Wendys Wonderful Kids Family Connection Specialist

Hope for Youth is looking for a FullTime Family Connection Specialist. The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption through its signature Wendys Wonderful Kids program has developed and tested a ChildFocused Recruitment Model to find adoptive families for children and youth most likely to age out of the foster care system. The goal of the program is to find an appropriate permanent and loving adoptive family for each child waiting in the foster care system.

To be a successful Family Connection Specialist you must be ready willing and able to do the following always:

Demonstrate working knowledge of the local child welfare system including adoptions

Spend their time at both the County DSS building and at the HFY main office in Amityville as well as in the community meeting with children in foster care

Manage an active caseload of 1215 children conducting inperson visits and transports and a total case load of 2025 total children with (at minimum) monthly contact with each childs caseworker and postadoption support when needed

Develop a comprehensive recruitment plan or enhance the existing recruitment plan for each child

Diligently search for potential adoptive families among targeted populations and recruitment areas

Vigorously work with and followup with identified contacts; assure necessary authorizations are secured throughout from DTFA custodians etc.

Work directly with county custodial agency to identify recruit and become part of each childs advocacy team attend in quarterly calls site visits meetings and hearings as needed

Establish personal relationships with referred children and assist in readiness activities

Maintain collaborative relationships with social workers case managers therapists HFY staff and other members of case management teams etc.; remove barriers as needed

Abide by the Hope For Youths policies and procedures regarding time and place of work supervision reporting confidentiality and all other aspects of employment

Attend educational opportunities provided by HFY and DTFA including but not limited to: classroom training online modules database training webinars and must be available to attend the WWK Summit held in Ohio

Timely and accurately enter data and produce reports as needed

Perform other resulting and necessary work to meet the needs and requirements of the clients the program Hope For Youth oversight agency and any other regulatory obligations

To qualify for this job you need to be or have at minimum:

Bachelors Degree in Social Work or a related human service field with 24 years of child welfare experience preferably in foster care adoption

Valid NYS Drivers License in good standing with access to a reliable vehicle that can be used on a regular basis for visits

Demonstrated ability to establish and build collaborative partnerships with childs team and community partners and

Competence in planning organizing scheduling case documentation plus strong oral and written communication abilities with capabilities of learning databases and technology

Must possess strong human relations skills to communicate and work effectively within a culturally diverse work environment and community

Physical Requirements: read/write reports and log entries walking/standing/sitting for prolonged periods bending/stooping kneeling/squatting climbing stairs reaching overhead repetitive wrist/finger movements ongoing access to reliable vehicle and driving own vehicle for work

Additional qualifications include:

Valid NYS Drivers License in good standing

Access to own reliable vehicle daily

Nonprofit work environment especially social services huge plus

Ability to be flexible with scheduling.

Physical Requirements: read/write reports and log entries walking/standing for prolonged periods bending/stooping kneeling/squatting climbing stairs reaching overhead repetitive wrist/finger movements driving and ongoing access to reliable vehicle and driving own vehicle for work.

Excellent training and leadership opportunities available throughout employment and more.

Here are some of the other benefits of working for Hope For Youth.

Meaningful work that makes a difference in the lives of children and families of Long Island!

Supportive likeminded missiondriven coworkers

Diverse Culture that promotes recognition and belonging

Advancement and supplemental pay opportunities

Free Training programs Free Tuition Credits Scholarships and Tuition Assistance

Employees may be eligible for Student Loan Forgiveness Programs

Special Events and Recognition Awards

Volunteer and Internship opportunities available within

Benefit eligibility commences on the first of the month following the first 30 days of employment Medical Dental Vision HRA with HSA and Copay options available.

91 Employerpaid medical premiums

Generous paid time off

Agencyfunded Pension Plan

Pretax savings plans: selfdirected 403(b) 529 Aflac.

Agencypaid life insurance and disability and for some positions longterm disability

Hope For Youth Inc. is an equalopportunity employer. All positions are subject to background screening as required by law or contract including but not limited to: Staff Exclusion List (SEL) State Central Child Abuse Registry (SCR) DMV record review criminal records screening reference checks physical exam.

Learn more about Hope For Youth at:

Additional Pay Range Information

The salary range and/or hourly rate range listed for this position is a good faith determination of potential compensation that may be offered to a successful applicant for this position at the time of this job advertisement and may be modified in the future. When determining an employees base salary and/or rate several factors may be considered as applicable (e.g. years of relevant experience education licensing certifications other credentials negotiated contracts budget and internal equity etc..

Required Experience:

Unclear Seniority