Social Worker I A/T - CPS- In-Home

Vance County, NC; Henderson (NC); On-site; USD 36,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Vance County, NC is seeking a Social Worker I A/T to develop family services and intervention plans for cases involving abuse, neglect, or dependency.

The role emphasizes collaboration with families, community resources, and service providers to ensure child safety and family stability.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in social work and one year of social work experience; or a Bachelor's degree in social work and two years of social work or counseling experience; or a master's degree in a counseling field and two years of social work or counseling experience; or a four-year degree in a human services field and three years of social work or counseling experience.

Responsibilities

• This position develops Family Services case plans or intervention plans for individual cases involving abuse, neglect, or dependency, coordinating with families, community supports, and providers to maintain the family unit.
• It will conduct Family Assessments when needed and may require in-home services with safety planning and potential legal intervention to protect children.
• Normal hours are Monday–Friday 8:30 AM–5:00 PM with after-hours and weekend on-call coverage; may assist with foster children when placement is unavailable.

Job description

This position is open until filled. The Human Resources Office is unable to provide status updates by telephone. The salary range is listed above. Starting salary will depend on qualifications and experience.

In this position, the Social Worker I A/T will develop a Family Services case plan or intervention plan which is applicable to individual cases where abuse, neglect or dependency have been determined. The goal is to work with the family, community support, and community providers to provide services and assistance in attempting to alleviate any abuse, neglect or dependency with the goal of maintaining the family unit. This position with conduct Family Assessments only in current open cases as needed should additional abuse, neglect, or dependency allegations arise. In-home services will seek legal intervention at any given time in order to ensure a child’s safety. The family services case plan will be reviewed and prescribed intervals and more if necessary to monitor progress in achieving identified goals. The worker will provide intensive in-home mentoring and guidance, and/or connect the family with various community resources and services to address the abuse, neglect and/or dependency issues with the goal to eliminate intervention and to maintain the original family unit and to ensure the provision of safety and permanent home to all juveniles within the parameters of said family unit. This position is required to be available to provide after hour/on call coverage as needed and required during non-agency hours.

Normal work hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. After-hours work will regularly occur due to the nature of this position. Position may require after-hours and weekend on-call coverage. Position may be required to assist with foster children being cared for in the DSS office when appropriate placement is not available. Flexing of work schedule must be done in consultation with unit supervisor and program administrator.

Worker must:

• Have the ability to provide intensive in-home guidance to all client juveniles and all client adults pertinent to the achievement of the goal of maintaining an intact family where juveniles are provided a minimal standard of care
• Be able to quickly ascertain facts on accepted reports to determine within mandated time frames what, if any, steps are necessary to protect and ensure the safety of the alleged victim during the course of Family Assessments. Said steps include the completion of necessary safety plans for Family Assessment cases so as to define measurable progress, or lack of progress toward the goals desired by said case plans and assessments by working with parent/caretaker on case goals.
• Be able to develop, and continually reevaluate, in-depth case assessments, of various names and formats, so as to define measurable progress, or lack of progress, toward the goals desired by said case plans and assessments by working with parent/caretaker on case goals.
• Have and maintain a knowledge of family dynamics, social work assessments techniques, consultation and teaching techniques, and the ability to perform the position in an appropriate manner within the parameters of case management as defined by CPS practices and standards.
• Obtain and maintain a knowledge of community and state wide resources which may be accessed as necessary to fulfill client needs. The ln-Home Services Worker must, in tum, co-ordinate and implement intervention plans to access said juveniles on an individual case basis
• Worker must be capable and prepared to represent the agency as an expert witness in the areas of abuse, neglect, and/or dependency at juvenile (7-B), custody (chapter 50), Mental Health, and/or criminal hearings.
• Other duties assigned by unit supervisor or agency leadership. May include emergency duty and assisting with displaced children and/or adults.
• Worker must be able to provide clinical and technical guidance to professionals, agencies, and/or groups within the community as well as within the Department of Social Services.
• Worker is to represent the agency and/or In-Home Services unit at any agency foster care reviews; juvenile court reviews (if necessary); team and unit staffings; In-Home Services team and/or foster care re-evaluations as appropriate for each case maintained in the social worker's caseload or as appropriate to the needs of the overall Children's Services section.
• Worker will conduct, and/or assist with, parenting classes and/or parent support groups to instruct adult caretakers in appropriate ways of parenting juveniles.
• In addition, the Worker must:
  • Fulfill any and all training requirements indigenous to, and incumbent upon, the In-Home Services Social Work position
  • Access additional training needs for their position and submit requests to pursue said needs to the unit supervisor.

KNOWLEDGES, SKILLS, & ABILITIES:

Thorough knowledge of social work principles, techniques and practices and their applications to complex casework, treatment, and investigation of abuse or neglect of children; thorough knowledge of policies and procedures as evidenced by the ability to cite the authority of federal and state law; thorough knowledge of individual and group behavior, family dynamics, and medical, behavioral and/or psychosocial problems and their treatment theory. Considerable knowledge of governmental and private organizations and resources in the community. Ability to interact and motivate a resistant involuntary client population and the public who may not agree with the laws, rules or policies of the process or the programs; ability to prepare documentation such as written investigative reports for the court, case records and treatment plans; ability to testify as an expert witness; ability to employ advanced case management interview techniques to establish a supportive relationship and involve families in the initial assessment for the need of services; ability to quickly assess the risks and safety of the client environment during daylight hours, after dark and in high crime areas; ability to employ expert negotiation skills in the most complex cases; ability to analyze and assess child development safety issues in relation to risk factors; ability to analyze tense family situations and make decisions about removing children when the decision has to be made with limited access to consultation; ability to analyze tense family situations and make decisions about removing children when the decision has to be made with limited direct information an limited access to consultation; ability to communicate effectively and establish supportive client relationships. Ability to perform manual work exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects.

Required Minimum Training:

Master's degree from an accredited school of social work and one year of social work experience; or a Bachelor's degree from an accredited school of social work and two years of social work or counseling experience; or Master's degree in a counseling field and two years of social work or counseling experience; or a four-year degree in a human services field or related curriculum and three years of social work or counseling experience; or graduation from a four-year college or university and four years of experience in rehabilitation counseling, pastoral counseling or a related human service field providing experience in the techniques of casework, group work or community organization; or an equivalent combination of training and experience.
One year of work experience can be credited for completion of the social work collaborative.

Please Note:

If offered a position, official transcripts/verification of education must be submitted directly to the Human Resources Office from the educational institution(s) listed on application. Positions requiring a minimum education/certification must also have official documents submitted to the Human Resources Office. Unofficial transcripts may be submitted by the candidate with the application for consideration of meeting minimum job requirements.