Investigator Jobs in Thornton, CO

Salary : $48.00 Hourly

Location : Denver Metro, CO

Job Type : Part Time

Job Number : IHB 06252025

Department : Office of Colorado's Child Protection Ombudsman

Opening Date : 06 / 25 / 2025

Closing Date : 7 / 22 / 2025 5 : 00 PM Mountain

FLSA : Determined by Position

Primary Physical Work Address : 1300 N. Broadway, Suite 430Denver, CO 80203

FLSA Status : Non-Exempt; position is eligible for overtime compensation.

Department Contact Information : careers@coloradocpo.org

Type of Announcement : This announcement is not governed by the selection processes of the classified personnel system. Applications will be considered from residents and non-residents of Colorado.

How To Apply : Online applications through the Colorado Jobs portal will not be accepted. Please follow instructions on the job announcement for submitting an application.

Department Information

The Office of the Colorado Child Protection Ombudsman (CPO) was established in 2010 to improve the child protection system by serving as a resource to citizens, employing a complaint process for citizens to voice their concerns about child protective services and by making recommendations to the Governor's Office, Colorado State General Assembly, and other stakeholders for system improvements.

The CPO is housed within the Colorado Judicial Department and is independent from other agencies within the child protection system. This position sits within the Client Services Team and reports to the Director of Client Services and the Ombudsman.

The agency currently has 14 full-time employees with diverse backgrounds and experience. The CPO is not part of the Colorado government personnel system. Rather, the CPO is an independent agency that is governed by its own personnel rules. These rules comply with applicable provisions of state and federal employment laws. The CPO reviews and updates its personnel rules annually. All CPO employees serve as 'at will' employees at the pleasure of the Ombudsman.

Job Type : Periodic Contract Employee

Benefits : None

Description of Job

POSITION OVERVIEW

The CPO handles more than 1,000 cases per year. An increasing number of those cases involve clients with substantial history and involvement with child protection services in Colorado, as well as complex service programs administered by multiple state entities. This new contract position is intended to assist the Client Services Team with cases that require substantial investigation. This includes the collection of documents from multiple original sources, analysis of that information and cataloging and preparing such information for the Director of Client Services.

This position requires a person who is an excellent communicator, meaning they can effectively give oral and written reports, and prepare clear and concise documentation. A team-oriented mindset is crucial for this position, as well as the ability to embrace diversity and build and maintain quality professional relationships. The person who fills this position must be organized, utilize effective time management skills, and understand the importance of deadlines. Honesty, reliability, and the ability to keep commitments to colleagues and clients are vital aspects of the position. This position requires someone who can seek effective solutions to help resolve concerns and issues in a timely manner.

POSITION DESCRIPTION AND DUTIES

This position will serve as a periodic contract employee, contracting with the CPO. The CPO anticipates that this contract will run until June 30, 2026. There will be an option to renew the contract at the end of Fiscal Year 2025-26.

This position will support client services analysts in their work to review cases brought to the CPO. Currently, client services analysts receive inquiries and complaints from the public and independently review a variety of issues from moderate to difficult complexity. Such issues involve a range of sensitive and factual situations. Complaints may include concerns or questions about a wide variety of issues, including child welfare services, Medicaid, behavioral health services, residential treatment for children and youth, the Division of Youth Services, parental rights and applicable law and regulations.

This position will increase the CPO's capacity to conduct complex case reviews. This position will function similar to a paralegal and / or a legal investigator. While the CPO has direct access to Colorado's child welfare database, it does not have direct access to many other sources of information. Often, the process to obtain records outside of this database is time consuming, as is the analyzing and cataloging such information after it is obtained. A position dedicated to the collection and analysis of the diverse information sets mentioned above will allow the CPO to handle more complex case reviews, faster.

When the Director of Client Services determines that a case requires additional support, this position will work with the Director of Client Services to determine what support is needed. Below is a non-exhaustive list of the duties this position will be responsible for :

• Researching and completing the processes necessary to secure documents from original sources, such as medical records, law enforcement records, court filings and autopsy reports;
• Securing, organizing, and analyzing large amounts of records;
• Preparing clear and concise reports for the Client Services Team regarding the information collected, including summaries, memos, and easy-to-use catalogues so the information may be accessed and utilized by multiple people;
• Gathering facts by conducting on-site visits with services providers to collect documents and / or interview witnesses, including residential treatment facilities and Division of Youth Services' secure youth centers;
• Determining any applicable regulations and laws and providing such authority to the Client Services Team; and
• Providing recommendations regarding any possible non-compliance with such law or regulation.

This position requires an individual who has experience working with various government entities to obtain information. This individual must be familiar with, and comfortable utilizing, Colorado public records laws. This individual will likely have to explain the CPO's position in state government, rights to access information and will have to be prepared to make multiple requests for the same set of information. In addition to learning the CPO's enabling statute, the position will coordinate with the Ombudsman, Director of Client Services, and the CPO's assigned attorney general to discuss information requests.

REQUIRED SKILLS AND ABILITIES

This position requires a diverse set of skills and abilities. Required skills and abilities include :

Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Possession of a bachelor's degree and at least three years' experience in a similar field are required. This may include experience working as a paralegal, legal investigator or similar role, investigative reporting, or public policy research.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet. This position is subject to varying and unpredictable situations; may handle emergency or crisis situations; and is subject to possible interruptions.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

The successful applicant in this position must be willing and available to submit to the following conditions :

SUPERVISOR RESPONSIBILITIES

No supervisory responsibilities. Responsible for one's own work product.

Supplemental Information

How to Apply : APPLICATION PROCESS

To apply, submit the following documents by 5 : 00 PM on Tuesday, July 22, 2025 . Applications must include :

To be considered for this position, you must apply HERE :

https : / / coloradocpo.bamboohr.com / careers / 27

Applications will not be accepted through any other state or government website or application process.

Please note that each agency's contact information is different; therefore, we encourage all applicants to view the full, official job announcement which includes contact information and class title. Select the job you wish to view, then click on the "Print" icon.