Program Specialist

Program Specialist - Dept of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (2913 TEX)

Apply using Smart Recruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

This is a Temporary Exempt (TEX) position is excluded by the Charter from the competitive civil service examination process and shall serve at the discretion of the Appointing Officer. The duration of the appointment shall not exceed 24 months.

Application Opening: October 17, 2025

Final date to receive applications: May close at anytime but not before November 3, 2025

Compensation Range: $101,998 - $123,968 annually

Recruitment : RTF

Who We Are

Through the provision of coordinated, compassionate, and high‑quality services, the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH) strives to make homelessness in San Francisco rare, brief, and one‑time. The Department provides assistance and support to homeless and at‑risk youth, adults and families to prevent imminent episodes of homelessness and end homelessness for people in San Francisco. Services including outreach, homelessness prevention, emergency shelter, drop‑in centers, transitional housing, supportive housing, short‑term rental subsidies, and support services to help people exit homelessness.

For more information on the department, please visit our (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below). .

What we Do

San Francisco is a pioneer in homeless services and a leader in providing supportive housing as a permanent exit from homelessness. The Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH), founded in 2016, is a national leader in the movement to end homelessness by developing a coordinated, equity‑driven, client‑focused system of compassionate services while piloting innovative models, and implementing best practice solutions with measurable results.

HSH’s Homelessness Response System (HRS) funds, oversees and implements a system of care that shelters, houses, and serves approximately 15,000 people daily. Major programs include: street outreach and service connection through the Homeless Outreach Team (SFHOT); 3,600+ bed shelter system for transitional age youth, adults and families including shelters for members of the LGBTQ community; rapid rehousing rental subsidies for families, adults, older adults, and transitional aged youth;

the Problem Solving and flexible financial assistance programs; and robust supportive housing programs with over 14,500 units which provide housing and services to formerly homeless transitional age youth, individuals, and families.

The Shelter Program Specialist works as part of a collaborative team to manage the continued development and oversight of San Francisco’s Shelter System, which provides temporary places for people experiencing homelessness to stay while accessing other services and seeking housing solutions. The Shelter System is comprised of non‑profit operated programs for adults, families, and transitional age youth (TAY) across a range of congregate and non‑congregate shelters, navigation centers, cabins, and resource centers.

Under general supervision, the Program Specialist performs a variety of specialized technical duties that may include investigating, reviewing, evaluating, training, screening, and coordinating the activities of various programs of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. Positions in this job code are responsible for carrying out specialized functions for an assigned program and performing specialized duties which require a comprehensive knowledge of Federal, State, Local and Departmental policies, procedures, rules, and regulations.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Serve as the shelter team’s subject matter expert on the Shelter Grievance Ordinance.
• Serve as the Shelter Grievance Arbitration Secretary, managing scheduling of shelter grievance arbitrations, logistics, and documentation, and overseeing recruitment, training, and support of arbitration panel members
• Support in design and deliver provider‑facing training on shelter grievance processes, ADA compliance, and related topics; provide ongoing technical assistance to providers.
• Maintains various tracking systems including shelter matrix with critical…