Family Partner

****Family Service Association is offering a $1,000.00 signing bonus for this position*****

Family Service Association has a Full Time (40) hours per week) opening for a Family Partner at our Community Service Agency.  Under the supervision of a Senior Family Partner and Senior Care Coordinator, the Family Partner serves as a member of the Community Service Agency team. The Family Partner serves as a liaison for parent involvement. Offers support to each individual family, in whatever way is helpful, to youth and families enrolled in Intensive Care Coordination and Community Service Agency services. A Family Partner provides a one-to-one relationship with a parent or caregiver; coaching and supporting a caregiver to parent the youth with a serious emotional disturbance. Supports may include education, coaching, support and training and are delivered in the caregiver’s home and in their community.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serving as parent representative to program activities.
• Serving as a role model and advocate for children/families involved in the wraparound process.
• Participating in family advocate activities and training.
• Delivers face to face services in the parent/caregiver’s home and community.
• Providing direct assistance to families as identified on their Care Plan.
• Engages the parent/caregiver in activities in the home and community.
• Providing peer support to families, letting them know that they have been where the family is and that their voice and opinions will be listened to.
• Linking family with appropriate services, advocating for them when necessary.
• Assisting in the ongoing development and evaluation of the service program.
• Participating in staff meetings, in-service training, and team meetings.
• Other responsibilities, as assigned, to support specific department/business needs.
• Assist him/her with the meeting of needs of the youth and meet one or more of the following purposes: educating, supporting, coaching, modeling, guiding.
• Teach the parent/caregiver how to navigate the child-serving systems and process.
• Fostering empowerment, including linkages to peer/parent support and self-help programs.
• Teaching parent/caregiver how to identify formal and community-based resources.
• Delivers services in accordance with an existing out-patient, or In-Home Therapy treatment plan that is jointly developed by the outpatient, or In-Home Therapy provider with the parent/caregiver, and the youth whenever possible, and may also include other involved parties such as school personnel, other treatment providers, and significant people in the youth and parent/caregiver’s life.
• Provide transportation services as needed to comply with above activities.
• Willingness and ability to work flexible hours, including evenings to meet the clinical needs of the child and family.
• Maintains standards of confidentiality
• Demonstrates safe work practices and exhibits understanding of emergency response techniques appropriate to position.
• Focuses on understanding and meeting customer needs.
• Maintains positive work relationships in a respectful and collaborative manner.
• Maintains good communication with others ensuring others have necessary information.
• Actively works toward organizational improvement and professional growth.
• The family partner must meet with a senior family partner on a weekly basis for supervision.  Additionally all family partners must participate in weekly supervision with a licensed clinician. 
• All supervision must be documented in files accessible for review by the MCE during the site review process or upon request. 
• Willingness and ability to work flexible hours, including evenings to meet the needs of the child and family.

• Experience as a parent or caregiver of a youth with special needs and preferably a youth with mental health needs is required.
• Experience in navigating any of the child and family-serving systems and teaching family members who are involved with the child and family serving systems​​​​​​May have unsupervised contact with children.
• Bachelor’s degree in a human services field from an accredited university and one (1) year of experience working with the target population; or Associate’s degree in a human service field from an accredited school and one (1) year of experience working with children/adolescents/transition age youth; or high school diploma or GED and a minimum of two (2) years of experience working with children/adolescents/transition age youth.

This is a benefits eligible position.  We offer a comprehensive benefits package including:
•    Medical, dental, vision insurance
•    Long term disability insurance
•    Life insurance
•    403b pension plan
•    Flexible spending account
•    Three weeks paid vacation
•    Twelve paid holidays
•    Generous earned sick time.  

Family Service Association is a comprehensive private, non-profit social service agency dedicated to the development and implementation of services designed to provide strength and support to individuals and families throughout southeastern Massachusetts.  Headquartered in Fall River, Family Service Association strives to increase the capacity of individuals and families to cope with the stresses of family life and interpersonal relationships in a positive, productive and health-improving manner.  This agency is a leading provider of professional social services in the South Coast region of Massachusetts, with a 130-year tradition of high quality.

Family Service Association is an Equal Opportunity Employer.