Job Title: Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Program Area: READY Family Wellness Center (RFWC)
Reports To: Director of Culture
Direct reports: GHC Family Wellness Manager and Family Wellness Interns
Status: Full time
Boys & Girls Club of Newark
Founded in 1938, the Boys & Girls Club of Newark (BGCN) is a non-profit organization serving youths in order to help them achieve academic success, build good character and citizenship, and lead healthy lifestyles. In our after-school and summer camp programs, BGCN’s team of dedicated youth development specialists help to ensure our members (ages 5-18) are demonstrating good character and citizenship, living a healthy lifestyle, and on-track to graduate from high school with a plan for the future.
Mission Statement
Our mission is to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.
Job Summary and Purpose
The Family Wellness Licensed Clinical Social Worker will help grow the READY Family Wellness Center to meet the social and emotional needs of our members, as well as to better support our families as a whole. The LCSW is responsible for including but not limited to: planning, developing, implementing and monitoring a wide variety of initiatives to support our members, families, and staff with the overarching goal of enabling our members to thrive through ongoing relationships with caring adults found inside the Clubhouse and at home. The LCSW will provide leadership that promotes trauma-informed staff training, consultation, and supervision as important aspects of ways to incorporate an awareness of trauma’s impact on all aspects of BGCN program’s activities. Overall, the LCSW will aim to create and implement the practices and understanding of poverty and trauma on organizational culture and BGCN’s communities.
Ideal Candidate
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An enthusiastic commitment to BGCN’s mission
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A high attention to details with focus on accuracy
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Demonstrated excellent written and verbal communication skills
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An extensive understanding of mental health issues, current laws and regulations
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Knowledge of Strengthening Families curriculum and program
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Strong interpersonal and assessment skills and respect for diversity
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Extensive background working with a recognized trauma informed organization
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Extensive knowledge about the impact of direct and vicarious exposure to trauma with BGCN communities
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English with preferable language skills in Spanish
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MFCC – Certification of Marriage, Family, Child Counseling
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Responsibility #1: Provide therapeutic counseling and support to children and families – 20%
Tasks:
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Provide a safe and welcoming environment in the READY Family Wellness Center for both drop-in and appointment-based service
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Provide counseling to individual members
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Provide counseling to families
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Accept referrals from staff, supervisors, and parents/caregivers
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Intake and assessment with families
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Provide group counseling, as requested
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Maintain confidentiality guidelines regarding all clients, conversations and referrals
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Maintain accurate and timely documentation of services and all significant interactions with clients. Complete progress notes no longer than two working days following the day of service provision.
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Identify, analyze, and implement evidence-based interventions designed to achieve member’s goals; using research and technological advances; evaluating program outcomes and practice effectiveness; developing, analyzing, advocating, and providing leadership for policies and services; and promoting social advocacy
Responsibility #2: Provide parenting/life-skills consultation, workshops, and/or groups – 20%
Tasks:
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Inform families of RFWC services available
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Create program communications targeted towards parents and families
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Coordinate with Clubhouse Director and Site Coordinators to plan and support regular events for parent and family engagement at BGCN
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Plan and host parent-child activities in collaboration with Clubhouse Director and YDS staff
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Organize and facilitate parenting, life-skills and family strengthening workshops
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Provide individual consultation to parents
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Distribute parenting/life-skills information
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Work with families to address daily challenges including access and connection to resources, healthy parenting, stress management, and other life skills.
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Refer families to external supports and resources as needed
Responsibility #3: Provide and implement trauma informed practices – 20%
Tasks:
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Incorporate and implement the use of a trauma-informed practices and extend the scope of intervention organizationally and to families
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Provide a dynamic and interactive processes of engagement, assessment, intervention, and evaluation at multiple levels with a strong focus towards trauma
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Implement an emphasis on safety based awareness of the client’s persistent danger orientation and the impact of potential trauma triggers for clients, and thus strives to avoid traumatization for families, members and staff.
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Create systems that promotes knowledge about the wide disparity in vulnerability of certain groups to traumatic experiences.
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Create and implement opportunities to rebuild control and empowerment for all members
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Emphasis on strengths-based approaches; Provide trauma-informed, strengths-based service to help clients identify their own strengths and support development of new coping skills.
Responsibility #4: Build social-emotional competence of children at the Clubhouse – 15%
Tasks:
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Coordinate with Clubhouse Director, Site Coordinators, and Family Wellness Center Manager to support regular social/emotional programming
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Respond to issues or sensitive information that may arise during regular programming
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Help develop plans for members with behavioral difficulties to enable their success at the Clubhouse
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Develop reintegration plans for members that were suspended to ensure successful return to the program
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Involve members’ parents in behavior planning and follow up with behavioral difficulties
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Refer members to additional external supports as needed (e.g. counseling, IEP, etc.)
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Coordinate and communicate with all staff members involved with a member requiring extra support to inform of any special instructions or plan
Responsibility #5: Organizational Training – 10%
Tasks:
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Observe programs to identify areas of staff training needed to improve staff skills and protocols
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Coordinate with Clubhouse Director and Site Coordinators to establish training priorities and understand training schedule and frequency
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Plan and facilitate select components of overall staff training related to social work expertise (e.g. child development, behavioral health, family support, parent engagement, crisis response, de-escalation methods, social-emotional development, positive discipline methods, etc.)
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Support BGCN program team to identify, understand and respond to problem behaviors in BGCN members
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As-needed consultation and ongoing coaching to assist staff and supervisors in integrating children’s social-emotional development and needs into everyday work
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Model positive discipline methods and youth development skills for YDS
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Participate in staff meetings at least monthly to hear concerns, provide feedback, and share expertise
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Establish and communicate guidelines for program team to know when to refer members or families to the RFWC
Responsibility #6: Crisis response – 10%
Tasks:
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Provide consultation to staff and supervisors during crisis situations that arise with members
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Help formulate crisis response plan
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Coordinate with relevant team members and follow up as needed
Responsibility #7: Other related duties as assigned – 5%
Tasks:
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Continue to develop professional skills through clinical supervision, training series, and other opportunities as they arise.
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Task supervision and collaboration with MSW interns.
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Collaborate with the Family Wellness Center Manager to coordinate and deliver services to members and families.
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Create program forms and policies
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Use shared drive to access, create, and update shared program materials
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Keep abreast of grant reporting requirements, and progress towards project plan goals
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Responsibilities require evening, weekend and on-call work in certain circumstances
Required Qualifications
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Master’s degree in Social Work, Counseling, Psychology, or an acceptable related field
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LCSW – License as Clinical Social Worker
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Pass and meet all New Jersey State Board of Social Work examiners requirements
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Three (3) to five (5) year of previous job related experience in a healthcare environment
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Two (2) years’ experience providing case management
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Two (2) years’ experience working with a trauma informed organization
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Completed supervisory courses to supervise MSW students and field placement interns
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Seminar in Field Instruction (SIFI) Certified
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Self-starter, capable of giving directions to others and working under pressure in certain cases
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Familiarity with multicultural groups, previous work experience in a multicultural setting, and willingness to enroll in language and multicultural coursework to supplement training if necessary
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Knowledge in the areas of diagnostic assessment, long and short term treatment, family systems theory and group treatment
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Strong computer literacy skills with specific experience using Microsoft office and Outlook email
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Demonstrated excellent written and verbal communication skills