324-4900 for assistance. TTY 703-222-7314. DHREmployment@fairfaxcounty.gov EEO/AA/TTY.