Diversion Specialist

Position:Diversion Specialist

Classification: Full Time

Hours: Days, evenings and weekends required

Reports To: Program Manager

Pacific House’s mission is to prevent and end homelessness. The agency has provided the Southern Fairfield County community with multiple life-changing programs for over 35 years and is widely respected as a leader and innovator in its field. From designing and running a unique and extraordinarily successful recovery program in the shelter itself to developing a ground breaking, money saving and self-sustaining model for providing high-quality permanent deeply affordable supported housing for the homeless, Pacific House has been a leader in serving the most vulnerable members of our community.

In addition to providing housing and recovery services, Pacific House provides a place to land and rebuild – a world class emergency shelter that provides thousands of meals and bed-nights each year together with invaluable support and guidance from a team of expert and highly experienced caseworkers. Finally, and most recently, Pacific House has embraced the challenge of meeting the intense needs of the growing and dramatically underserved population of homeless young adults. With its new multi-faceted program that includes customized services, specialized staff, and dedicated shelter space – Pacific House is providing desperately needed critical intervention for homeless individuals who have nowhere else to turn.

Purpose:

Shelter Diversion is a strategy that prevents homelessness at the front door of the homeless response system by helping people identify immediate alternative housing arrangements and, if necessary, connecting them with services and financial assistance to help them return to permanent housing. The Fairfield County Coordinated Access Network (FFC CAN) Diversion Specialists will provide support during the time of crisis, entry into the Coordinated Access Network system, and the return to permanent housing in the community by engaging individuals and families with the appropriate level of intervention needed to support their return to safe housing. This position provides dedicated case management services to individuals and families and continuously engages clients in developing and realizing a plan to end their housing instability through diversion, shelter placement, rapid rehousing, and other interventions. Targeting decentralized, community-based supports to folks at the moment of crisis will allow for fewer entries into homelessness through more exhaustive prevention/diversion efforts, and shorter durations of homelessness by expediting the process of getting folks document ready prior to their possible entry into shelter.

Responsibilities & Tasks:

o Conduct initial triage and problem-solving appointment (CAN appointments) with clients entering the FFC CAN

o Assess clients’ needs related to housing security and stability

o Proactively engage all clients in creative problem solving to identify and secure safe, viable housing opportunities outside of homeless system

o Assess client safety and assist clients with meeting basic needs (food, clothing, hygiene, etc.)

o Assist clients in securing reliable means of contact, including free cell phone program, or outreach to vulnerable and/or non-contactable populations when needed

o Work with households to collect all personal identification and documentation, income verification, homelessness verification, and disability verification (all when applicable and appropriate) and upload them into HMIS

o Ensure clients are referred to and successfully linked to all appropriate resources as quickly as possible

o Proactively form linkages with community providers, including emergency shelter, transitional housing and domestic violence shelters that serve the targeted population, security deposit providers, landlords, and others

o Work collaboratively with the CAN Team, FC CAN Manager, and all participating members of Opening Doors Fairfield County

o Attend meetings as necessary to inform key stakeholders of housing trends and barriers

o Participate in trainings related to best practices and Coordinated Access Network system improvement- including but not limited to diversion, motivational interviewing, trauma-informed care, HMIS, domestic violence, etc. to ensure consistency across CAN and improved service delivery

o Maintain organized files and adhere to timely data entry into HMIS, SmartSheet, and/or other data system

o Participate in consistent feedback with the Navigator Team Leader and CAN staff on system performance, trends, and barriers, and participate in all evaluation measures

o Engage consumers in feedback mechanism to ensure crisis response system can adequately address client needs.

This is a community-based position that will organizationally report to agency staff. CAN programmatic supervision will be provided by the FFC CAN Navigator Team Leader.

Qualifications:

o A bachelors degree in Social Work or equivalent experience providing homeless services

o Highly motivated, creative problem solver

o Knowledge of, or ability to quickly develop competency with, issues related to homelessness, effective intervention techniques, and basic understanding of mental health and substance abuse issues

o Project a professional demeanor and exercises mature judgment

o Knowledge of community resources

o Must be able to work effectively with populations that have experienced vulnerability, trauma, economic poverty, incarceration, substance use, developmental delays, compromised mental wellness, brain injuries, literacy and numeracy issues, and/or, other conditions or situations that have impacted housing stability

o Strong organization skills and ability to coordinate and complete multiple tasks simultaneously

o Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including telephone communication

o Ability to work independently and with a group, and maintain good working relationships with organizational staff and partners

o Driver’s license and daily use of a reliable and properly registered and insured motor vehicle

o Strong computer skills

o Must adhere to all professional standards and ethical practices, including creating and maintaining healthy boundaries and professional relationships with clients, co-workers, and others

o Strong sense of responsibility and a commitment to the mission of ending homelessness

o Bi-lingual candidates preferred

Employees are funded by a variety of grants, governmental programs and endowment sources. Continued employment is contingent upon continued receipt of those funds.

Full-time, 37.5 hours per week, some evenings.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $40,000.00 - $50,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Monday to Friday

Work Location: In person