Outreach Specialist, Social Services Specialist - Sda/Tlt

Summary

King County's Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) Children, Youth & Young Adults Division (CYYAD) is seeking an energetic and hardworking individual to join our team in an exciting Term Limited Temporary/Special Duty Assignment (TLT/SDA) opportunity. The Outreach Specialist (Social Services Specialist) will develop supportive relationships with youth and young adults (ages 16- 24), provide them with life skills counseling, and connect them to appropriate education and employment services. This position requires a strong race equity lens to apply to all areas of opportunity youth work and requires the ability to develop and strengthen relationships with school districts and youth-serving organizations. The Outreach Specialist will work closely with Kent School District administrators, the re-engagement specialist, and school staff and support attendance campaigns targeting populations based on absenteeism data specifically students who have been absent for 20 days or more. This position will be based primarily out of the Kent School District office.

Reconnect to Opportunity (ReOpp) is an outreach strategy supporting the King County Re- engagement Providers Network, a group of second-chance schools and employment training programs seeking to serve young people between the ages of 16 and 24 who are disconnected from school or work. Candidates who have direct life experience being disconnected from education, people of color, and individuals with bilingual skills are strongly encouraged to apply.

This recruitment is to fill a Term-Limited Temporary position that is anticipated to end August 2026. If filled by a King County employee who has passed their initial probation, the TLT will be as a Special Duty Assignment.

Job Duties

SCOPE OF JOB DUTIES – To be considered minimally qualified, applicants must demonstrate a background that provides the knowledge, skill, and ability to:

• Provide mentoring and support services that enable youth and young adults to solve personal and work-related problems.
• Serve on or attend agency committees, task forces, community- and school-based organization meetings including Community Engagement Boards, CAST meetings, court truancy meetings, and school attendance staff meetings.
• Keep organized records and enter participant information into CYYAD and Kent School District databases.
• Assist youth access records and other information needed to obtain services.
• Provide education and crisis intervention training referrals to youth’s family and provide follow-ups with families after interventions to ensure families are making the necessary connections to resources.
• Conduct outreach to the community, including presentations, with the purpose of sharing information about Reconnect to Opportunity (ReOpp) and re-engagement opportunities with community stakeholders.
• Utilize social media channels to share information and promote events and extended learning opportunities.
• Develop relationships with schools and community organizations that serve disconnected youth and young adults, and reach out to them, with the purpose of generating referrals.
• Orient youth to programs that will assist them in meeting their education and/or employment goals and develop the strategy that will allow young person to engage in services.
• Provide relevant barrier reducing information and serve as an advocate.
• Identify and establish working relationships with community resources; act as liaison between youth and those education/employment resources.
• Facilitate youth and young adults' re-engagement to education or employment, accompany them to meetings and act a as a liaison with case managers and community partners.
• Research and identify resources that would help youth work toward their education and employment goals.

Experience, Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills

WE ARE LOOKING FOR CANDIDATES WHO:

• Demonstrated ability to advise youth/young adults to engage with the programs that will best meet their needs and goals through advocacy, support, and individual strategy development.
• Strong relationship skills, including the ability to develop and sustain relationships with people of diverse cultures and socio-economic backgrounds, and demonstrated ability and experience in developing and maintaining effective working relationships with community-based organizations, community service providers, training institutions, employers, young people, and co-workers.
• Have relevant related employment experience to included social services, outreach or human services or any equivalent combination that provides the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the job. Experience with youth re-engagement, particularly outreach for youth/young adults ages 16-24, strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct outreach and provide peer support/life skills counseling.
• Ability to pass a Washington State Patrol Background check.
• Direct experience and understanding of the challenges that disconnected youth face and understanding of the services/programs available to support.
• Adaptability, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn.
• Strong oral and written communication skills and a demonstrated ability to work with internal colleagues and external partners.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail. Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Strong computer skills and experience using a variety of social media platforms for outreach.
• Ability to effectively manage time to work on multiple tasks in high pressure/short deadline environment, and to adapt to changes in workload demand and priorities.
• Demonstrated ability to assess youth/young adults for strengths and barriers to enrollment into education and employment programs.

ADDITIONAL POSITION INFORMATION:

• Classification-Social Services Specialist
• This position is not represented.
• The work associated with this position will require the selected candidate to work onsite five days a week supporting youth and young adult clients: four days at the Kent School District, 12033 SE 256th St, Kent, WA 98030 and one day per week at Tukwila YouthSource 645 Andover Park West, Tukwila, WA 98188.
• This position has been designated Non-Mission Critical. Unless otherwise directed by the County Executive, department director or agency head, all employees, regardless of designation, are expected to report to work or request leave during an emergency or inclement weather. For more detailed information, please visit HR Policy County Operations During Emergency Situations and the King County Guidelines for Workforce Management in an Emergency.
• Employees are paid on a bi-weekly schedule, every other Thursday, comprising a 40-hour workweek; schedule is 8:00am-5:00pm, Monday-Friday and is overtime eligible.

WHO MAY APPLY:
This position is open to all qualified candidates that meet the minimum qualifications. Interviews for this selection process will take place on or around September 5, 2023. A completed King County application is required. If you have any questions, please contact Christina Jamerson, Senior HR Analyst, by email [email protected].

Supplemental Information

Forbes named King County as one of Washington State's best employers.

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles - we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer

No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

To Apply

If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. If you need this announcement in an alternate language or format, would like to request accommodation or assistance in the application or assessment process or if you have questions please contact the recruiter listed on this job announcement.