Adoption Achievement Specialist Job at Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois
Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois Kankakee, IL 60901
Adoption Achievement Specialist (AAS)
REPORTS TO: Permanency Achievement Supervisor
STATUS: Full Time, Exempt
OFFICE LOCATION: The home office location will be based on the office nearest to the candidate’s residency. Travel is required across the 102 IL counties of which cases are assigned. This is generally in the county where the office is located and the surrounding counties for work related responsibilities. Opportunities currently available in Belleville, Mt. Vernon, Springfield, Decatur, Oakbrook, Joliet, Kankakee and Chicago
WHAT WE DO
Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois improves the well-being of people across the state by protecting children, strengthening families and building futures for those who have experienced trauma. We do this as a leading provider of a variety of child welfare services. LCFS is a welcoming organization serving children, individuals, families and communities of all faiths, races, ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations, gender expressions and gender-identifications.
WHO WE ARE
- Champions in supporting children, youth and families throughout Illinois so they are able to reach their full potential
- Dynamic and innovative leaders who believe in collaboration with their team of professionals and are revolutionizing the
impact on services to families
- A community which embraces and is committed to being WIDE (welcoming, inclusive, diverse and equitable)
- Impactors of the child welfare community by addressing institutional racism and implicit bias to increase positive outcomes for
children and families of color
- Creators of a culture focused on supporting families and ensuring all children find safe, loving permanent homes, particularly by
reuniting them with their families
OBJECTIVES OF THE POSITION
Under the direction of IL child welfare licensed leadership, the Adoption Achievement Specialist is part of the child welfare team that achieves the LCFS vision for all children and families having the opportunity for safe, healthy and meaningful lives. This role is a non-case carrying member focused on the achievement of permanency for youth involved in the IL child welfare system waiting on a foster care conversion adoption or guardianship.
Additional goals of the role are to ensure:
- Identify and remove barriers to the timely achievement of permanency through adoption and/or guardianship
- Successful and sustainable life-long connections and stability
- Supportive youth and family led strength building, positive development, pro-social life skill opportunities, behavior and medical
adaptability, skills & empowerment
ESSENTIAL ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES (NON-EXHAUSTIVE LIST)
- Serves as a non-case carrying member of multidisciplinary team of foster parents, youth, supervisors, direct service child welfare professionals and other identified supports to achieve permanency for youth involved in the IL child welfare system waiting on a foster care conversion adoption or guardianship
- Receives training in strengths based, trauma informed, family centered practice and incorporates knowledge in day-to-day practice, oral and written reports
- Work in collaboration with a team of child welfare and multidisciplinary professionals to gather information for thorough assessment, recommendations, updates and evaluation for permanency achievements
- Provides linkages between child welfare specialist, family and resource engagement specialists, licensing and other internal or external stakeholders to ensure an informed team on the permanency process
- Drafts social histories for children and families pursuing an adoption or guardianship permanency pathway
- Participates in relative, kin and other family searches to identify resources for adoptive and guardianship placement
- Complete adoption and guardianship subsidy writing, finalization, and post finalization paperwork and processes.
- Identifies and makes linkages to children and families regarding moves, grief, separation and loss issues related to adoption or guardianship
- Undergoes on-the-job training of processes, services and resources to achieve the pathway of foster care conversion adoptions.
- Collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams and partners for continuous quality improvement, interventions, service delivery and the achievement of program outcomes
- Participate in regular supervision, mediation, problem resolution, and crisis response by effectively responding to parent, child, provider and other stakeholder concerns and demonstrating the ability to effectively manage crisis and difficult case situations
- Maintains knowledge of changing regulations, policies and rules from agency, DCFS, legal and accrediting bodies. Attends and participates in all required agency and DCFS training in time frame required.
- Achieve organizational performance outcomes on Key Performance Indicators metrics/dashboard towards safety, permanency, wellbeing, and overall Agency performance outcomes
- Exercise discretion and judgment (under supervision) in performance of duties in conformance with applicable policies, procedures, statutes, rules and regulations
- Provides a welcoming and receptive environment to all contacts, clients, agency staff and collateral contacts. Develops understanding and continuously develops self-awareness related to diversity, inclusion and equity issues.
- Performs other duties as required or assigned which are reasonably within the within the values, philosophy, policies procedures and scope of the duties enumerated above
KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES
- Understanding of family centered practice, genograms, ecomaps and social histories
- Basic understanding of the child welfare system
- Ability to understand and follow oral and written instructions
- Ability to successfully apply learned knowledges and techniques to a working environment
- Physical, visual and auditory ability to carry out assigned duties
- Ability to write, prepare and give clear, actionable, accurate, and comprehensive data and feedback for reports and documentation
- Knowledge of readiness of change, grief, human development and the impact of trauma
- Knowledge and understanding of the role of a change agent and interventions needed for a successful helping relationship and maintenance of confidentiality
- Ability to demonstrate critical thinking skills, be detail oriented with highly effective verbal, facilitation and written communication skills
- Ability to develop skills and the skills of others via training, application and supervision
- Knowledge and ability to be open and accepting of other’s ethnicities, race, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression (SOGIE)
- Ability to collaborate and coach a diverse population of staff, with competence, understanding and sensitivity to the workforce and service population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics
- Proficiency in the usage of computer software; demonstrate an understanding of computer file systems and databases, e.g., Microsoft Office, Excel, Outlook, Teams, etc
- Ability to travel and work flexible hours
QUALIFICATION-EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS
Bachelors in a related human service field. Related experience in child and family casework services or a Child Welfare Employee License (CWEL) in IL is highly preferred. (Proficiency in speaking, reading and writing in English and Spanish preferred.)
PHYSICAL AND SPECIAL DEMANDS
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee is frequently required to sit. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, use hands to finger, handle or feel objects, or controls, reach with hands and arms. Objects include a computer and keyboard, calculator, typical business machines such as a fax machine and copier. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 15 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision and the ability to adjust focus. The employee will need to work in Agency offices, travel and/or transport children and families throughout Illinois and must be able to transport him/herself to these environments. The employee is required to have a valid driver’s license, insurance and must be able to safely operate a motor vehicle. LCFS is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Compensation will be commensurate with experience and qualifications. This is a non-case carrying position, thus compensation is less than case carrying counterparts. Lutheran Child and Family Services offers a benefit package to health and dental insurance, includes 11 paid holidays, a robust paid time off/vacation/sick time policy, workforce self-care and resiliency benefits, life insurance, a 403(b) retirement program and performance based bonus potential.
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