Social Services Specialist III - Protection & Preservation Services (Pps)

Social Services Specialist III - Protection & Preservation Services (PPS)

Salary

$69,324.74 - $115,540.88 Annually

Location

ALEXANDRIA (KP10), VA

Job Type

FT Hourly W BN

Job Number

24-00991

Department

Family Services

Opening Date

04/20/2024

Closing Date

5/3/2024 11:59 PM Eastern

Pay Grade

S25

Posting Type

Open to General Public

• Description

• Benefits

• Questions

Job Announcement

This position includes a signing bonus of $2,500 (full-time) for new county hires.

Appointees to this position will receive an environmental stipend. This stipend will be paid out at a rate of $138.46 per pay period (26 pay periods annually).

Works within the Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF). This position provides clinical casework services to stabilize and support families experiencing abuse/neglect or at-risk of further abuse/neglect. DFS is committed to strengthening the well-being of its diverse community by protecting and improving the lives of all children, adults, and families through assistance, partnership, advocacy, outreach, and quality services. To learn more about DFS and its Mission, Vision, and Values, please click here.

This position is a part of the Protection and Preservation Services (PPS) program assigned to the South County regional office. Work hours are Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., however, evening and/or weekend work is required as well as being part of an on-call rotation for CPS that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field are required.

Duties of the SSS II include:

• Provides clinical casework services for a caseload of children at risk of abuse or neglect and their parents or caretakers.

• Casework responsibilities include completion of comprehensive assessments and service plans, care coordination, crisis intervention, and brief counseling.

• Attends court hearings and provides professional and legal testimony as needed.

• Completes casework and documentation in compliance with federal, state and local policies and procedures.

• Develops partnerships with community agencies to provide a holistic approach to service delivery, guaranteeing collaboration and coordination of services offered to children and their families.

• Coordinates and attends intra-agency and inter-agency meetings.

• Mentors and trains staff and provides supervision in the absence of the unit supervisor.

• Uses automated information systems to maintain case documentation.

• Will receive Child Protective Services (CPS) cases as needed.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Ability to analyze case information and to reach sound decisions on the basis of such information;

• Ability to maintain professional ethics and confidentiality of client information;

• Knowledge of regulations and guidelines relating to the assigned area of social service specialization;

• Ability to schedule and manage workload sufficiently to meet deadlines;

• Ability to assess safety and risk;

• Ability to assess trauma and root causes of dysfunctional family dynamics;

• Ability to engage with families;

• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals;

• Ability to meet deadlines and keep up with documentation;

• Ability to participate in and attend home visits, school visits, and court hearings.

All Fairfax County Government employees are expected to adhere to the Standards of Conduct. In maintaining a drug free workplace, employees are prohibited from manufacturing, distributing, possessing, using or being under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs while at work or on county premises.

Illustrative Duties

(The illustrative duties listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all-inclusive list. A complete list of position duties and unique physical requirements can be found in the position job description.)

Assists the supervisor in planning and carrying out training for new staff, providing guidance to staff. May directly supervise staff, and covers for the supervisor in their absence;

Serves as a policy expert in an area of social work specialization;

Conducts comprehensive clinical assessments and prepares and implements service plans;

Works with clients to develop a plan of service to meet social, health, emotional and economic needs. With the client, formulates objectives and identifies actions to resolve the clients' problems;

Conducts home visits to families for the purpose of monitoring, counseling and supervision;

Provides crisis intervention on a timely basis to clients or families whose well being is seriously and immediately threatened, to include Child Protective Services after-hours;

Conducts mediation services to families in conflict;

Makes assessment of risks posed to clients in accordance with state and local policies, and works to ensure risks are eliminated or minimized;

Performs emergency removal of children from their homes when required, places children in foster homes and residential programs, and coordinates services for them as needed;

Represents the agency in court proceedings; prepares testimony and testifies in Juvenile, Circuit, Criminal, Civil and Federal Courts;

Works with the community to identify families, children and individuals needing services and to coordinate these services using a wrap-around approach;

Advocates and assists families and individuals in obtaining services (e.g., mental health, intellectual disability, alcohol and drug, housing referrals, home based services, training and medical services);

Communicates and works with colleagues, clients and the community in a manner that supports the agency and program goals and objectives;

Participates as a contributing member on interagency, multi-disciplinary teams, community groups and professional organizations;

Collaborates and contributes to child specific teams on non-agency cases as assigned to assist in identifying community resources and services for families;

Participates, collaborates and contributes to Comprehensive Services Act activities for families on caseload;

Uses automated technology and hard copy files to maintain and update case data, notes, documents, records, contacts and summaries of information;

Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities

(The knowledge, skills and abilities listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all-inclusive list.)

Thorough knowledge of the principles and practices of social work;

Thorough knowledge of current social service problems and methods/approaches to address issues;

Thorough knowledge of regulations and guidelines relating to the assigned area of social service specialization;

Ability to analyze case information and to reach sound decisions on the basis of such information;

Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing;

Ability to use automated technology to establish and maintain case records;

Ability to maintain professional ethics and confidentiality of client information;

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of individuals.;

Ability to schedule and manage workload sufficiently to meet deadlines;

Ability to provide guidance, direction, supervision and coaching to less-experienced staff.

Employment Standards

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor's degree, plus three years of professional social work experience. A master's degree in a related field may be substituted for one year of the required experience.

Contingent upon the area of assignment, some positions within this class may require specific certification(s) prior to employment and/or the ability to acquire necessary certification(s) within a specified time period following employment. The certifications are identified in the position description and employment advertisement.

CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES REQUIRED:

Valid driver's license.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

The appointee to the position must satisfactorily complete a criminal background check, driving record check, and a Child Protective Services check.

This position is considered essential personnel and will be required to report to work during times designated countywide as approved for unscheduled leave regardless of the emergency situation (i.e., weather, transportation, other disaster).

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in social work (MSW) or a related human services degree.

• Minimum of two (2) years of experience in child protective services intake and/or on-going and child abuse and neglect prevention.

• Minimum of two (2) years of experience in service plan development and care coordination.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

Sufficiently mobile to attend home visits, court, and meetings and community events outside the office. Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing. Ability to use automated technology. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

SELECTION PROCEDURE:

Panel interview; may include practical exercise.

The population of Fairfax County is very diverse where 38.7% of residents speak a language other than English at home (Spanish, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indo-European, and others) and we encourage candidates bilingual in English and a foreign language to apply to this opportunity.

Fairfax County Government prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetics, political affiliation, or military status in the recruitment, selection, and hiring of its workforce.

Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. Contact 703-324-4900 for assistance. TTY 703-222-7314. DHREmployment@fairfaxcounty.gov EEO/AA/TTY.

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