Parent Partner

Progressive Life Center, Inc. (PLC) is a Black-led organization, providing culturally-sensitivity human services to children, youth and families in the District of Columbia and surrounding Maryland, throughout Greater Philadelphia, and in most of Delaware. PLC’s array of community-based services includes foster care and adoption, independent living for youth aging out of foster care, family preservation, juvenile diversion, and parenting skills training. For more than two decades, PLC has earned accreditation from the prestigious Council on Accreditation (COA) for its demonstration of excellence in the delivery of services and achievement of outcomes. Learn more at plcCommunity.org.

Program Overview

PLC provides twice-monthly visits and other supports to Department of Family Services special needs clients placed in Pennsylvania institutional care settings (Devereux, Woods, and The Village). Youth generally have mental health, behavioral, developmental, or neurological challenges and disabilities that complicate traditional foster care placements.

The program provides supportive brief periods of structured respite, social activities, and outings by a trained Parent Partner to Delaware youth residing in New Castle County foster homes. Youth have extensive care and supervision needs that would otherwise limit a foster parent’s ability to address other personal, pleasurable, or emergent situations; fill in the gap for school suspensions and illnesses; and maintain mandated supervision stipulations (such as inappropriate sexual behavior and court required monitoring).

Position Description

• Document each period of supervision service to summarize observations of the child or youth, additional details of the stay, and any problems, concerns, or unique circumstances that occurred (adjustment, education, behavior, functioning).
• Assure that any concerns of abuse, neglect, or substantial care or well-being concerns regarding the youth or foster home are appropriately reported to the DFS Hotline.
• Provide once monthly scheduled visits to commutable facilities, and one additional virtual contact to establish rapport with identified DFS clients and care team members in institutional settings. Visits to further locations are generally virtual and twice monthly.
• Maintain contact with family members and support systems who visit or remain actively involved in the client's life, care, or discharge planning, or may be a potential placement resource.
• Utilize Afrocentric or culturally appropriate, as well as trauma-focused, approaches for all interventions.
• Participate in bi-weekly supervision, weekly staff, and other meetings as necessary, as well as other relevant training, and PLC scheduled events throughout the year.
• Enter and maintain accurate data into the Database systems of DFS (FOCUS) and Progressive Life Center (FAMCare).
• Submit client contact charts, case, and visit summaries, and other required documentation for clients serviced each month.
• Reviews of client records, program audits, outcome measures, and performance reviews usually occur quarterly.
• Submit and update a weekly schedule plan, monthly mileage calculation, and quarterly time studies and reports.
• Assist with occasional ICAN client trainings and events, such as educational, vocational, career, leadership, cultural field trips and site visits, and participation in activities such as HOPE meetings, Destined for Greatness event, Independent Living annual state conference, and other recognition and graduation events.
• Other duties assigned.

Qualifications

• Minimum of a High School Diploma or equivalent.
• Associate degree or higher, in social work or a related field, from an accredited college or university preferred. Two(2) years of experience in social services or child welfare.
• Experience in providing services to at-risk children and families.
• Knowledge of and experience with Afrocentric or other spiritually focused models or a strengths perspective highly desirable.
• Demonstrated ability and enthusiasm for working collaboratively.
• Evidence of effective written and verbal communication.
• Experience utilizing MS Office Suite and databases.
• Ability to travel within DE and occasionally to locations in other states within a 100-mile radius.
• Owner of a reliable vehicle and valid driver's license.
• Certificate in NTUTM Service Delivery Model within one (1) year of hire (training provided).
• Ability to work some limited evening and weekend hours. The full-time work week is generally based on 32 hours.

Benefits

We offer exceptional benefits package with an opportunity for personal and professional growth, which include the following:

• $5,000 sign-on bonus
• Fringe Benefits – health, dental, vision, retirement fund, and more
• Paid Time Off
• Clinical Training with Continuing Education Units
• Mileage Reimbursement
• Hybrid Work Schedule

Physical Demands

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Ability to remain in a stationary position 50% of the time.
• Ability to occasionally move about inside the office to access file cabinets, office machinery, etc.;
• Ability to operate a computer and other office productivity machinery;
• Ability to position self to stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl;
• Ability to frequently communicate with employees/customers/clients; and must be able to exchange accurate information by perceiving the nature of sound, near and far vision, depth perception, providing oral and written information;
• Ability to frequently move files weighing up to 20 pounds throughout the office space;
• Ability to be on call and often respond to situations during off hours which can disrupt normal sleep patterns and cause fatigue;
• Ability to physically restrain children when required and protect him/her in physically confrontational situations;
• Ability to face a significant amount of emotional stress which can cause related physical stress;
• In cases of child relocation, the incumbent may be required to assist the child by carrying belongings and must often lift, carry and/or comfort small children.

Work Environment

Normal office environment, but also may travel locally to visit clients within their homes, meet with service providers, and/or attend meetings: schools, hospitals, mental health clinics, private practices, occasional detention centers/prisons, corporations, and numerous public and private agencies and community settings.

Equal Opportunity Employer

PLC is an equal opportunity employer. PLC does not discriminate in employment on account of race, sex, color, religion, sexual orientation, parental status, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, political affiliation, military status, or other non-merit-based factors.