Family Advocate Job Hammond area,Louisiana USA,Social Work

Nature of Work

To promote the Head Start programs of family wellness and parent engagement and to support the implementation of the family engagement process. Operate as a liaison between classroom and home settings in the area of education, child development, health and mental health.

Minimum Education & Experience Requirements

High School Degree or GED with a minimum of 2 years professional level experience in family social services setting preferred, including knowledge and experience relating to community resources for referrals to families in need of services.

Essential Functions

Be familiar with and adhere to the Head Start Program Performance Standards, State of Louisiana licensing requirements, the RCCDC written work plan, and agency's policies and procedures
Maintain an open, friendly, professional relationship with all staff and families, to include respect for culture, diversity and ethnicity
Participate in annual program self-assessment and continuous quality improvement initiatives of the overall program

Family Engagement

Welcome families into the program and share information about transitioning into Head Start or other educational settings if not eligible

Assist families in the development of Family Partnership Goals by identifying family's strengths and needs. And completing other necessary follow up on if goals, while providing recommendation, support, and/or referral for relevant community resources

Maintain regular contacts based on family needs i.e. – phone calls, group activity, home visits, and classroom visits to promote partnership and provide for regular communication

Provide crisis intervention as needed as related to basic life needs (i.e. Housing, utilities, etc.) and document in database

Prepare and distribute follow up containing pertinent information requested by the family in a timely manner

Assist with transition of child and family into next educational setting

Promote family literacy

Work flexible hours to meet the needs of families

Work with parents to establish and maintain regular attendance for their child

Parent and Community Engagement

Participation in recruitment efforts/activities for assigned sites

Assist the Center Director in planning and facilitating parent orientations to the program

Coordinate parent meetings assisting parents to take the leadership role

Actively encourage parents to participate in program i.e. Parent Committee meetings, field trips, policy council, and classroom help

Provide content for parent memo and flyers as needed

Advocate and collaborate with community agencies to support child, family, and agency outcomes

Prevention and Early Intervention

Maintain regular contact with children in the classroom settings

Maintain on-going contact with teaching staff in order to share relevant home information and gain information regarding child performance in the classroom

Provide information relative to Head Start health and nutrition requirements; support families in completing and follow-ups on immunizations, physical, dental and nutrition screenings

Assure completion of health screenings for assigned sites to include: measurements, vision, hearing, and blood pressure screenings

Utilize Information Systems to support family/agency outcomes

Ability to accurately complete on-going applications and enrollment into the PROMIS database

Document and track follow-up needs, Family Partnership Goals, health, dental, nutrition, hearing, and vision concerns in both PROMIS database, and hard copy kept in child's master file/or case notes

Document all parent contacts and home visits in PROMIS

Document support consultation to teachers regarding particular concerns with families

Report and document suspected child abuse/neglect

Additional

Job Responsibilities

Assist with breaks, bus monitoring and other classroom needs as requested

Attend team meetings, trainings

Assist with generating In-Kind

Other duties as requested

Required Knowledge,

Skills and Abilities

Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Intermediate computer skills, (i.e. keyboarding skills, computer literacy and familiarity with various applications such as a database, word processing, etc.), internet and e-mail
The…