Foster Care Adoption Specialist

Foster Care Adoption Specialist

Requisition # : req15813

Location : Kalamazoo, MI

Hours : Full-time (40 hrs / week)

Salary Range : $22 - $23 / hourly

At Bethany Christian Services, we believe families providethe strongest foundation for care and connection. That's why we focus onstrengthening and empowering families, always advocating for family-centeredsolutions to keep children safe. Our work began in 1944 with the care ofa single child. Today, inspired by our faith, our aim is to demonstrate thelove and compassion of Jesus in our services for children, youth, andfamilies. Working at Bethany means joining a team of nearly 2,000 dedicatedprofessionals with diverse skills, serving communities across the country.Together, we're united in our mission and these shared values : we're motivatedby our faith, we support one another, we champion justice, we pursueexcellence, and we're in it for the long haul.

As a Foster Care Adoption Specialist, you will be primarily responsible for providing professional adoption services, to include quality family and child assessments, successful adoptive placements, and post-placement supervision in accordance with agency policies, state contract(s) and licensing regulations.

This position is expected to function effectively with moderate supervision while following the guidelines given on procedures, along with agency, federal, and state regulatory requirements.

ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide thorough assessments for pre-adoptive children and families;
• Conduct periodic adoptive educational and preparational group meetings for pre-adoptive families to ensure appropriate resources for referred children;
• Process case assignments and complete child and adoptive family assessments in accordance with agency expectations and procedures;
• Participate in adoptive planning for referred children, advocating for the child's best interest through available adoptive family resources;
• Coordinate pre-adoptive planning with foster care workers, foster and adoptive parents and DHS referral sources, including MARE, when necessary;
• Prepare children, foster and adoptive families for adoption, and conduct pre-adoptive visitation of referred children with appropriate families;
• Conduct adoptive placements for referred children with approved families in accordance to contract and agency expectations;
• Ensure quality adoptions services within state licensing requirements;
• Provide a minimum of quarterly post-placement supervision contacts with adoptive families and children;
• Organize and manage time to insure reports and documents are completed in a timely fashion.
• Attend required court hearings;
• Meet regularly with supervisor to consult on case review case plan and direction, and to evaluate progress;
• Participate in OCA adoption events and other meetings as required;
• Attend required training hours per state licensing, DHS, COA, and agency mandates;
• Attend training to apply newly gained knowledge in proving services;
• Promote Bethany's adoption services within the community, including public relations contacts, as requested;
• Demonstrate flexibility with working hours outside of the normal business hours to meet the needs of the role to include some evenings and weekends, as needed;
• Maintain effective communication with community agencies or individuals involved in service provision;
• Participate in program development and planning as requested by supervisor;
• Complete other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS :

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