The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is an assembly of the hierarchy of the Catholic Church in the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The purpose of the Conference is to promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind.  The bishops themselves constitute the membership of the Conference and are served by a staff of approximately 315 lay people, priests, deacons, and religious, located at the Conference headquarters in Washington, DC, with branch offices in Miami, FL and Rome.

The Conference is organized as a corporation in the District of Columbia. Its purposes under civil law are: "To unify, coordinate, encourage, promote and carry on Catholic activities in the United States; to organize and conduct religious, charitable and social welfare work at home and abroad; to aid in education; to care for immigrants; and generally to enter into and promote by education, publication and direction the objects of its being."

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, national origin, age, religion, sex, marital status, disability or other status protected by Federal, State or local laws, except where a reasonable, bona fide occupational qualification exists.  Upon request, reasonable accommodations will be provided to individuals needing assistance.

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Clergy/religious candidates must request written approval form their diocesan bishop or religious superior before an application can be considered. Diocesan lay employees must also request approval from the local bishop. Minorities are encourage to apply.

Select a Department-Office-Secretariat below to view the available career position(s)

Children's Services Specialist, Home Study & Post Release Services   (Full Time)
Department-Office-Secretariat: Office of Migration and Refugee Services
Date Posted: January 25, 2024

The Childrens Services Specialist (CSS) for the Home Study and Post Release Services program is primarily responsible for the oversight of social service programs providing home studies and post release services to unaccompanied undocumented children and their families under the Office of Refugee Resettlement/Department of Unaccompanied Childrens Operations (ORR/DUCO). This position provides oversight to a network of providers to include training, technical assistance, case consultation, assistance with monitoring and quality assurance to ensure compliance with program policies and procedures. This position is also responsible for reviewing sub-recipient reports, data collection and analysis, facilitating trainings as needed to internal and external stakeholders, and submitting reports to ORR/DUCO at required intervals.

Contributes to the Bishops strategic plan for the Conference and demonstrates willingness and ability to understand, respect and contribute to the USCCB mission and to fulfill job duties in accordance with its Catholic identity.

Continuing Responsibilities: (List from highest to lowest priority.)

Provides technical assistance, training, and case consultation related to the provision of Home Study and Post-Release services to a national network of Home Study and Post Release Service providers to ensure quality and timeliness of services in accordance with grant obligations.

Provides continuous programmatic support and oversight of network providers, in collaboration with other Home Study and Post-Release team members, to monitor local service delivery to children and families.

Along with the Monitoring and Quality Assurance (MQA) Specialist, the CSS could assist in the ongoing desk monitoring of assigned network programs, in addition to, collaboration with annual on-site monitoring visits to budgeted Home Study and Post-Release programs

Responsible for review and collaboration with monitoring reports for site visits conducted.

Analyzes and prepares data and related reports both for internal use and for required reporting to our funderonoutcomesrelatedtounaccompaniedchildrenservedthroughtheFamilyReunificationProgram. This includes preparing data and information for the Quarterly, Annual, and other ad-hoc reports and ensuring timely submission to ORR/DUCO.

Conducts ongoing quality assurance reviews of Home Study and Post-Release reports, provides technical assistance and consultation on report writing to local providers, and ensures timely submission of required reports to ORR/DUCO.

Disseminates and updates family reunification related resources and news to provider network through mechanisms to include web library, newsletters, conference calls, and social media

Assists with the development of and implementation of the Family Reunification teams outreach plans to ensure adequate national coverage of available service providers to promptly respond to case referrals of unaccompanied children; continually evaluates plan and makes modifications, if needed, to ensure effectiveness and ability to place cases.

Provides, on an as needed basis, remote case management services to children when necessary to include home visits, post-release services, and completion of required forms and reports.

Maintains detailed knowledge of the Family Reunification referral and placement protocol and to provide coverage for the Placement Specialist, as needed, to ensure timely response to all referrals for Home Study and Post-Release services as well as placement with an appropriate local service provider within required timeframe.

Develops and facilitates web-based trainings and educational materials for the USCCB/MRS national network of family reunification service providers. Continually evaluates effectiveness of training and revises as needed.

Liaises with other MRS segments on curriculum development and implementation for MRS convenings, New Director Orientations and other events aimed at building diocesan capacity to serve unaccompanied children and families.

Conducts research and remains knowledgeable of current evidence-based practices for quality service programming for immigrant families, national accreditation standards, and complex mental health/trauma, medical, safety, and juvenile justice issues that impact children who are referred for family reunification.

Keeps abreast of federal legislation related to migration and child welfare and its impact on programming for unaccompanied children.

Continually evaluates the on-going training needs of the network in response to the needs identified through case work, funder and network requests, and program outcomes.

Identifies trends and gaps in care and informs MRS/Childrens Services accordingly

Provides language translation and interpretive services, as possible/necessary

Assists in training new MRS family reunification staff

Utilizes current internal systems and develops new systems for tracking outreach and training activities.

Responsible for other duties pertaining to the Safe Passages program as assigned.

General Responsibilities, Childrens Services

Remains knowledgeable of all federal government and USCCB/MRS guidelines, policies and procedures related to family reunification.

Maintains technical assistance and training records as well as agency and case data in the MRIS database and/or UAC portal.

Participates in family reunification team meetings as required

Advise and assist the Assistant Director in developing guidelines and procedures related to the Family Reunification program.

Engages in USCCB/MRS quality assurance and evaluation activities.

Provides back-up coverage for other family reunification team members.

Responsible for other duties as assigned.

Level:

Bachelors degree in social work, psychology, counseling or related field; Masters degree is a plus

Two years related experience or combination of education and experience

Major Field/Specialty: Social Work, Child Welfare, Case Management, Mental Health, or related field.

Number of Years Required: Minimum of 2 years

Language: Spanish

*This position can be remote but must live in the DC/MD/VA region