Job Announcement

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

The Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF) of the Department of Family Services (DFS) is seeking a Foster Care and Adoption Supervisor to lead a team of Social Services Specialists in the Foster Care unit. 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.

This is a leadership position and is accountable for critical decisions that are vital to the protection, well-being and permanency of children. Provides day-to-day management of a unit of caseworkers (social services specialists) responsible for conducting assessments, service planning, and clinical casework interventions to achieve permanency planning goals for children. Work hours are Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. however, evening and/or weekend work as well as being part of an on-call rotation for foster care and adoption and may be required to supervise caseworkers for an on-call rotation for Child Protective Services (CPS) that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field is required.

Foster Care and Adoption supervisor job description
Under general direction of the Foster Care and Adoption program manager in the Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF), this position performs tasks independently to protect children and build family resilience as articulated by local, state, and federal policies and laws. As part of the children, youth and family’s division, provides direct clinical and administrative supervision to a unit of foster care and adoption social workers and serves in a leadership role within the regional office about regional issues and regional work plan development. Provides direct clinical and administrative supervision to a unit of foster care and adoption specialist serving children, ages 0 -21, in foster care. Directs staff in conducting assessments, service planning, and clinical casework interventions to achieve permanency planning goals for children. Instructs staff on policies, laws, and best practices related to permanency planning, child abuse and neglect, child, placements, separation and attachment, family dynamics, mental health, substance abuse, child development, and working with public and private providers of service. Assists staff in assessing children and families and in preparing written foster care service plans for review by the court. Occasionally is called upon to testify in court. Manages the unit resources, staff activity, and workload assignments for best results. Ensures deadlines for paperwork, payments, and court processes are met on a consistent basis. Monitors case activity and compliance with legal and contractual requirements using computer software applications and case records reviews. Works with peer supervisors and program manager in defining programmatic goals, priorities, and objectives. Interprets and assesses the implications and long-term consequences of new policies, laws, and procedures on client services. Establishes and maintains working relationships with public and private providers of service in the community. Serves in a leadership role in the CYF management group in the region and program. Participates in the creation and implementation of a regional work plan addressing regional concerns and service needs. Serves as a foster care and adoption expert in case consultation and in the development of procedures for efficient cross-program case management.

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
• Working knowledge of human services programs and protocol
• Working knowledge of foster care and adoption policy, ongoing processes and protocols
• Ability to provide guidance, supervise and train others; ability to objectively review and appraise the performance and work of others
• Ability to understand, interpret and communicate policies and procedures to staff
• Ability to efficiently plan, schedule and organize
• Ability to apply conflict resolution and problem-solving skills
• Ability to communicate and work effectively with co-workers, clients, other agencies, and the public

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 four (4) 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
• Experience in performing case management services in a child welfare setting (child protective services, foster care, adoption, family prevention, permanency planning, or domestic/sexual violence)

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:
Sufficiently mobile to attend meetings and community events outside the office.
Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.
Ability to use automated technology.
Work requires performing tasks with risks of secondary traumatic stress (STS).
Ability to navigate through and make decisions in stressful and crisis Situations
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.

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