Youth Engagement Support Staff

Covenant House New Jersey; Newark (NJ); On-site; USD 42,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision

403B Retirement plan

Paid Time Off

Job summary

Covenant House New Jersey is seeking an Overnight Youth Engagement Support Staff to work with young people in Newark, NJ. The role focuses on trauma-informed care, crisis intervention, and strength-based support within a multidisciplinary team.

You will help implement youth success plans, document progress, and facilitate activities while ensuring a safe, respectful environment. Bachelor’s degree preferred; Spanish language skills encouraged.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in psychology, sociology, social work or related field preferred.
• Experience with youth ages 18–24 facing homelessness or trafficking preferred.
• Excellent communication and ability to work in a team; bilingual Spanish a plus.
• Valid driver’s license with insurable record.

Responsibilities

• Provide unconditional positive regard to young people and support case management goals.
• Engage youth in activities and document progress in HMIS/ET0 systems.
• Deliver crisis de-escalation and intervention as needed and maintain records.

Skills

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Trauma-informed approach

Bilingual Spanish

Education

Bachelor’s degree in psychology, sociology, social work or related field

Job description

Youth Engagement Support Staff (Overnight)

• Job Tracking ID : 512577-913907
• Job Location : Newark, NJ
• Job Level : Any
• Job Type : Full-Time/Regular
• Date Updated : 07/31/2026
• Years of Experience : Any

Job Description:

The YESS will possess excellent communication and organizational skills and provide support to young people that is strength-based, trauma-informed and harm reduction focused. The YESS will model our mission of providing absolute respect and unconditional love to all young people and will value working within a multi-disciplinary team to create a safe, inclusive environment for all.

The YESS is responsible for continuous youth engagement, activities, and implementation of youth identified success plan goals. Other functions include crisis intervention and de-escalation, documentation in multiple databases, and facilitation of assigned activities.

Duties & Responsibilities:

Provide unconditional positive regard to young people regardless of their behavior. Support Case Management services with the goal of developing positive relationships with young people through the utilization of the case management system, including:

• Welcome young people to the program, ensure they feel comfortable, safe and understand the program structure, opportunities for engagement, and access to supplies that they might need.
• Build a supportive relationship with youth that encourages them to find their voice and connects them to opportunities, experiences, and resources that enrich and enhance their lives.
• Support identified Success Plan goals with each young person.
• Support the youth’s progress of self-identified goals and coach young people to plan, implement, and follow-through with tasks.
• Motivate young people to explore and improve wellness, education and employment, financial literacy and social navigation goals and any other areas that will impact their success plan.
• Monitor youth while taking medication and enter Medication Logs.
• Engage with youth in daily House Activities. To include assisting in completing chores, dining, joining the gym and other fun activities, bus tickets, and on-going movement throughout the day.
• Explore and participate with youth in outside activities, which can include trips, walks to parks, visiting college campuses and other experiences that expose and enrich a youth’s time with CHNJ.
• Provide crisis de-escalation and intervention as necessary according to training and best practices.
• Document Intake, Orientation and Transitions into ETO, HMIS and case files.
• Document regular daily progress notes in young people’s case records (HMIS and ETO).
• Document pertinent information in Youth Incident Report, Medication Logs and House Activity Logs.
• Facilitate if assigned youth group activities which support the 5 resiliency objectives: Wellness, Social Navigation, Financial Literacy, Education and Employment, on a regular basis.
• Perform all duties assigned by the supervisor to meet the needs of young people while ensuring adherence to the daily program schedule.
• Make copies of any forms or documents as assigned.
• Prepare welcome kits. Sort new donations, organize unit storage closets, replenish youth supplies as requested and/or needed.
• Do laundry as assigned for youth linens.
• Clean and prepare vacant residential space to be ready for new intakes.
• Maintain youth common areas according to cleanliness standards.
• Count medication nightly and document on medication log, notify supervisor of any inaccuracies.
• Rotate youth files according to the annual system.
• Attend supervision with supervisor and meetings as assigned.
• Attend professional development training as assigned.
• Read and respond daily to all emails, calendar invites, and any other agency communications.
• Cover the front desk when required.
• Cover all areas of the building as assigned.
• When assigned to transport youth in agency vehicles.
• Utilizing agency resources for agency use only which include but are not limited to vehicles, computers, telephones.
• Assists as needed with fundraising affairs and special events which may be conducted outside the employee’s normal work schedule.

Must be available to work the following: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday: 10:30pm-8:30am. Days Off: Thursday, Friday & Saturday.

Experience and Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in psychology, Sociology, Social Work or related field preferred.
• Preferred experience with young people ages 18-24 experiencing homelessness or human trafficking and or lived experience. Knowledge of public benefits and community in NJ.
• Must be a self starter and team player with the ability to work well with others. Knowledge of adolescent development and ability to build positive rapport with young people. Excellent communication skills as demonstrated by concise, timely and professional correspondence, both written and verbal. Bilingual in Spanish preferred but not required.
• Must have a Valid driver’s license with an insurable record.

Benefits:

• Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, 403B Retirement plan, Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick, Personal & Holiday).