Resident Engagement Specialist (Arlington, 11am - 7pm)

Company Overview

AHC (Affordable Homes & Communities) is a mission-driven, non-profit organization committed to developing affordable, workforce, and mixed-income rental housing in the Virginia, Washington DC, and Baltimore regions. With a resident-centric approach, we manage over 8,000 apartment units in 50 communities, providing educational programs and social services through our Resident Services team.

Resident Services Goal

Transformational Engagement - Build and sustain healthy, beautiful, and equitable communities with our residents to open doors through which they can create homes, neighborhoods, and the lives they want to live. The four cornerstones of Resident Services programming are Education, Economic Mobility, Health & Wellness, and Community Engagement.

About the Role

In this role, you will foster strong, trusting relationships with residents and community stakeholders to promote resident empowerment and engagement. By strengthening resident leadership through training and mentorship, you will help empower residents to take an active role in shaping their communities, identifying needs, creating solutions, and organizing community initiatives. Together, you will build a collaborative, inclusive, and welcoming community.

This diverse community is made up of individuals from a variety of cultural, socio-economic, and personal backgrounds, and your approach will ensure that all voices are heard and valued.

You will lead and coordinate programs that align with the core services of Education, Economic Mobility, Health & Wellness, and Community Engagement. This includes organizing workshops and community-building activities that enhance resident well-being and self-sufficiency. You will also provide social services support by connecting residents to essential community resources, such as housing assistance, health services, financial literacy programs, mental health, substance abuse recovery, childcare, and workforce development. As a resource navigator and advocate, you will ensure residents receive timely, effective assistance and support their efforts in creating lasting, positive change. This will include collaborating with external social service organizations to ensure comprehensive service delivery

Maintaining accurate records and reporting on engagement activities will be key to evaluating program effectiveness, while ensuring services are culturally responsive and meet the diverse needs of all residents.

Work hours for this position are from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m, onsite Monday through Thursday. Flexibility is required to meet residents' needs, which may include evenings and occasional weekend hours.

Responsibilities

• Connect residents with community resources.
• Coordinate and implement social, community-building, health, and educational services and programs.
• Provide holistic and trauma-informed case management services.
• Focus on eviction prevention and housing stability.
• Identify resident needs and strengths, prioritizing workshops and programs accordingly.
• Maintain positive communication with residents.
• Build partnerships with local Department of Human Services and community partners.
• Recruit and supervise volunteers.
• Use software systems to track participant numbers and performance outcome measures.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in social work or relevant discipline; MSW preferred.
• Minimum 2 years of case management experience.
• Cross-cultural competency and commitment to racial justice.
• Baseline knowledge of trauma and trauma-informed practices
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, diverse environment.
• Adaptability to changing priorities.
• Strong organizational skills in communications, program planning, data collection, and reporting.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office; database experience preferred.
• Spanish, Amharic, or other relevant second language fluency is strongly preferred.

Working at AHC

The Resident Services Team may work remotely on Fridays.