Adoption Specialist

Adoption Specialist

The Adoption Program is primarily involved with placing children with special needs (i.e. older children, large sibling groups, and children with emotional, physical, and mental impairments) into adoptive homes. The Adoption Specialist is involved in recruiting adoptive families that will provide permanent homes for these children. They assess both the child and the family, carefully screen of adoptive applicants, match children with families, prepare both children and families for placement, facilitate training, and provide ongoing support services to these children and families to achieve a high level of success.

The Adoption Specialist reports to the Adoption Supervisor and works within the Adoption & Child Welfare department. The position is full time, salaried, and exempt with a starting salary range of $40,000- $41,733, negotiable with experience.

D.A. Blodgett
- St. John's provides a continuum of care with comprehensive services, including counseling, foster care, adoption, mentoring and residential care. These programs are built on our core belief, backed by research, that as long as children can be safe, they do best when they are with their families. D.A. Blodgett
- St. John's primarily serves children, youth and families in the greater Grand Rapids area, and some programming throughout the State of Michigan. D.A. Blodgett
- St. John's is dedicated to providing an inclusive and welcoming experience for all children, all families and all individuals.

MISSION STATEMENT:
To help children and empower families by providing safety, advocacy, and support.

VISION: A safe, nurturing home for every child, a supportive community for every family.

VALUES:

• Exceptional Service:
  Client-focused and teaming at the center of our work.
• Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion:
  All are welcomed, valued, and belong.
• Excellence:
  Ongoing commitment to learning and improvement.
• Integrity:
  Responsibility and ownership of our actions and results.
• Creativity:
  Imagination, innovation, and intelligent risk taking.
• Passion:
  Relentless positive energy toward our mission and vision.

SANCTUARY COMMITMENTS:

• Nonviolence:
  Maintaining safety for all members of the community.
• Emotional Intelligence:
  Managing emotions so we don't hurt ourselves or others.
• Social Learning:
  Together we accomplish more, we care for one another.
• Democracy:
  Everyone has a voice, not necessarily a vote.
• Open Communication:
  Respecting and sharing ideas of our team.
• Social Responsibility:
  Say what you mean, don't be mean when you say it.
• Growth & Change:
  Creating hope for ourselves and the people we serve.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Assess, prepare, and place children from foster care into adoptive homes. Recruit, screen, assess, educate/train and support adoptive families.
• Supervise children in their adoptive placement to assure that the children are adjusting. Make referrals as needed.
• Organize, facilitate, and monitor services so that annual adoption objectives are successfully achieved on an annual basis (i.e. placements and finalizations in a timely manner).
• Coordinate community resources (i.e. counseling, special education, and DHHS, etc.) available for and needed by adoptive children and families.
• Complete all necessary agency, DHHS, Adoption Assistance, and legal paperwork requirements on a timely basis.
• Help develop and implement adoption plans so that children obtain permanency in a timely manner.
• Assist with support group activities.
• Participate in required case related activities such as court hearings and other meetings.
• Agency-related duties include attendance at general staff meetings, departmental meetings, cooperation with other departments within the agency, and timely completion of paperwork (to include mileage, paid time off requests, outlook calendar).
• Staff members may be assigned to assist with other duties by the administration. Examples include public relations and promotions, recruitment, special committees, or task forces.
• In addition to scheduled 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. work hours, staff members are expected to accommodate his/her personal schedule to clients' availability and agency needs. This will include court hearings, home visits, group meetings, special events, and other after-agency hours appointments and telephone contacts.
• Other responsibilities shall include those set forth in agency personnel policies as amended. After the required training, a full-time Adoption Specialist can expect to be responsible for 15 children as well as families.
• Adoption Specialists are required to receive a minimum number of training hours annually.
• Work cooperatively with other agency staff and with personnel from related community agencies, law firms, other agencies, and courts. Adoption Specialists are expected to have satisfaction surveys returned that are positive.
• Timely reports with good quality and timely placements as measured by the departmental scoreboard.
• Take responsibility for maintaining accurate and current case records.
• Make sure the services provided are…