Job Announcement

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

Do you want to be a part of a team that makes a difference in the lives of children and youth in foster care? Are you passionate about preparing foster parents for their important role in the lives of children and youth in foster care? As a Social Services Supervisor, you will lead a team of Social Services Specialists to train and assess potential foster parents to provide temporary placements for children and youth in foster care. You will serve an instrumental role in program development and best practices within the Foster Care & Adoption, Resource & Support program.

We are looking for people who are committed to children’s permanency, safety, and well-being; possess good critical thinking and decision-making skills; thrive in a fast-paced environment; and demonstrate good leadership skills. While this job is challenging, this is more than a job—it is an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children and families.

The Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF) of the Department of Family Services (DFS) is seeking a Social Services Supervisor to support the Foster Care and Adoption (FC&A) Resource and Support Program. This Social Services Supervisor will lead one of our training and home study teams. This team focuses on foster parent recruitment, pre-service training, and home studies for agency foster parents. In addition, this team supports kinship caregivers through the training and home study process. As an agency, DFS is committed to strengthening the well-being of its diverse community by protecting and improving the lives of all children, adults, and families through assistance, partnership, advocacy, outreach, and quality services. To learn more about DFS and its Mission, Vision, and Values, please click here.

Under general direction of the FC&A Resource and Support Program Manager, performs tasks independently to protect children and build family resilience as articulated by local, state, and federal policies and laws. This position may be required to be on-call rotation that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field. Must be able to travel out of the area by car or plane as needed.

Duties and responsibilities include:

• Directs staff in community education and recruitment of foster parents within the county
• Ensures customer service of community members interested in learning more about the foster care and adoption program
• Ensures the facilitation of pre-service training using the PRIDE curriculum for prospective foster parents
• Guides specialists in the assessments of foster parent applicants, including training and the completion of different types of home studies
• Instructs staff on policies, law, and best practices related to Resource Family Guidance from the Virginia Department of Social Services
• Serves as a subject matter expert for Resource Family Guidance for case specific consultations
• Manages the unit resources, staff activity, and workload assignments for best results
• Works with peer supervisors and program manager in defining programmatic goals, priorities, and objectives
• Establishes and maintains working relationships with public and private providers of service in the community
• Performs other duties as assigned to ensure child safety and improve outcomes in families.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of child protection laws, rules, and regulations
• Knowledge of foster care and adoption laws, rules, and regulations
• Ability to interview, assess needs, counsel, and refer clients to other resource as needed
• Ability to use data to drive decision making
• Ability to coach and guide a team of specialists to ensure compliance with state and local policy.

Grow your career with Fairfax County!
With more than 16,000 employees, Fairfax County is a diverse workforce offering employees stimulating and challenging opportunities across a broad scope of career opportunities. As a Fairfax County employee, you impact the well-being of our community every day.

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 and visit the One Fairfax webpage here.

Finally, click here to learn more about learn more about our Department of Family Services, meet our director and some of our practitioners, watch a short video to learn more about this position, read the top 5 reasons to come work with us, and check out the great benefits, including excellent paid leave, health plans, and retirement plans. In addition to the many County benefits, working with us gives you access to supervision towards becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, our Child Welfare Institute onboarding academy, and practice guidance grounded in the Safe & Connected™ practice model.

All Fairfax County Government employees are expected to adhere to the Standards of Conduct. In maintaining a drug free workplace, employees are prohibited from manufacturing, distributing, possessing, using or being under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs while at work or on county premises.

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 this position will be required to complete a criminal background, a driving record check, and a Child Protective Services check to the satisfaction of the employer.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in social work (MSW) or related field
• Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
• At least three (3) years of experience in foster care and adoption
• At least two (2) years of supervisory or team-lead experience

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 attend meetings and community events outside the office. Ability to travel out of the area by plane or car. Ability to lift and carry small children. Ability to lift up to 30 lbs. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

SELECTION PROCEDURE:
Panel interview and may include a 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.

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