Kinship Family Supervisor

Description

Position Function: 

Responsible for supervising a unit of Kinship Family Specialists. Performs highly complex consultative services, technical assistance, and supervisory work. Work involves planning, developing, and implementing an agency program. The role of the Kinship Family Supervisor is fast-paced, high energy requiring daily assessment and decision-making of child safety issues, and permanency. This role must ensure documentation is thorough and concise. This position interacts routinely with clients, judges, attorneys, children, school personnel, and all other aspects of the community.

Working Conditions: 

Position includes interaction with parents, guardians, and conservators as well as to youth with behavioral problems, including possible physical aggression. A personal vehicle is required for travel. Must possess a valid driver's license. The position is sensitive to the service population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics.

Exposure to Confidential Information:

The Kinship Family Supervisor will have access to confidential records including youth files, foster care and adoption records, and foster parent information. Must maintain confidentiality and follow policies related to personnel records and client records.

Key Expectations/Responsibilities:

· Maintain high ethical standards which are outlined in the ACH Child and Family Services Code of Ethics

· A commitment to empowering others to solve their problems

· Value a nurturing family as the ideal environment for a person

· A conviction about the capacity of people to grow and change

· The ability to lead and manage staff

· The ability to develop goals for the program and implement strategies for achieving these goals

· The ability to establish a respectful relationship with persons served to help them gain skills and confidence

· The ability to work collaboratively with other personnel and/or service providers and professionals

· The capacity to maintain a helping role and to intervene appropriately to meet service goals

· The ability to set appropriate limits

· Performs other duties as assigned and required to maintain unit operations

· Promotes, monitors, and ensures that respect is demonstrated for cultural diversity

· Attends work regularly in accordance with agency leave policy

· Ability to recognize kinship breakdowns and lead mitigation staffing's to preserve placements

Planning:

· Conduct regular group and individual supervision meetings

· Participates in meetings with collaborating partners and agencies

· Participates in OCOK Leadership meetings

Implementation:

· Evaluates unit performance through case readings, computer reports, and observations of unit operations to ensure unit compliance with policies, procedures, and service control requirements

· Assists in preparing management reports, analyses, and correspondence on the effectiveness of program activities

· May prepare and conduct presentations for citizens, clients, staff, management, or elected officials

· Interprets program policy and procedures to unit staff, other agency staff, parents, children, youth, caregivers, the courts, CASA, other stakeholders, and the general public

· Review and approve child placement casework decisions, and when requested by the client or others to ensure decisions are appropriate and consistent with policies and procedures

· Select, manage, and develop staff through the review of performance data, conferences, training, and performance appraisal

· Plan, promote, and encourage the professional growth and development of management and service delivery personnel

· Performs other duties as assigned and required to maintain unit operations

· Attends initial planning meeting for new referrals

· Facilitates kinship meetings and identifies potential kinship and/or relative placement options, in accordance with best practices and COA standards

· Provides support to the family to assist in meeting the needs of the child through guidance of Kinship Family Specialists

· Maintains a close working relationship with public and private agencies involved in providing services/support

· Provides information to the case management team and internal departments on all matters related to the child, as required

· Attends case planning conferences at required intervals

· Conducts home visits at specified intervals, or as required to support Kinship Family Specialists

· Coordinates community resources for the benefit of children served

· Completes documentation and forwards reports containing descriptive, analytical and evaluative content

· Coordinates with the Agency’s resource family services and licensing staff to ensure regulatory compliance by kinship care providers. Reviews licensing standards with kinship care providers

· Coordinates with the case management team and staff from external public and private agencies on the delivery of services to children and families

· Refrains from assuming any duty that is unrelated to and/or interferes with the responsibilities of the position

Training and Supervision:

· Attend continuing education necessary to expand knowledge and maintain certifications or licenses

· Communicate regularly with supervisor and seek supervision when appropriate

· Participate in and sometimes conduct in-service training

· Participates in applicable agency trainings as well as seminars/conferences in the community at large 

Requirements

Education: Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s Degree preferred. 

Experience: A minimum of two years working with Foster Care, Adoption, Kinship, or a related field is required.

Functional: Knowledge of program planning and implementation. Knowledge of agency policies, procedures, and regulations. Knowledge of laws and regulations to child care, abuse, and neglect. Skills in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships. Skills in effective verbal and written communication. Ability to articulate an understanding of the intersection between race and poverty and the different outcomes and conditions that exist among specific groups as compared to other groups due to unequal treatment of services. Ability to negotiate available services. Ability to gather, assemble, correlate, and analyze facts. Ability to prepare clear and concise reports. Ability to develop and analyze special projects. Ability to supervise the work of others. Ability to travel locally and within the region.