Community Outreach Specialist

Overview

The Community Outreach Specialist will act as the Office of Returning Citizens' (ORC) primary point of contact for Boston's returning citizen community, offering enriching community events, and other community programming. The Community Outreach Specialist will work closely with (and report to) the Chief of Staff to communicate key challenges facing Boston's returning citizens.

The Community Outreach Specialist will collaborate with Federal, State, and local DOC halfway houses to include and refer formerly incarcerated individuals to ORC Case Management and resources. The Community Outreach Specialist will build community amongst Boston's returning citizens, through engagement with local organizations, returning residents, and other key stakeholders. The Community Outreach Specialist will build strong employer partners, transitional housing partners, job training/apprenticeship construction trades partners. The Community Outreach Specialist will manage the Office of Returning Citizens' social media platforms and attend events on behalf of the office. The Community Outreach Specialist must be a motivated individual with strong communication, and organization skills and a passion for working in an inclusive environment, experience working in a fast-paced environment, and a desire to work on initiatives and issues affecting returning citizens.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the ORC's primary liaison to the various formerly incarcerated advocates and communities, reentry & homelessness organizations, correctional facilities, and relevant businesses, cori-friendly employers, job training programs, state of the art careers designed to help formerly incarcerated individuals become successfully employed.

• Participate in community meetings, activities, and programs to further the Office's mission and reach.

• Support internal and external communication as well as social media management, including X, Facebook, and Instagram.

• Draft outreach materials (including, translation into multiple languages) meant to promote and disseminate pertinent information to Boston's incarceration-impacted communities.

• Relay community concerns to the Chief of Staff and the Director of Policy & Strategic Initiatives and work collaboratively to creatively problem-solve these concerns, barriers, or challenges facing returning citizens.

• Develop and coordinate community workshops, and other relevant programs, aimed at bridging reentry services gaps and linking returning citizens with services and resources.

• Manage and develop ORC's newsletter.

• Perform related duties as required.

Minimum Entrance Qualifications

• Applicant must have a minimum of two (2) years full time or equivalent part-time experience in community outreach and engagement.

• High School Diploma or equivalent required. Bachelor's degree in a related field preferred and may be substituted for two (2) years of the required experience.

• Excellent oral and written communications skills.

• Proficiency with Microsoft applications and Google Suite.

• Bilingual preferred (Spanish, Haitian Creole, Cape Verdean Creole, Chinese and Vietnamese).

• Ability to exercise good judgment and focus on details as required by the job.

• Superior knowledge of the critical needs of Boston's incarceration-impacted population.

• Strong background in program development and implementation.

• Demonstrated track record of community outreach and engagement experience.

• Proactive and ability to work well under pressure, meet tough deadlines in a fast paced, demanding environment.

• Strong organizational skills and public speaking abilities.

• Experience with social media platforms.

• Ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of audiences.

CORI/SORI Check Required

Boston Residency Required

Terms:Union/Salary Plan/Grade: Non-Union/MO-Grade 07

Hours per week: 35