Family Support Specialist

About Us

The Progressive Life Center is a renowned organization dedicated to providing exceptional human services to children, youth, and families in the District of Columbia, surrounding Maryland, Greater Philadelphia, and Delaware. Our commitment to excellence has earned us accreditation from the prestigious Council on Accreditation (COA) for over two decades.

Our Mission

We aim to minimize the risk of children being removed from their family and home through intensive, in-home services that build upon existing family strengths, minimize family crisis, stabilize the family unit, and keep the family intact. Our Case Managers work closely with families to identify strengths and needs and develop plans of care specifically tailored for each family.

Job Responsibilities

• Ensure face-to-face contact with referred families within 24 hours of receiving referral.
• Provide relevant crisis intervention and advocacy services.
• Maintain a caseload of 5 to 6 families.
• Case management for individuals and families.
• Provide face-to-face intervention for a minimum of five hours per week; additional hours may be needed if crisis or risk factors are exacerbated.
• Foster skill-building and provide in-the-moment skill-building with families.
• Offer 24-hour on-call emergency response services on a rotational basis.
• Co-facilitate therapeutic groups.
• Assist clients in identifying and coordinating utilization of appropriate community resources.
• Refer and link families with follow-up services, when necessary (i.e., Counseling, Food Bank, etc.).
• Attend and participate in weekly supervision with Program Director to include case presentation.
• Attend and participate in interdisciplinary team meetings.
• Develop service plans, progress reports, termination summaries, and follow-up evaluations.
• Maintain up-to-date and confidential documentation of client contact and case progress.
• Coordinate and implement assigned intra-office projects.
• Participate in recreational and cultural events, as required.
• Coordinate and communicate regularly with referral source as well as PLC team members.
• Attend scheduled meetings and training consistently and promptly.
• Participate on performance and quality improvement committee.
• Participate in ongoing training necessary to maintain professional standing in chosen discipline.
• Maintain states reporting system on regular basis.
• Enter and maintain accurate data into PLC database system, CJAMS, and other web-based database systems.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in social work from an accredited college/university with two years of experience in human services.
• Licensed Bachelor Social Worker (LBSW) in the state of Maryland or license eligible with a test scheduled within the next few months.
• Experience working with diverse ethnic and cultural populations.
• Knowledge of family systems and community resources.
• Experience in providing home-based services and comfortable working in a home/community environment.
• Experience utilizing strength-based approaches.
• Valid driver's license and owner of a reliable vehicle.
• Strong basic computer skills and experience utilizing web-based case management programs.
• Ability to travel within Montgomery County and surrounding areas.
• Report writing and general writing skills desirable.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule.
• Will and able to be on an on-call rotation for emergency response situations.
• Experience utilizing CJAMS is a plus.
• Certification in NTU Service Delivery Model within one year of hire.