Peer Advocate bei Side by Side

Description

AGENCY OVERVIEW

Since our founding in 1895 in Marin County as an orphanage – and through subsequent years as Sunny Hills Services – Side by Side has been at the forefront of best practices in child welfare, working with the most vulnerable youth in our community. Today, Side by Side operates in four counties – Marin, Alameda, Sonoma, and Napa – across the Bay Area, reaching nearly 2,000 children, young adults, and family members per year with much-needed services related to behavioral and mental health, early intervention in schools, LGBTQIA+ support, transitional housing for foster youth, and special education. 

Side By Side places high value on individuals with a passion for helping underserved youth and families in a collaborative and inclusive work culture. We strive to work together to create a trauma-informed workplace where we walk the walk of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging principles. 

COMPENSATION

This position has an hourly rate of pay between $23.00 to $25.39 per hour depending on years of clinical experience and bilingual Spanish language skills.

BENEFITS

• Vacation corresponds to school district closure schedule
• 2 weeks sick leave for F/T employees with 2 additional sick days for direct service staff and 4 additional for school staff
• 10 paid holidays per year and 1 Self-Care Anniversary Day each year
• 99% employer-paid Medical for F/T employees including platinum level Kaiser Permanente insurance, Sutter Health or Anthem options
• Dental and Vision Insurance
• Long Term Disability insurance up to $9,000 per month, plus $50,000 Life and AD&D insurance.  Employees also have the option to purchase additional life insurance at their own cost.  
• 403b Retirement Plan with match after one year of employment
• Professional development and other learning opportunities including unlimited access to over 1,000 behavioral health courses online. Side By Side is a Public Service Loan Forgiveness certified employer
• FREE Employee Assistance Program including up to 10 complimentary personal counseling sessions per problem, per year for staff and dependents
• Employee recognition program with $500 bonus awards
• Employee referral bonus of up to $1,000
• Pet Insurance

JOB SUMMARY

The Peer Advocate will serve as a role model, engaging with both full-service partner clients and drop-in clients, ages 18-25, in the Transitional Age Youth (TAY) Program. The successful candidate is someone who has overcome personal challenges in their youth/adolescence who would like to help other young adults reach their fullest potential. Through lived experiences, the Peer Advocate will be empathetic towards the challenges of young adults who have been involved in the mental health system and/or those who have had substance use or other issues in making progress in independent living. The Peer Advocate will help these youth and guide them through the obstacles of transitioning successfully into adulthood, including educational and employment pursuits.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES / EXPECTATIONS

• Coordinates and co-facilitates calendar of activities and/or groups at the TAY drop-in center, including life skill building, budgeting, employment seeking, healthy living/exercise, cooking skills, recreational, art, and socialization activities 
• Provides active support as an informal counselor through listening to and identifying with the participants’ experiences, particularly around immediate needs/concerns, communication, life goals, and personal goals
• Provides guidance to TAY clients on mental health and substance use/abuse issues, through casual engagement and sharing knowledge about these issues
• Assists case managers in engaging youth in goal setting, particularly around education/ school enrollment and employment pursuits
• Empowers participants to build relationships, make positive choices and explore available supportive community resources
• Assists participants in their efforts to articulate and communicate their needs, with contacts in the community and in families
• Partners with case managers in assisting clients find appropriate housing, health, vocational and/or educational resources
• Assists/guides TAY residential clients with making positive choices in managing their living space and neighbor relationships
• Collaborates with treatment and/or service teams, and attends and actively participates in team meetings as assigned
• Must be able to drive TAY Space Program’s 8 passenger van on client appointments, outings and other errands associated with the day-to-day operational activities of the program
• Meets with participants in the community or in the home to facilitate engagement and provide support in achieving goals
• Completes all appropriate documentation and outcome data in a timely manner

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and expectations required of the position.

COMPETENCIES

Agency-Wide Core Competencies

Ethical Competency: Understands and adheres to the Agency’s Code of Conduct, demonstrates a high level of integrity in all internal and external activities and complies with the Employee Handbook and all other Agency policies, practices and procedures. Must maintain strict confidentiality related to client, staff and other Agency information.

Communication Competency: Able to inform verbally and in writing, with clarity and good effect and to understand clearly and quickly when instructions or orders are received. Includes judgment about what information is important and what is not, and what should be communicated, how, to whom and when. 

Work Quality Competency 

• Able to make decisions in a timely fashion that are sound, accurate and supported by the reasoning and inclusion of appropriate people. Includes the ability to recognize, address and propose solutions to problems that arise. 
• Performance of work to standard with a minimum of avoidable errors and problems. Includes meeting deadlines and commitments and communication on a timely basis even when there are obstacles to meeting them, as well as adherence to productivity standards. 
• Spends his/her time and the time of others on what's important. Quickly zeros in on the critical few and puts the trivial many aside. Can quickly sense what will help or hinder accomplishing a goal. Eliminates roadblocks, creates focus and uses time effectively.

Intercultural Competency: Demonstrated ability to work with clients in a wide variety of cultural contexts and community settings.

Technology Competency: Demonstrates ability to use technology to efficiently complete work assignments, including demonstrated proficiency in using personal computers, email, the Internet and web-based programs, and necessary familiarity with Microsoft Office products, particularly Word and Excel. Also includes ability to assess own strengths and weaknesses and taking the initiative to seek feedback and further training to improve performance. Individuals who excel in this area strive to share their job knowledge with others.

Teamwork Competency: Able to establish and maintain effective working relationships. Exhibits tact and consideration. Displays positive outlook and pleasant manner. Offers assistance and support to co-workers. Works cooperatively in group situations as the situation requires. Works actively to resolve conflicts.  

Personal & Interpersonal Competency

• Picks up on the need to change personal, interpersonal, and managerial behavior quickly. Watches others for their reactions to his/her attempts to influence and adjusts. Seeks feedback. Is sensitive to changing personal demands and requirements and changes accordingly.
• Maintains composure in internal and external interactions and situations. Able to handle personal and work-related stress. Acts with maturity and confidence, stays in balance and is a calming influence in challenging situations

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS

• Associate degree preferred; high school diploma or equivalent required
• Must have personal experience with the foster care, mental health, substance use/abuse and/or juvenile justice systems
• Experience working with transitional age youth preferred
• Bilingual/bicultural Spanish applicants desired
•  A valid California driver’s license, insurable by SBS’ insurance policy based on DMV record.
• Available afternoons, early evenings and some weekend hours
• Has relevant knowledge and skill to perform job duties. Includes awareness and possession or mastery of job facts, practices, manual skills and techniques and decision-making methods
• Must be able to drive

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Sitting, walking, standing, twisting and bending for brief periods of time.
• Occasional reaching and/or grasping using hands and/or arms.
• May be required to lift up to 10 pounds.
• May be required to ascend/descend stairs.
• Regular use of hands requiring dexterity in using the telephone, computer      keyboard, mouse or calculator.
• Visual ability to read documents and computer monitor.
• Exposure to low to moderate noise levels characteristic of working in an office or      classroom environments.
• Ability to drive
• Hearing and speech to converse in person and over the telephone.

Side by Side provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.