Family Support Advocate

The Family Support Advocate (FSA) will work as a member of a team whose primary role is to engage families to partner with us to promote children’s healthy development and school readiness. In their specialized role, the Family Support Advocate will provide individualized, intensive support to the most vulnerable families in our Head Start program. Families on the Family Support Advocates’ caseloads will include families experiencing a significant crisis, families who are recently homeless or whose children are in foster care, as well as families impacted by substance abuse, family violence or mental health concerns. In order to effectively support these families, the Family Support Advocate will be expected to establish and maintain relationships with community providers to provide the resources, counseling, treatment or other interventions needed to assist them to stabilize their circumstances and enhance their overall well-being.

We believe all families share the same aspirations for their children and have the ability to significantly contribute to their children’s development and learning. The Family Support Advocate’s position has been established to allow our Head Start program to triage and provide more targeted support to families who may require additional resources to achieve these outcomes. Due to its specialized nature, and based upon Center size and family distribution, the position may involve a caseload assignment at more than one center based location as deemed necessary for program operations.

Job Responsibilities:

• Promote Family Environments that Enhance Children’s Development
• Support Vulnerable Families
• Maintain Internal and External Service Coordination
• Assure Accurate and Timely Record Keeping and Reporting

Job Requirements:

• Minimum of Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work, Human Services, Family Services, Counseling, Family and Child Development or a related field with at least two years of experience working with vulnerable families and communities
• The commitment and passion for achieving positive child and family outcomes through high quality family engagement
• Background and experience working with families of children 0-5 preferred
• Familiarity with assessment strategies for high risk behaviors, including depression, domestic violence, and substance abuse
• Bilingual (in Spanish) preferred and may be required at certain service locations to meet the needs of our population
• Advanced computer literacy in email, word processing and internet navigation
• Valid driver’s license with reliable transportation with state-mandated minimum insurance coverage(s) on your vehicle

Additional Requirements:

• Ability to lift a child weighing 40 pounds, 20 times a day if needed
• Ability to obtain certification in CPR and First Aid
• Pass physical examination, background check, and fingerprinting screen

Why Acelero Learning or Shine Early Learning?

• Ability to make an impact in the lives of the children, families, and partners we serve
• Career growth and professional development opportunities
• Supportive working environment
• Average of 5 weeks of paid time off during 1st year of employment
• Comprehensive benefits, including 401K matching and 100% vesting program

We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to creating a diverse and healthy work place.