Family Advocate

Are you excited by the prospect of working for an organization that truly values your contributions, provides opportunities for growth and development, fosters diversity, equality, inclusion, AND gives you a chance to make a difference in the lives of children and families?

WHAT YOU WILL DO:

The Family Advocate is a non-exempt position responsible for working in collaboration with the Safe at Home team to build the natural supports of the family, to include providing linkage to formal (community providers) and informal (family, friends, neighbors, church, school, etc.) resources to clients involved with the Florida Department of Children and Families to ensure child safety needs are met in conjunction with provision of family strengthening interventions. This position is also responsible for the maintenance and management of assigned client families, including but not limited to implementing the Nurturing Parenting Curriculum and modeling positive parenting utilizing Attachment Parenting fundamentals.

• Help parents improve their relationships with their children and provide better care, nutrition, hygiene, discipline, protection, instruction and supervision, to include providing a better household environment for their children by teaching household maintenance, budgeting, and purchasing.

• Family Advocates must receive training in the Nurturing Parenting Curriculum and utilize this model with identified families.

• Conduct home visits with parents, caretakers, at-risk children, their families, and extended support networks and report any safety concerns and progress updates to Safe at Home team, stakeholders, providers, etc.

• Assist parents and children in learning how to manage and resolve conflicts.

• Assist parents in meeting the special physical, mental, or emotional needs of their children, and helping parents deal with their own special physical, mental, or emotional needs that interfere with their ability to care for their children and manage their households; helping families discover and gain access to community resources that can assist in meeting their needs.

• Keep accurate record of all activities, including the documentation of all phone calls and linkage with community supports, as well as home visits by required contractual timeframes.

WHAT WE OFFER:

• $15.00 per hour

• 15 PTO Days per year

• 13 Paid Holidays

• 403b Savings Plan, with 25% match

• Medical, Dental, Vision insurance

• Healthcare Concierge

• Financial Wellness Program

• Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account

• Supplemental Accident, Hospital Liability & Critical Illness Insurance

• Paid Life/AD&D insurance

• Pet, Legal and Identity Theft insurance

• Mileage Reimbursement

• Continuous training and professional development opportunities

• An opportunity to make the world a better place!

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

• High School Diploma and five (5) years of Child Welfare experience

• Two (2) years of experience providing direct services to children, youth, or their families.

• Must successfully complete required Nurturing Parenting Curriculum Training and/or Parenting for Change

• Must have reliable transportation and ability to use personal car to travel for home visits/transport clients. Must have valid drivers' license and current auto insurance coverage.

WHO WE ARE:

From babies to seniors, Gulf Coast JFCS serves all people in need, regardless of race, religion, culture or gender identity. Our programs span a broad human service spectrum, from behavioral and mental health, child welfare and adoption, family support, job and employment transition, housing, food, transportation or home care assistance for the elderly.

GCJFCS offers an opportunity to gain field experience and direct client contact hours for both Bachelors and Masters level practicum and internships. For license-eligible candidates, we offer both individual and group supervision from a Board-Certified qualified supervisor to fulfill state requirements at no cost to the employee.

Gulf Coast JFCS is an equal opportunity employer. Gulf Coast JFCS is committed to maintaining a work environment that is free of harassment, discrimination, or inappropriate behavior. Gulf Coast JFCS will not tolerate discrimination against its employees on the basis of their race, color, sex, age, religion, national origin, disability, marital status, pregnancy, veteran status, citizenship, gender identity, sexual orientation, workers compensation status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

EOE/Drug-Free Workplace/ E-Verify