Parent-Child Support Specialist at NAYA Family Center

NAYA Family Center seeks a compassionate and capable child welfare or social services professional to serve as our Parent-Child Support Specialist. This role provides direct service to clients (80%), conducting bieweekly home visits to families with children ages 0 to 5 and facilitating weekly parent-child interactive groups. This role reports to Elisha Big Back, Early Childhood Services Manager.

NAYA offers an exceptional benefits package, including free medical, dental and vision insurance for employees (and affordable care for family), 401(k) retirement plan with 6% match, paid vacation and paid holidays. 

This is a full-time role with work hours of 9 am to 6 pm with a one hour unpaid lunch. Once training and onboarding are complete, you may work from home up to two days per week.

Starting pay is $22/hour, which is equivalent to $45,760/year.

Who You Are

• You are a child welfare or social services professional and ideally, you have two years of experience in child welfare. 
• You understand child development, early childhood education systems, and parent engagement.
• You have work or lived experience in the Native community, or you have a commitment to learn Native history and the unique strengths and challenges of Urban Natives. 
• You have experience facilitating and leading training.
• You have Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and First Aid and Automatic External Defibulator (AED) certification, or you are able to be certified within the first 60 days of hire.
• If you speak another language, it is a plus.
• You are a calming presence. You are able to stay composed and exercise good judgement in stressful situatons.
• You have experience utilizing a case management database. You know how to document notes and you do so in a timely fashion each day. You don’t procrastinate entering your notes.
• You have superb follow up. You have good personal systems to make sure you don’t forget to follow up with clients or with your teammates.
• It comes naturally to you to have a warm, respectful and professional tone in your written and in person communication.
• You don’t hesitate to roll up your sleeves and pitch in, even when it’s not your job.
• You have your own car and a valid Oregon or Washington driver’s license with no more than one major violation in the last three years, so that you can be covered under NAYA’s liability insurance. You don’t mind using your personal vehicle for work purposes (mileage reimbursed).

What You’ll Do

• Conduct biweekly home visits for a caseload of approximately 15 families with children ages 0-5 years old. Utilize the Nuturing Parent and Family Spirit models.
• Empower parents to take and active role in their child’s development and education.
• Connect families to resources in the community by making referrals and following up to ensure that the parents accessed the services.
• Facilitate weekly parent-child interactive groups
• Provide support and advocacy for clients with outside agencies (e.g. Oregon Department of Human Services’ Child Welfare Division and Self Sufficiency Programs and Oregon Head Start)
• Occasionally support NAYA’s Early Head Start by filling in for teachers while they are on their breaks.
• Complete daily data entry and maintain case files in accordance with program procedures.
• Maintain confidentiality and practice discretion and respect when discussing client
• information.

Read the full job description.

Questions? Want to chat about this role before you decide to apply? Contact Elisha Big Back, Early Childhood Services Manager or NAYA HR at jobs@nayapdx.org.