Placement Support Specialist, IPS

Duties & Responsibilities

Under general supervision, is responsible for establishing supportive relationships with clients to achieve their vocational and educational objectives. Provides personalized job placement support and assists clients in navigating post-secondary education and training programs. Integrate job placement and education support services with the client's mental health treatment team and spends the majority of work hours in the community.

• Engages clients and establishes trusting, collaborative relationships directed toward the goal of education or competitive employment in community job settings.
• Provides job development and job search services directed toward positions that are individualized to the interests and uniqueness of the clients in the assigned caseload. Follows the principles and procedures of the individual placement and support approach to supported employment.
• Conducts a minimum of six (6) employer contacts per week.
• Provides support for education goals in the community, including contact with staff at high schools, colleges and other educational institutions.
• Provides individualized support to assist clients in maintaining employment or education.
• Arranges access to benefits counseling.
• Spends 65% or more of scheduled work hours in the community; meeting clients at community locations (e.g. home, workplace, school, coffee shop, library, etc.); taking clients to apply for jobs; investigating local employment options; or meeting with employers regarding job development.
• Provides individualized follow-along supports to assist clients in maintaining employment. Writes job support plans with clients and incorporates input from family members (with client permission) and the mental health team. Adjusts plan according to clients’ needs and preferences.
• Provides outreach services as necessary to clients who appear to disengage from the service. Uses a variety of methods to provide outreach.
• Provides timely interventions. Returns phone calls and reacts to situations in a timely manner including returning client phone calls within twenty-four (24) hours, going to see employers about job loss or job problems within 24 hours, following up on job leads within forty-eight (48) hours, and meeting with clients within one (1) week prior to job starts and within three days after job starts.
• Participates in weekly meetings with mental health treatment team and communicates individually with team members between meetings in order to coordinate and integrate vocational services with mental health treatment.
• Maintains record of service contacts.
• Attends high school meetings with teachers, such as Individualized Education Program (IEP), 504 Plan, and Transition Plan meetings, to discuss how students learn best and ways that the Placement Support Specialist can support the students’ education.
• Assists clients in learning about different education and vocational training programs related to client interests and academic aptitudes. Focuses on mainstream education and certificate training programs only.
• Provides support with financial aid, including the annual Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), understanding loan obligations, applying for scholarships, and obtaining tools, equipment and computers.
• Supports clients prior to the beginning of education programs, including accompanying them on campus/school tours, buying books or supplies, applying for services with the Office of Disability Services, signing up for seminars on effective study skills, discussing where to study between classes, etc.
• Assists in managing clients’ school schedules, including due dates for assignments, reserving time to study for exams, and keeping track of class drop dates.

• Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university and two (2) years of experience in community centered activities in an area related to the duties described on the previous page and above; or,
• High School diploma or its educational equivalent and six (6) years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties described on the previous…