Social Services Specialist - Wellbeing and Permanency

State of Mississippi; Mississippi; On-site; USD 38,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

State of Mississippi seeks a Social Services Specialist in the Wellbeing/Permanency Unit for Washington County, MS. Salary range: $38,210.22–$47,715.60 annually. Requires a Bachelor’s Degree and 0–2 years’ experience; valid driver’s license and insurance.

On-site, full-time with on-call duties and extensive field visits to children in care. Responsibilities include maintaining case files, visiting children, conducting investigations, making referrals for services, transporting children to

Qualifications

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills to work with families and providers.
• Good time management and organizational abilities.
• Commitment to child welfare and accurate case documentation.

Responsibilities

• Create and maintain case files for children in care and document in MDCPS system.
• Visit children in care in foster homes, facilities, or hospitals; complete investigations of abuse/neglect.
• Perform ongoing safety and risk assessments; participate in county conferences for assigned children.
• Refer children for services (dental, vision, medical); arrange transportation to appointments.
• Coordinate visitations with siblings and parents; attend staff and Family Team Meetings.
• Attend court hearings and communicate with families, providers, and foster parents.
• Assist with new hires as shadow buddies; rotate after-hours on-call duties.

Skills

Communication skills

Organization

Resilience

Flexibility

Professionalism

Education

Bachelor's Degree in social work or related field

Job description

Social Services Specialist - Wellbeing and Permanency in 76 - WASHINGTON COUNTY, MS

State of Mississippi

$38,210.22 - $47,715.60 Annually

Location

76 - WASHINGTON COUNTY, MS

Full-Time

Job Number

9796-0681-20261105Wn

0681 - CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES

Opening Date

11/06/2026

11/13/2026 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 Wellbeing/Permanency 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]

This position is advertised for a Social Services Specialist within the Wellbeing/Permanency Unit, Create and maintain case files for children in care; document in MDCPS online database program; Visit children in care in foster homes, facilities and hospitals; Complete investigations of abuse, neglect for exploitation; Complete ongoing safety and risk assessments; Participate in scheduled county conferences/meetings for assigned children-in-care; Make referrals for children-in-care to receive services including dental, vision and medical; Transport children-in-care to appointments and destinations; Arrange for visitation with siblings and parents; Attend staff meetings with supervisor (normally) and all-staff meetings; Assist with new hires by being “shadow buddies”; On-call for after-hours situation (rotating responsibility with other staff members); Attend court for hearings; Communicate with families, service providers, parents, foster parents and the public; Schedule and attend Family Team Meetings. Along with other duties.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.WILL NEED 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 0-2 years of experience. Appointing authority may require social worker’s license. Agency preferred qualifications:Bachelors’ Degree and 2-4 years of experience. Appointing authority may require social worker’s license. 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 maybe based on Education and Qualifications.VALID DRIVERS LICENSE AND INSURANCE

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