Foster Parent Resource and Support Specialist

At Caritas we believe every life deserves LOVE! If you agree, then please consider joining our team!! Caritas Family Solutions is seeking a dependable, detailed oriented Foster Parent Resource and Support Specialist to serve at our Headquarters location in Belleville, IL. This position is perfect for compassionate professionals who are highly organized and value being part of a great team. Most importantly, the work you’ll do helps support our mission of creating loving homes and strong communities! If you’re ready to change the world, please apply today!!!

At Caritas, we know we’re competing with other employers for your services, and we want to win! It is our goal to offer competitive compensation and affordable benefits to all eligible employees. Caritas currently offers the following benefits to full-time employees:

• 403 B Retirement Plan (5% Employer Match)
• Generous Paid Time Off
• Health, Dental and Vision Insurance Coverage
• 12 Employer Paid State & Federal Holidays
• Telehealth Services
• Employer Paid Life Insurance
• Health Saving Account
• Employer Paid Short- & Long-Term Disability
• Tuition Assistance Program
• Real Work/Life Balance

Description of Typical Work Schedule: 40 hour workweek; schedule to be discussed with direct supervisor and may change as needs of the department change (Hours set based on necessity of department or office.)

PURPOSE: The Foster Parent Resource and Support Specialist provides training, support, and crisis intervention services to foster parents to maintain placement stability.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• Screens and advises prospective foster home applicants and make recommendations to Licensing Specialists to proceed with licensing activities.
• Provides foster parents with the resources needed to successfully foster children from hard places through the lens of lived experience and Trauma Informed Care.
• Conducts quarterly Specialized Foster Parent Training for new Specialized Foster Parents.
• Assesses foster parents for the Specialized Foster Care Program and makes placement recommendations based on demonstrated skills of foster parent and needs of youth.
• Conducts intake interviews for children stepping down from residential facilities in need of Specialized Foster Home Placement.
• Selects, trains, and coordinates a network of foster parent mentors to provide ongoing individual support to foster parents in need of (or desiring) extra coaching. Facilitate monthly contact with mentors and track contacts and outcomes.
• Consults with Foster Care Team regarding at-risk placements and provides resources, support, and guidance to foster parents to stabilize placement and reduce disruptions.
• Coordinates monthly foster parent support groups, activities, training, and appreciation events.
• Advocates, trains and models the principals of Trust Based Relationship Intervention with all foster parents and prospective applicants.
• Coordinates foster parent participation in recruitment activities and follow-up efforts.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE REQUIRED/PREFERRED

Degree/Field Required: High School Diploma or GED (Related fields will be considered.)

Degree/Field Preferred: Associate degree in human services (Related fields will be considered.)

Additional Fields of Knowledge Important for the Role: Communications and Media — Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media. Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. Psychology — Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders. Sociology and Anthropology — Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins. .

Experience Required: Minimum 2 years of experience as a licensed foster parent (For positions that manage staff, the years specified need to be progressive years of management experience. For all positions, the years required can be interchanged with equivalent experience from an advanced degree related to this job and/or with other relevant experience verified by applicant/incumbent).

Licenses/Certifications Required: Must be (or have been) a licensed foster parent for a minimum of two years.

Licenses/Certifications Preferred: Licensed Foster Parent in Illinois, TBRI Practitioner

SKILLS REQUIRED

Manager-specific: N/A

Basic: Active Learning — Understand the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. Active Listening — Give full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. Critical Thinking — Use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems. Learning Strategies — Select and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things. Monitoring — Monitor/Assess performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. Reading Comprehension — Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Speaking — Talk to others to convey information effectively. Writing — Communicate effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. Language — Able to read and write in English.

Social: Coordination — Adjust actions in relation to others' actions. Instructing — Teach others how to do something. Negotiation — Bring others together and trying to reconcile differences. Persuasion — Persuade others to change their minds or behavior. Service Orientation — Look for ways to help people. Social Perceptiveness — Be aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Problem Solving/Decision-making: Complex Problem Solving — Identify complex problems and review related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions. Judgment and Decision Making — Consider the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one ensuring that decisions made have an impact on others, the image/reputation of Caritas, and/or the financial resources. Systems Analysis — Determine how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes. Systems Evaluation — Identify measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.

Resource Management: Personal Time Management — Manage one's own time and the time of others.

Technical: Equipment Selection — Determine the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.

Trauma-informed: Must display a willingness to adopt trauma informed interventions, principles, and practices as well as commitment to ongoing development of their capacity for application of trauma informed care. Realizes the prevalence of trauma among persons served by Caritas and the general population. Recognizes how trauma affects everyone involved-including clients, their families, staff, and community; and impacts behaviors. Responds to trauma by actively implementing the guiding principles of trauma informed care into their daily practice. Resists re-traumatization of persons served and staff providing services, by creating safe, welcoming, and supportive environments.

Proficient Computer Skills In: Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Publisher, Word, Database Management Software Social Media Platforms Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Webex

Expert Computer Skills In: Outlook, PowerPoint, Publisher Word, Social Media Platforms Teams, Zoom

MENTAL EFFORT/COGNITIVE ABILITIES REQUIRED: Deductive Reasoning — Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. Inductive Reasoning — Combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). Memory — Remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures. Performance of job tasks rely on memorization of tasks or sequences of events. Consider amount and type of information. Number Facility — Add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly. Oral Comprehension — Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. Oral Expression — Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. Problem Sensitivity — Tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem. Selective Attention — Concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted. Written Comprehension — Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. Written Expression — Communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: Light work. Exert up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. If the use of arm and/or leg controls requires exertion of forces greater than that for sedentary work and the worker sits most of the time, the job is rated for light work.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES REQUIRED: Fingering/Grasping — Pick, pinch, type or otherwise work, primarily with fingers rather than with the whole hand as in handling. Applying pressure to an object with the fingers and palm. Feeling — Perceive attributes of objects, such as size, shape, temperature or texture by touching with skin, particularly that of fingertips. Standing — Particularly for sustained periods of time. Walking — Move about on foot to accomplish tasks, particularly for long distances or moving from one work site to another. Sitting — Particularly for sustained periods of time. Speech Clarity/Talking — Express or exchange ideas by means of the spoken word. Those activities in which they must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly. Includes the ability to understand the speech of another person. Hearing — Perceive the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction. Ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and to make the discriminations in sound. Repetitive motion — Substantial movements (motions) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers. Coordination, including eye/hand, hand/feet.

VISUAL ACUITY: The worker is required to have visual acuity to determine the accuracy, neatness, and thoroughness of the work assigned or to make general observations of facilities or structures.

WORK CONTEXT/ENVIRONMENT: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

This position is based primarily in an office environment.

Subject to both environmental conditions. Activities occur inside and outside.Subject to an environment working in a vehicle. Subject to vibration — Exposure to oscillating movements of the extremities or whole body.

Other PPE Required: N/A

VEHICLE RELATED REQUIREMENTS:

Access to reliable transportation to get to/from work: Required.

Access to a reliable automobile: Required.

Must provide proof of auto liability insurance (and continue to while working in this position): Required.

Must possess a valid driver's license: Required.

Additional license requirements that are necessary: N/A

Additional considerations for this position: N/A