Good Shepherd Services

Job Title: Fair Futures Coach

Reports To: Fair Futures Supervisor

Location: 7 West Burnside Avenue, Bronx NY 10453

Hours: 35 Hours/Week; Exempt

Salary Range: 50k-55k Annually based on post graduate education and relevant experience

Major Duties:

• Build and maintain relationships with up to 18 young people at any given time
• Provide ongoing social/emotional support.
• Work 1:1 with young people to develop academic and career development goals based on their interests and strengths to take measurable steps towards their goals.
• Connect young people to quality schools, programs, resources, and opportunities in line with their goals.
• Connect young people to peer group supports and build positive relationships.
• Help young people persist in these settings, navigate any challenges that arise, celebrate successes, and plan/prepare for the next step on their journey.
• Should a youth not be successful in any particular school/program setting, Coaches help young people reflect on the experience and work with them to set new goals and transition to the next opportunity.
• Collaborate with Case Planners, Tutors, Specialists, and foster/birth parents, as needed, to help youth achieve.
• Ensure young people aging out of foster care access and maintain housing and build independent living skills.

Educational Duties:

• Re-engage disconnected youth and help them re-enroll in an academic setting
• Assess the fit between the young person and their current academic setting and help them transfer into a better-fit high school or high school equivalency (HSE) program, if needed.
• Visit the young person’s school/program and build relationships with school staff, review transcripts and academic data, provide educational advocacy, and discuss progress towards graduation/HSE obtainment.
• Ensure young people are attending school and have the supports and resources they need to be successful, such as tutoring, individualized educational plans (IEPs), 504 Plans, or other special accommodations.
• Expose students to post-secondary pathways, such college and/or accredited vocational programs, starting in the 9th grade (or as early as possible).
• Assist students with post-secondary planning, along with the guidance counselors and/or College Specialists and Career Development Specialists.
• Connect the student to the College Specialist to apply to colleges, opportunity programs, and all forms of financial aid, funding, and scholarships.
• Provide college persistence coaching, including ensuring students are receiving all of the financial and academic supports they need to succeed each semester.
• Collaborate with all relevant partners, such as Case Planners, guidance counselors, Specialists, Tutors, teachers, family members, and caregivers.

Career Development Duties:

• Assist young people in obtaining working papers, if needed.
• Conduct career exploration activities with young people.
• Assist young people in selecting at least one career development experience each year that is in line with their interests and academic situation/background.
• Work with the young person and Career Development Specialist to identify potential longer-term career pathways based on the young person’s interests, strengths, and academic/vocational plans.
• Connect the young person to the Career Development Specialist, if needed, to explore workforce development programs, vocational programs, and for assistance with job applications.
• Connect young people, as needed, to agency-based job readiness and/or internship programs.
• Provide persistence coaching to young people enrolled in any external program by checking in with them regularly.

Housing and Independent Living Duties:

• Ensure that the young person coordinates with a Housing Specialist to ensure that all young people’s housing applications are submitted as early as possible (by age 19 if their goal is to age out).
• Accompany the young person to visit supportive housing residences, when needed.
• Help young people move in and obtain furniture.
• Help young people maintain their housing by providing independent living and life skills supports such as budgeting, obtaining a bank account, and advocating with landlords, if needed.
• Attend and participate in agency trainings, ACS trainings, NYC DOE trainings.
• Plan and facilitate Peer Groups and PYA workshops for young people pertaining to independent living skills monthly.
• Keep case records and accurate data information up to date, including but not limited to, school visits, home visits, community visits, and visits with parents/guardians.
• Promote and model the 7 Sanctuary Model commitments and the SELF (Safety, Emotional Management, Loss, Future) Model into daily practice to create a non-violent and trauma informed culture.
• Document timely progress notes in Connections and Care4.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required with two years of experience working with at-risk youth or youth involved in the child welfare system preferred.
• Knowledge of the NYC Dept. of Education, College application process, and NYCHA application process.
• Experience with providing 1:1 support to youth in care.
• Ability to be flexible to the demands of youth in care.
• Ability to work autonomously as well as part of a team.
• Excellent written and communication skills.
• Strong time-management, organizational skills, and attention to detail.
• Ability to troubleshoot, advocate, and navigate obstacles where there is not always a clear-cut pathway.
• Open to learning how to use and interpret data to inform decision-making.
• Ability to effectively collaborate in team settings and build relationships with external partners.
• Ability to use Motivational Interviewing techniques.
• Ability to use trauma-informed techniques.
• Ability to facilitate therapeutic peer groups.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus but not required.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.
• Proficient in Microsoft Word Office and Excel.
• Perform other duties as assigned.
• Must have a commitment to work from a strength based and/or youth & family development perspective.