Social Services Specialist II - Protection & Preservation Services (PPS)

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　　Social Services Specialist II - Protection & Preservation Services (PPS)

　　Salary

　　$62,932.27 - $104,886.91 Annually

　　Location

　　DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY SERVICES - MULTIPLE LOCATIONS, VA

　　Job Type

　　FT Hourly W BN

　　Job Number

　　24-00171

　　Department

　　Family Services

　　Opening Date

　　01/13/2024

　　Closing Date

　　2/23/2024 11:59 PM Eastern

　　Pay Grade

　　S23

　　Posting Type

　　Open to General Public

　　Description

　　Benefits

　　Questions

　　Job Announcement

　　This position includes a signing bonus of $2,500 (full-time) for new county hires.

　　Appointees to this position will receive an environmental stipend. This stipend will be paid out at a rate of $138.46 per pay period (26 pay periods annually).

　　Works as part of the Division of Children, Youth and Families (CYF). Provides clinical casework services to stabilize and support families experiencing abuse/neglect or at-risk of further abuse/neglect. DFS is committed to strengthening the well-being of its diverse community by protecting and improving the lives of all children, adults, and families through assistance, partnership, advocacy, outreach, and quality services. To learn more about DFS and its Mission, Vision, and Values, please click here.

　　This position is a member of the Protection and Preservation Services (PPS) program. Work hours are Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., however, evening and/or weekend work is required as well as being part of an on-call rotation for CPS that includes evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday hours which may require immediate response into the field are required.

　　Duties of the SSS II include:

　　Uses child welfare framework to perform comprehensive assessments of children and their families, including home visits. Areas of assessment include child abuse and neglect; parenting capacity; family relationships; mental health, substance abuse, and developmental concerns; social supports; physical health challenges and disabilities; and basic needs including shelter, food, and clothing

　　Collaborates with the parents/caretakers, key members of the family, and children, if appropriate, to develop a service plan to ensure children’s safety and reduce risk of future harm to children

　　Collaborates with the family and multidisciplinary team to coordinate casework services and ensure progress towards achieving service plan goals

　　Coordinates care and delivery of services such as financial, food, shelter, and housing assistance; psychiatric, psychological, or mental health evaluations; and domestic violence interventions to family members

　　Responds to and provides crisis intervention to maintain child safety and well-being

　　Documents assessments, critical incident reports, detailed case contacts, progress notes, and service plans

　　Prepares court petitions and testifies in court

　　Collaborates with various multi-disciplinary professionals and facilitates family engagement activities

　　Performs other duties as assigned to ensure child safety and improve outcomes in families

　　Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

　　Knowledge of child protection laws, rules, and regulations

　　Knowledge of conducting child protective services assessment and investigation

　　Ability to interview, assess needs, counsel, and refer clients to other resource as needed

　　Ability to assess safety, risk, and protective capacity

　　Possess critical thinking skills and ability to apply critical thinking and knowledge and research

　　Ability to meet deadlines and keep up with documentation

　　Ability to work collaboratively with families to identify solutions to specific issues and/or challenges such as parenting, behavior management, childcare, financial stability, housing, mental health, substance abuse, etc.

　　Requires the ability to develop goals and to use decision-making tools and resources for the safety and well-being of children

　　All Fairfax County Government employees are expected to adhere to the Standards of Conduct. In maintaining a drug free workplace, employees are prohibited from manufacturing, distributing, possessing, using or being under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs while at work or on county premises.

　　Employment Standards

　　MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

　　Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor's degree, plus two years of professional social work experience. A master's degree in a related field may be substituted for one year of the required experience.

　　Contingent upon the area of assignment, some positions within this class may require specific certification(s) prior to employment and/or the ability to acquire necessary certification(s) within a specified time period following employment. The certifications are identified in the position description and employment advertisement.

　　CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES REQUIRED:

　　Valid driver's license.

　　NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

　　The appointee to the position must satisfactorily complete a criminal background check, driving record check, and a Child Protective Services check.

　　This position is considered essential personnel and will be required to report to work during times designated countywide as approved for unscheduled leave regardless of the emergency situation (i.e., weather, transportation, other disaster).

　　PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

　　A master's degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or other directly related clinical discipline

　　Experience in performing child protective investigations, foster care and/or family preservation

　　Experience in working with the court system and family group facilitation

　　Experience in performing case management services in a child welfare setting (child protective services, foster care, adoption, family prevention, permanency planning, or domestic/sexual violence)

　　PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

　　Sufficiently mobile to attend home visits, court, meetings, and community events outside the office. Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing. Ability to use automated technology. Work requires performing tasks with risks of secondary traumatic stress (STS) Ability to navigate through and make decisions in stressful and crisis situations. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

　　SELECTION PROCEDURE:

　　Panel interview; may include practical exercise.

　　This job announcement is listed with a closing date of 2/23/24 and interested applicants are advised to submit their applications as soon as possible. Interviews will be conducted on a regular basis throughout the recruitment with candidates whose qualifications best fit our needs. If your application is received later in the recruitment process, it may not be reviewed or considered. The application process may close prior to the currently advertised closing date when the position has been filled.

　　The population of Fairfax County is very diverse where 39.8% of residents speak a language other than English at home (Spanish, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indo-European, and others) and we are committed to providing county services to individuals regardless of English proficiency. Qualified candidates who are bilingual in English and another language are encouraged to apply for this job opportunity.

　　Fairfax County Government prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetics, political affiliation, or military status in the recruitment, selection, and hiring of its workforce.

　　Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. Contact 703-324-4900 for assistance. TTY 703-222-7314. [email protected] EEO/AA/TTY.

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