Housing Coordinator

People USA; Chicago (IL); On-site; Full time

Job summary

People USA is seeking a Full-Time Housing Coordinator in Chicago to support individuals with mental health challenges. The role involves peer support, assisting clients with housing applications, and advocating for their needs, all aimed at fostering independence and wellness. Candidates should have relevant lived experience and educational background in health or human services.

Qualifications

• High School degree or equivalent required, Bachelor's preferred.
• Personal lived experience with mental health challenges is essential.
• Must obtain New York State Certified Peer Specialist within 6 months.

Responsibilities

• Educates clients on housing options and assists with applications.
• Provides peer support and helps clients achieve wellness goals.
• Develops positive relationships with clients and community partners.

Skills

Peer support

Advocacy

Budgeting assistance

Education

High School degree or equivalency

Bachelor's degree preferred

Job description

Work Schedule:Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Pay rate: $21.15 per hour

JOB SUMMARY:

The Full-Time Housing Coordinator staff will support the daily operations at the assigned Location. She or he provides peer support for each housing participant enrolled in the program. The Housing Coordinator is available to instill hope, support wellness and demonstrate that recovery is real and does happen. Staff model and utilize trauma-informed techniques and tools, help guests set goals and engage in community and social events. The Housing Coordinator position will be a peer (personal lived experience/s with mental illness) who implements PEOPLe, USA’s Supported Housing programs (OMH, HUD), helping people with histories of mental health challenges to live independent, self-determined lives in the community.

JOB DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Provides screenings to potential program participants identified through the local county’s Single Point of Access (SPOA) process (Help directly link potential program participants not identified through SPOA with the necessary resources to become SPOA-identified).
• Educates potential program participants on who PEOPLe Inc. is, what the agency stands for (mission & core values), and how the agency’s Supported Housing program operates.
• (Additional information on OMH or HUD Supported Housing guidelines and general housing rights.
• Assists accepted program clients with budgeting, incl. rental costs, utilities, program subsidies, personal finances, and other related personnel costs.
• Directly explores with clients housing rental options that suit their financial, environmental, and personal needs.
• Assists clients in completing rental applications.
• Assists clients in understanding all leasing contract components.
• Assists clients in managing the moving process.
• Assists clients in furnishing rentals.
• Help clients to continuously budget their money sensibly to maintain their housing and other basic needs.
• Regularly verify client's’ income and budgeted costs to ensure that rental subsidies are up-to-date and accurate.
• Maintains regular meaningful contact with clients (amount determined by clients), with no less than one (1) face-to-face and two (2) additional indirect contacts per month.
• Educates clients on useful health & wellness topics, including but not limited to:Peer/Self-help Resources,Recovery from Mental Health Challenges (from a Psychiatric Rehabilitation perspective), Wellness & Whole Health (SAMHSA’s Eight Dimensions of Wellness),Community Resources (across all domains of health, e.g.: physical, mental, substance use, socio-economic determinants of health),Trauma & Healing,Wellness Planning & Prevention (e.g. WRAP),Natural Supports (developing/maintaining).
• Helps clients to identify barriers to their recovery journeys or personal wellness, including issues related to access, quality of care, people’s rights, lack of basic needs, and stigma & discrimination.
• Advocates for client’s side-by-side to overcome identified barriers, making sure their voices are heard, and their decisions are understood and respected.
• Builds peer-to-peer connections/relationships based on mutuality (shared lived experiences), empathy, and hope for recovery/wellness (peers-as-proof).
• Provides peer support, sharing stories, personal feelings, information, and strategies for living well.
• Coaches clients to identify & accomplish whole health goals related to the Eight Dimensions of Wellness (emotional, social, physical, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, spiritual).
• Directly connects people to the services and supports they need through direct bridging/linking (as opposed to referrals only).
• Develops and maintains positive working relationships with other provider agencies, and local housing providers (landlords) within the county and its surrounding environs.
• Documents all meaningful interactions in electronic records software and maintain hard copies in clients’ files.
• Regularly attend SPOA meetings, HUD Continuum of Care meetings, and other related meetings.
• Consistently support PEOPLe, USA.’s mission to instill a sense of hope, empowerment, and self-determination in people living with mental illness that fosters recovery and a transition to wellness.
• Align all behaviors with core values that promote trauma-informed care, customer engagement and satisfaction, mutuality & empathy, and a philosophical commitment that everyone can and will recover.
• Staff must document their time in Kronos effectively. Staff cannot work over their positions allocated hours without Supervisor approval.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

This job operates mostly in community settings, including each program participant’s housing (scattered site). The job also operates in a peer-run non-clinical mental health care setting that includes professional office environments. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, and fax machines.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; and reach with hands and arms.

TRAVEL:

Travel is primarily local during the business day, although some out-of-area and overnight travel may be expected. This position requires up to 75% travel.

JOB REQUIREMENTS:

• High School degree or equivalency.
• Personal lived experience/s with mental illness or substance abuse
• Bachelor's degree preferred.
• Significant demonstrable experience in health & human services
• Must work towards or possess the following: New York State Certified Peer Specialist must be obtained within 6 months of hire, orCertified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner (CPRP).

REPORTS TO - DIRECTOR OF SUPPORTIVE HOUSING