Job Information
St. Catherine's Center for Children Youth Development Specialist in Ravena, New York
About Our Organization:
St. Catherine’s Center for Children is a leading non-profit organization in New York’s Greater Capital District. Our comprehensive range of human services reach more than 1,000 children, 600 families, and hundreds of adults across Upstate New York each year. Our multi-faceted programs are designed to offer hope, foster growth, and improve the lives of the children, families, and adults we serve. We offer residential and therapeutic foster care programs for children and youth, Kinship support, homeless and community-based services for adults and families, a special education elementary school for ages 5-13, and so much more.
St. Catherine’s employs more than 300 full and part-time staff. Our spectrum of services for children, families and individuals suffering from the lasting effects of abuse and neglect, family instability, mental illness, homelessness and other ongoing traumas, continues to grow. We are committed to cultivating a culture where all employees can bring their authentic and best selves to the workplace. Our DEI-B initiatives are designed to support and build a more equitable, inclusive and diversified workplace, one which exemplifies true respect and dignity.
Job Summary:
The Youth Development Specialist works with the Rural Albany County Connections (RACC) Program Primary Clinician/ Case Planner(s) to provide services to 15 families. The Youth Development Specialist will work with all targeted youth to provide concrete support and skill building, to strengthen age-appropriate life skills and support their educational/vocational and recreational interests. The Youth Development Specialist works with their team on each case to determine the needs of the targeted child in regard to community resources, after school programming, and enrichment activities.
This full-time position is Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm and is located in our Ravena, NY offices.
Duties & Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Accept all referrals from Albany County Department for Children, Youth and Families Prevention intake department for the RACC program; Attend intakes within 24 hours of receiving referral.
Attend home visits with the families in order to assess the needs of the children for essential community linkages.
Make the linkages for youth to the community activities that align with their goals and interests.
Coordinate services by attending service plan reviews and other meetings, and via phone contacts.
Coordinate with the families and the Primary Clinician/Case Planners around the child(ren)’s needs and progress.
Administer the NYS Child Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment to help identify targeted areas of need.
Complete progress notes and contributions to the Family Assessment and Service Plans within the NYS OCFS Connections system, in a timely and efficient manner.
Complete additional paperwork as needed for the program.
Advocate for the program and our clients with other agencies in the community.
Work as a team with the Primary Clinician/Case Planner and the Assistant Director of Prevention, who will team lead for all RACC cases.
Additional position-related duties and responsibilities as assigned by the Assistant Director of Prevention.
Organizational Relationships:
The Youth Development Specialist reports directly to the Assistant Director of Prevention.
The position is responsible for coordination of assessment and referrals to community services.
This position will utilize Motivational Interviewing strategies, as this is our evidence-based practice.
Position Specifications:
Bachelor’s degree in human services or education, required.
Experience working with multi-problem families and helping them to address their goals.
Excellent written, organizational and interpersonal skills.
Knowledge of community resources, including school districts, law enforcement, local churches, recreational sites and clubs.
Must have a clean and valid NYS driver’s license and have been actively licensed for at least one year.
Must have a reliable (fully insured) vehicle for traveling to and from client homes and to community resources, meetings, etc. - with proof of 100/300 liability coverage.
The ability to remain in control, especially during crisis situations, is highly important.
Experience with various computer applications: Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel), Google Business Workspace Suite (Gmail, Google Docs, Meet, Sheets, etc.), and other data processing systems for the entry and retrieval of client information.
Ability to pass required pre-employment background checks, to include fingerprinting.
Essential Functions:
Ability to relate to and communicate with a wide range of people. This includes but is not limited to a broad range of people who are culturally and socio-economically diverse, as well as people with various developmental and functional levels.
Ability to show flexibility in planning for future programming and to take supervisory direction well.
Must possess excellent communication skills (written and verbal); outstanding interpersonal skills, and the ability to build strong working relationships with other agency staff and other regulatory bodies.
Ability to understand, communicate with, represent and carry out the mission, values, philosophy and policies of St. Catherine’s Center for Children.
Carry out timely and accurately written documentation as required by St. Catherine’s policies and procedures and as required by regulating agencies.
Capacity to work collaboratively as a member of a multi-disciplinary team.
Ability to exercise ethical, independent judgment and discretion; handle sensitive data with strict confidentiality.
Ability to function well in a high-paced and at times, stressful environment.
Excellent organization, planning and time management skills; effectively manage the varied tasks of the program.
Demonstrated placidity and patience, flexibility and adaptability.
The ability to establish a respectful relationship with persons served to help them gain skills and confidence.
What We Offer*:
Competitive Pay with an Excellent Benefits Package
Health Insurance options: Medical, Dental and Vision
Generous Combined Leave Time and LOADS of PAID Holidays!
$500 Employee Referral Bonus*
Professional Development & Career Growth Opportunities
We are a 501(c) (3) agency, which is a qualifying employer for eligible staff under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program*
Pension Plan with an aggressive Agency contribution
Life Insurance – Automatic Benefit, at no cost to you!
Paid Training* including TCI and CPR/AED/First Aid Certification Update courses, if role appropriate
Tuition Reimbursement*
Travel/ Mileage Reimbursement*
Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
The Comfort of a Business Casual Environment.
*To qualify, certain conditions may apply; See Human Resources for additional details.
EEO Statement: St. Catherine’s Center for Children is committed to creating a diverse environment and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, reproductive health and pregnancy, family history and genetics, disability, age, military status, veteran status, politics, or other beliefs, and any other characteristics protected by law.
Background Checks: We run a thorough and complete pre-employment background check on all candidates being considered for a position, this includes fingerprinting. All candidates must successfully clear the pre-employment background check process, which follows NYS/DOJ requirements. We pay for all pre-employment background checks!