Parent Advocate

Bobit Business Media; New York (NY); On-site; USD 35,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

Saint Dominic's Family Services is seeking a Parent Advocate to support parents with children in foster care, helping them understand and navigate the system toward reunification. The role involves collaborating with case planning units and offering insights to expedite returning children home, drawing on lived experience in child welfare to empower families.

Responsibilities include building relationships, preparing parents for Family Team Conferences, and guiding families to community

Qualifications

• HS diploma or equivalent required.
• Life experience being impacted by the child welfare system as a parent, including prior involvement with a case or supervision, may qualify.

Responsibilities

• Build relationships and support parents in making decisions for their own families, coping with the trauma of foster care involvement.
• Prepare parents and participate in Family Team Conferences to engage in service planning.
• Share insights and observations to inform decision making regarding cases in their assigned unit.
• Escort families to community-based services or appointments and conduct home visits to parent’s homes.
• Offer emotional support to parents attending family court dates; orient parents to family time, offer visit coaching tips and periodically supervise family visits as needed.
• Attend training and implement the Parents Empowering Parents (PEP) Model in the early stages of a case.
• Maintain appropriate documentation in Connections.
• Attend all program and department meetings.
• Perform other related tasks to support parents as needed.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and work flexible hours.
• Other duties as assigned by Unit Supervisor, Assistant Vice President, and/or Sr. VP of Children and Family Services

Education

High School diploma or equivalent

Job description

Saint Dominic's Family Servicesis an Equal Opportunity Employer (Minorities/Females/Disabled/Veterans). To read more about this, view the EEO is the Law poster.
Start Over with Job Search
Returning Applicant? Login Now

Job Summary:

The Parent Advocate will support parents with children in foster care to understand and navigate the foster care system, remain hopeful, and address family challenges so they can accomplish their goal of reunification. The Parent Advocate will work collaboratively with case planning units and support parents by lending their insights to the foster care agency decision-making process to expedite children being returned home. The role of the parent advocate is to help empower parents in the case planning process and provide options and choices for parents to make decisions for their families. Parents will draw upon their own lived experiences with the child welfare system to enable them to support those who are currently engaged in working toward reunification

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Build relationships and support parents in making decisions for their own families, coping with the trauma of foster care involvement
  
• Prepare parents and participate in Family Team Conferences to engage in service planning
  
• Share insights and observations to inform decision making regarding cases in their assigned unit
  
• Escort families to community-based services or appointments and conduct home visits to parent’s homes
  
• Offer emotional support to parents attending family court dates; orient parents to family time, offer visit coaching tips and periodically supervise family visits as needed
  
• Attend training and implement the Parents Empowering Parents (PEP) Model including key practices in the first 90 days of a case to orient parents to the service planning process
  
• Maintain appropriate documentation in Connections
  
• Attend all program and department meetings
  
• Perform other related tasks to support parents as needed
  
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and work flexible hours
  
• Other duties as assigned by Unit Supervisor, Assistant Vice President, and/or Sr. Vice President of Children and Family Services

Education & Experience

• High School diploma or equivalent required.
  
• Previous life experience being impacted by the child welfare system as a parent including having had a child placed in foster care or having had a court-ordered supervision case. Other child welfare involvement such as having personally experienced a child welfare investigation may also qualify. Previous child welfare cases must be closed for at least a year

Physical Requirements:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to effectively communicate. The employee is required to stand; walk, feel; and reach. The employee is occasionally required to sit and stoop, kneel or crouch. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.