Overview:

YOU Inc is looking for Youth Support Workers to join our home-based team! Our Youth Support staff work as a member of our Support and Stabilization team to provide home and community-based support, skill building, and case management for youth involved with the Department of Children and Families.

Responsibilities:

· Work one on one with youth in the community to build social skills, transition to adulthood skills, mental health coping skills, navigate family challenges, and build overall resiliency.

· Have the capacity and skills to work with youth of various ages that have an increased need for support (youth with mental health challenges, family conflict, trauma, educational needs)

· Assist youth who are transitioning into adulthood with setting goals for work/career/education.

· Travel within several towns areas within Central Massachusetts to provide in home and community-based activities, as well as meetings at the Department of Children and families and other local agencies.

· Complete a needs assessment and treatment planning that is individualized to meet the youth’s needs

· Assess the need for long term supportive services, and assist youth with obtaining referrals.

· Initiate referrals to therapeutic services including substance use treatment, domestic violence services, psychiatric treatment, and long-term mental health services.

· Maintain close collaboration with other service providers to support coordination of care.

· Provide crisis intervention management and ongoing safety planning.

· Attend regularly scheduled meetings with DCF to collaborate on treatment planning and assure progress is being met with family goals.

· Provide on-going supportive and/ or case management according to needs that have been identified in the treatment plan to assts the youth with meeting their goals.

· Document all services and collateral contact made on a timely basis and maintains the electronic health record in accordance with the agency standards.

Qualifications:

· BA/BS/BSW degree in psychology/social work/criminal justice or other human service degree required.

· At least two years of experience working with youth and families preferred.

· Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation required.

· Strong knowledge in child/youth mental health, family systems theory/practice, behavior management and practical experience with youth and families preferred.

· Bilingual (English/Spanish) and/or bi-cultural background and/or skills preferable.

· Must be able to perform sedentary aspects of position, including, but not limited to desk and computer work, typing, driving to meetings and trainings, as well as driving/transporting clients as necessary.

· Must also be able to perform therapeutic activities with children and families.

· Must be able to perform the duties listed above, with or without a reasonable accommodation.

· Employee may be required to intervene in order to de-escalate and/or provide safety of clients using techniques as trained and approved by YOU, Inc, and appropriate to community and home-based settings. Employee needs to complete the agency’s human service worker safety and/or home-based worker safety training.