Job Description

RISE (Readiness, Inquiry, Scholarship, Education) is HopeWell’s newest innovative solution to advance equity in education and improve educational opportunities for children experiencing foster care. The program aims to build students’ early literacy skills through a culturally responsive, evidence-informed curriculum designed to meet the unique needs of children in foster care by integrating literacy learning, social and emotional skill development, and a trauma-informed approach.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a growing and engaged team to work toward closing the opportunity gap for foster care-involved youth. RISE offers an innovative solution, turning the typical model on its head. With tutoring and other educational supports specifically designed around the unique challenges faced by foster care-involved children, RISE is a home-based service that follows children as they move and incorporates supports for any caregivers involved in a child’s life (e.g. foster parents, biological parents, kinship caregivers). This provides children with continuous academic support, even as they experience changes in their placement and permanency goals. RISE launched during the 2021-22 school year and is currently supporting students in kindergarten through 3rd grade in the Greater Boston area, and will be growing in size and scope in the coming years.

The Education Support Specialist will provide education support and advocacy to youth in foster care. This work will occur through direct support for youth and caregivers (i.e., foster parents, biological parents), as well as close collaboration with other program staff, caregivers, and school personnel to ensure that all youth are receiving appropriate services needed to reach their academic goals. Much of this work will take place in person, in the community, either at the homes of youth and caregivers, or by attending meetings in school settings.

This position requires an experienced professional whose passion for education, child welfare, and social justice is matched with strong leadership, sound judgement in the face of complex challenges, and a proven track record of supporting youth’s educational stability connection to resources. A dynamic, collaborative, and results-oriented service provider, the Education Support Specialist has alignment with HopeWell’s mission and will thrive on taking an entrepreneurial and innovative approach to meeting youth’s education needs.

Responsibilities

The Education Support Specialist will:

• Assess youth education needs at intake and in an ongoing way using a variety of techniques, including:
• Communicate with youth, caregivers, school professionals, DCF staff, and other providers to learn about youth academic, social, and emotional skills, strengths, and areas of challenge. This may include conversations, surveys, and/or formal measurement tools (ie literacy skills test).
• Collect data through observations of the child in a variety of settings (e.g. school, tutoring, home).
• Request and review education records and other relevant documentation (e.g. IEP, neuropsychological evaluation).
• Evaluate services provided, youth progress, and education data and reports. Develop recommendations in a format that is understandable to caregivers (and youth when age appropriate) and can be used for communication across the youth’s team of supporters.
• Partner with youth and caregiver to identify and work toward education goals that address assessed needs.
• Collaborate with youth and caregiver to develop and put into practice a plan that outlines services needed to support youth’s success. Connect student to external academic, social, or emotional supports as needed to address identified goals.
• Collaborate with youth’s Education Decision maker to support appropriate school placement and ensure that effective education evaluations and special education services are put in place as appropriate.
• Communicate and collaborate regularly with caregivers and other program staff about youth’s academic progress. Ensure communication is coordinated between caregivers, school professionals, and DCF workers in a way that supports coordination of services, monitors youth progress, and supports youth efforts toward their goals. This may involve taking on the role of convener or supporting the efforts of others.
• Participate in meetings related to a youth’s education goals (e.g. IEP meetings, informal school conferences, best interest determinations, disciplinary hearings). Partner with caregiver (and youth when age appropriate) to advocate for youth’s needs and goals and uphold youth’s rights before, during, and after the meeting.
• Coach caregivers to advocate for the education needs of youth in their care.
• Advise caregivers and youth (when age appropriate) about services, programs, and accommodations that meet youth’s individual needs. Provide external referrals where appropriate.
• Educate caregivers about documentation, processes, and policies related to youth’s academic progress (e.g. IEPs, school placement decisions, disciplinary proceedings).
• Support caregivers with written or verbal communication they wish to engage in with the school related to youth’s academic progress.
• Collaborate with Education Director and other staff to test and continuously evolve core educational support model to ensure that RISE addresses the unique needs of youth in foster care and promotes effective collaboration between RISE staff, youth and their family, school staff, DCF staff, and any other providers.
• Complete documentation including, but not limited to, intake paperwork and consents, needs assessments, service plans, case notes.
• Collaborate with other inaugural program staff to ensure alignment across all areas of academic supports; additionally, collaborate as needed around supporting individual youth and caregivers.
• Actively participate in program and agency internal (e.g. collaborating with colleagues, staff meetings, town halls) and external meetings (e.g. partnership meetings) both in person and virtually as assigned.
• Other duties as assigned. RISE is a brand new program, and as such, the program model will be subjected to a continuous cycle of analysis and assessment as it launches. It will change iteratively as we learn more about how to best support youth needs, and as a result the roles and responsibilities of various team members will likely adapt and change as the program is launched and evolves.

Qualifications

This is a list of qualifications that we believe will lead to success in the role. We understand that any one candidate may not have every qualification on this list. We strongly encourage candidates with lived experience with the foster care system to apply.

• Master’s Degree in Education or related field preferred
• Knowledge of Massachusetts school-based education supports, special education services, and disciplinary proceedings, as well as experience supporting youth and families.
• 5-10 years of experience in education settings, preferably including at least 2 years as an education advocate; experience working with youth experiencing foster care a plus.
• Experience serving youth who have experienced trauma and advocating for youth needs in a way that is student-centered and trauma-informed.
• Strong interpersonal skills; ability to build rapport and relationship with youth and families, school staff, and other professionals; ability to successfully engage youth and families and support them regarding education concerns.
• Demonstrated experience collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams utilizing innovative strategies to overcome obstacles.
• Ability to evaluate and aggregate education data, put together reports and summaries and present information to other stakeholders.
• Demonstrated understanding of and competence in serving BIPOC youth.
• Demonstrated flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit; thoughtful, curious, and open-minded approach to learning, growth, and change.
• Demonstrated ability to organize, plan, and prioritize activities, ensuring that details and daily program operations are effectively addressed.
• A high degree of effective oral and written communications skills.
• Must be comfortable working in community settings (i.e., family homes, schools, and in the community).
• Computer skills sufficient to perform essential functions.

Other Requirements

• This role involves some home-based and community-based work, some office-based work, and some remote opportunities. During home and community visits there are possible environmental exposures including pets.
• Daily access to an automobile is required.
• Driving is required in and out of the catchment area.
• A valid MA State Driver’s License.
• Clearing of background checks as required by state and federal law.
• Remain current in all required trainings.
• Other duties as assigned to support quality care.
• Maintain availability to work up until 7 pm on weekdays, as most of the tutoring occurs in the afternoon and early evening. Staff schedules are centered around both the needs of youth enrolled in RISE and required program staff meeting. Staff schedules can shift over time as youth needs, staff caseloads, and program needs change. Please note that when scheduled into the early evening, staff coordinate with program leadership to flex other hours to align with HopeWell’s 35 hour work week while meeting all job expectations.

HopeWell has an unparalleled work culture, with an emphasis on diversity, belonging, inclusion, equity, and holistic wellness. At HopeWell, each team member is called to uphold and live daily the values of empathy, strength, learning, and integrity. HopeWell is an environment where we laugh and smile while handling serious, life-changing work.

HopeWell also offers a comprehensive rewards package that values employee wellness, work-life balance, and continuous learning. Benefits include student loan pay-down assistance, tuition reimbursement, funding for professional development, as well as a full suite of healthcare benefits, 401k plan, and generous paid-time-off.

Job Tags

Similar Jobs