Social Service Specialist - Safety

State of Mississippi; Jackson (MS); On-site; USD 38,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

The Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services in Jackson, MS is seeking a Social Service Specialist in the Safety Unit. This full-time role handles investigations, safety assessments, and court-related proceedings to protect vulnerable children across Jackson County.

Salary range listed: $38,210.22–$47,715.60 yearly, with travel and on-call duties as needed. Qualifications include a Bachelor's Degree and 1–3 years of relevant experience; valid driver license and insurance required.

Qualifications

• Professional commitment to clients and child welfare.
• Strong written and oral communication skills.
• Efficient organizational and time management abilities.
• Ability to adapt and solve problems in a dynamic work environment.

Responsibilities

• Receive investigation assignments and conduct history checks.
• Recognize signs of child maltreatment.
• Investigate reports of maltreatment and conduct home visits.
• Conduct safety and risk assessments and make referrals.
• Prepare for and testify in court hearings.
• Participate in team meetings.
• Schedule forensic interviews and other meetings.
• Document work per policies and upload documents.
• Mentor and support new staff.
• Travel as needed in personal vehicle.
• On-call after hours and weekends.
• Complete on-site training and pass comprehensive test.

Skills

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Adaptability

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Job description

Social Service Specialist - Safety in 30 - JACKSON COUNTY, MS

State of Mississippi

$38,210.22 - $47,715.60 Annually

Location

30 - JACKSON COUNTY, MS

Full-Time

Job Number

9797-0681-20260908JN

0681 - CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES

Opening Date

09/08/2026

9/15/2026 at 11:59 PM Central Time (US & Canada)

Agency Minimum Salary

$38,210.22

$47,715.60

About the Agency

The Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services has a position available for a Frontline Social Service Specialist position within Safety Unit. The Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services (MDCPS) is committed to protecting and nurturing Mississippi's at-risk children and families. MDCPS offers a variety of positions statewide, including social work positions providing case management services and working with potential foster families, supervisor positions providing clinical and administrative support, and agency support positions such as policy development, human resources, information technology, program management, training, and budgeting/finance. Working with MDCPS will give you the chance to make a life-changing difference for Mississippi's most vulnerable children and families. If you have any additional questions, you can contact Touya Harrington of Workforce Development at 601-301-8494 or [e-mail]

• Receive investigation assignments and conduct historical checks of records to determine if individuals in the reports have had prior agency involvement
• Recognize signs and symptoms of child maltreatment (Abuse, Neglect, Exploitation)
• Investigates reports of child maltreatment (Abuse, Neglect, Exploitation) of children that are reported through the Mississippi Centralized Intake and Assessment including human trafficking, maltreatment in care, and child fatalities through conducting home visits, visits to other settings where children/families live and other structured interviews
• Conducts safety and risk assessments to determine safety of children and make ethical and fact-based recommendations for continuation of services. This includes monitoring safety plans and making referrals for services as appropriate
• Prepare for, attend, and testifies in court hearings and administrative appeals on investigations
• Participate in collaborative internal team meetings
• Schedule and attend forensic interviews, autopsies, and other meetings regarding investigations
• Document initial and ongoing work in accordance with established protocols, practices, and policies. This includes finalizing completed investigations with all supportive documents uploaded to a shared drive and sending final notifications per policy
• Serve as mentor and peer support for new staff to the unit
• Participate in scheduled staffing and other meetings
• Build professional relationships and collaborate with law enforcement, legal and other stakeholders to support the agency’s work in the investigation process
• Requires routine travel in personal vehicle (mileage reimbursed based on DFA guidelines)
• May require work beyond assigned geographic area and/or special assignments
• Use data to manage and plan the workday for timely initiation and completion of work
• On-call after work hours and on weekends in designated coverage area
• Other duties as assigned
• This consist of 4 weeks (every other week) of on-site training and 4 weeks of On-The-Job Training, and must pass a comprehensive test prior to continued employment and/or advancement.MUST HAVE VALID DRIVERS LICENSE AND INSURANCE

What you'll need to be Successful

Professional commitment to and caring about clients and the larger profession of child welfare. Personal resilience and strong self-efficacy beliefs about the ability to work with clients to produce positive client outcomes. Efficient organizational and time management skills. Good oral and written communication skills. Positive work morale. Ability to be flexible in thinking and problem solving. Realistic expectations about the difficulty and challenges of the work. Ability to handle an often-unpredictable work environment.

Preferred Qualifications

Typically requires a Bachelor's Degree and 1-3 years of experience. Appointing authority may require social worker's license. Hiring agency preferred qualifications: A Bachelor's Degree from an accredited four-year college or university in social work, social services, psychology, educational psychology, sociology, nursing, criminal justice, counseling, marriage and family therapy, family studies, or a related field. In this position, the salary may be based on Education and Qualifications.VALID DRIVER'S LICENSE AND INSURANCE.

See MSPB Careers for information regarding this classifications

Employer State of Mississippi

Address 210 East Capitol Street
Suite 800
Jackson, Mississippi, 39201