Youth Engagement Specialist

Description

Company Purpose/Mission:

Roy Maas Youth Alternatives (RMYA) creates brighter futures for children in crisis by promoting individual success and healthy relationships in a safe, healing environment, giving children and families the tools to end the cycle of abuse. RMYA provides treatment programs for traumatized children who most often are victims of sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse. RMYA supports using trauma-informed techniques and relationship-based approaches to create a safe environment that provides consistency, structure, and caring for the children we serve.

Job Summary:

Provide face-to-face youth support and intervention in multiple settings and have intentional contact with every assigned youth while contributing to the maintenance and enrichment of a safe, healing environment. The Youth Engagement Specialist (YES) promotes individual success and healthy relationships, supplying the tools to end the cycle of abuse.

Essential Duties/Responsibilities:

Supervision of Youth:

1. Be consistently present with youth when on shift and prioritize intentional engagement with each resident in care—individually and frequently throughout each shift.
2. Be a source of encouragement for youth participation in school, therapy, and program activities as well as positive interpersonal relationships with other youth and staff.
3. Understand and model a trauma-informed approach to foster growth and development in youth, especially in times of crisis.
4. Supervise groups of four to eight youth and always know their whereabouts to ensure safety.
5. Model and teach constructive behaviors, problem-solving, and assist residents with age-appropriate life skills.
6. Individually and collectively, plan and provide appropriate enriching activities.
7. Facilitate and promote appropriate youth contacts with family members and other care providers.
8. Transport residents, as necessary.
9. Ensure maintenance and cleanliness of all facilities and teach the youth to do the same by teaching them how to do chores and engage productively as a member of their community.

Administration:

1. Assist with basic operating needs of the programs and address various licensing requirements relating to health and safety.
2. Adhere to a daily schedule that fosters a structured, therapeutic environment.
3. Fulfill stringent requirements for documentation.
4. Fulfill requirements for initial and ongoing RMYA-provided employee training and take ownership of own professional development.

Relationships and Collaboration:

1. Embrace and model the RMYA values of Protection, Simplicity, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Responsibility.
2. Maintain professional and ethical standards as prescribed by RMYA.
3. Maintain confidentiality in all areas of client and program operations.
4. Always represent RMYA in a professional manner, including attendance at agency events and within the general community.
5. Adhere to and uphold RMYA policies, procedures, values, and best practices.
6. Collaborate and communicate with other staff members and leadership to provide and improve services to youth; actively participate in regular team, staff, and shift change meetings.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Direct work assignments for own staff
• Complete shift paperwork
• Responsible for supervising and training own staff

Other Duties/Responsibilities:

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Education: High School Diploma or equivalent is required.
• Experience: A minimum of 90 days working as a Youth Engagement Advocate.
• Certification/Licenses: Valid Texas driver’s license or ability to obtain within 90 days of hire. Must have and maintain acceptable driving record.

Competencies:

• • People skills – demonstrates sensitivity and empathy with others, possesses insight into behavior, maintains open communication and respects diversity, interacts respectfully, effectively, and cooperatively with a wide range of people.
  • Integrity and ethics – demonstrate strong moral principles and work ethic, behaves ethically, acts fairly, takes responsibility, and maintains client confidentiality.
  • Professionalism – maintains a professional appearance and presence, demonstrates self-control and a positive attitude.
  • Initiative –demonstrates a willingness to work and persists to accomplish tasks even when conditions are difficult or deadlines are tight, setting challenging goals and can work independently.
  • Dependability and reliability – fulfill obligations and follows through, meets attendance and punctuality expectations, attends to details and follows directions.
  • Adaptability and flexibility - displaying the capability to adapt to new, different, or changing requirements. Embracing new innovations and providing suggestions to improve processes and tasks.
  • Lifelong learning – demonstrates a commitment to self-development and improvement.
  • Reading – able to understand and comprehend written information in a variety of formats.
  • Writing – able to use standard business English to compile information and prepare written documents.
  • Communication – conveys relevant information to individuals or groups effectively, clearly, and concisely. Able to understand, interpret, comprehend, and respond to information received from others.
  • Teamwork – establishes productive relationships and works cooperatively with others to complete work assignments and meet team objectives.
  • Customer focus – efficiently and effectively addresses the needs of clients/customers.
  • Health and safety – maintain a healthy and safe environment.
  • Laws and regulations- knowledge of relevant local, state, and federal laws and regulations that impact the delivery of long-term support, care, and services.
  • Patient health and safety- implement procedures and protocols to promote the health and wellness of a person receiving support, care, or services.
  • Long term care, support, and services- knowledge of the broad range of services and support designed to ensure health and safety and promote independence of individuals receiving services.
  • Documenting/recording information- entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic format to efficiently manage record-keeping.
  • Supporting daily living- effective application of the knowledge, skills, and ethics necessary to assist and support individuals who require health and human services to live a self-determined life in a safe and healthy manner.
  • Crisis prevention and conflict resolution- knowledge of potential crisis situations or behavior, and the appropriate procedures to de-escalate the situation or minimize the likelihood of danger.
• Physical Requirements: Standing up to eight hours at a time, no scheduled breaks, few opportunities to relax during shifts; constant walking, standing, bending, squatting, arm and wrist rotation; occasional reaching, twisting, kneeling, climbing stairs; frequent reading, writing and typing, occasional lifting and carrying at least 20 pounds, pushing, pulling, and driving; occasional physical interventions with distressed youth.
• Work Environment: Willingness to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends, and holidays. Shifts in environmental conditions i.e., hot, cold, outdoor, indoor, dry, humid, noise. Fast-pace work using sensory demands i.e., hearing, vision, speech, spatial perception; dealing with multiple, complex and repetitive tasks, working under pressure and deadlines, and confrontational situations. May be requested to work overtime and weekends for special program events.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Education: Some college or degree is preferred.
• Experience: Six months direct care experience with emotionally or behaviorally challenged children and youth highly preferred.
• Competencies:
  • Mathematics- using principles of mathematics to solve problems like quantification, computation, measurement, and estimation.
  • Science- using scientific methods and comprehension to solve problems.
  • Critical and analytical thinking- using logic, reasoning, mental agility, and analysis to address problems.
  • Promoting empowerment-develop strategies to assist and support the team to make informed choices through participation, self-advocacy, and utilization of resources.
  • Keeping customers informed- following up in a timely manner to requests and inquiries.
  • Planning and organizing – plans and prioritizes work, manages time effectively, develops contingency plans, and manages projects.
  • Problem solving and decision making- applying critical-thinking skills to solve problems by generating, evaluating, and implementing information, solutions, and alternatives.
  • Working with tools and technology- selecting, using, and maintaining tools and technology to facilitate work tasks.
  • Scheduling and coordinating- planning and scheduling appointments.
  • Instructing- teaching or showing someone how to do something.
  • Business fundamentals- knowledge of basic business principles, trends, and economics.

Work Authorization/Security Clearance Requirements:

Successful clearance of Department of Family and Protective Services licensing background checks, (to include fingerprinting and drug testing) and maintenance of status providing ability to be present at an operation.