Foster Care Case Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Foster Care Case Manager

$1,000 hiring bonus! 

We are committed to supporting at-risk children and families by providing them with tools and resources to help prevent children from experiencing child abuse, neglect, and abandonment. We are a Christian agency that believes in living our mission, we provide Christ-centered care and support to children and families in need.

In response to this community-wide challenge, Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services (PCHAS), provides 14 programs and services in 28 locations, in Missouri, Texas, and Louisiana, which provides children with permanent homes and adults with increased self-sufficiency. This is accomplished by the agency’s commitment to “The PCHAS Way” which inspires the agency to be strength-focused, family-centered, and goal-driven with every client.

Benefits of serving children and families in need through PCHAS include competitive salaries, flex work schedules, paid time off, medical, dental, and vision insurance options, voluntary life insurance options, paid holidays, and a very generous retirement plan (after one year of service and working 1,000 hours the agency matches an employee 200% up to a 3% retirement contribution).

Status: Exempt

Working Conditions: Works in a typical office setting and from the employee’s home, or other community location as established by a flexible work agreement, to complete paperwork, documentation, and other indirect service tasks. Meets clients in-home, foster homes, residential facilities, hospitals, or other community locations as needed; drives an automobile on a routine basis in all types of areas; must have reliable transportation. Requires sitting, standing, bending, and reaching. May require lifting up to 25 pounds. Requires manual dexterity sufficient to operate standard office machines such as computers, copiers, calculators, the telephone, and other office equipment. Requires normal range of hearing and vision. Must have the ability and energy to visit more than one family per day.

Position Summary: The Foster Care Case Manager (FCCM) is responsible for safety and services to children and families in foster care. Tasks include facilitating Family Support Team meetings, development of individualized care (treatment) plans, coordination of individualized services across all settings, coordination of providers working in the home, school, and community environment, and documentation of support-related activities and services. The Foster Care Case Manager promotes the effective utilization of support services to achieve permanency for children and families. 

Essential Job Functions:

• Follows all contractual and agency policies, procedures, and seamless delivery of services to children and their families.
• Maintains a caseload of 12 to 15 children depending on program capacity and the needs of the agency. 
• Caseload size may be temporarily increased due to a CM’s extended absence and/or position vacancy.
• Provide full case management services to children and their families in the MO foster and adoptive care system from the time of assignment until case closure or transfer.
• Documents all activities and maintain data entry in FACES (state online database system) and CSWIS (consortium online database system) in a timely and accurate manner.
• Has face-to-face contact with each assigned child and his/her family at least monthly (may require extensive travel based on the individual needs of the child and family). Has telephone contact with each child and family support provider regularly to review provider activities and to receive reports regarding case progress.
• Evaluate and factually report the impact of services to team members and judiciary; attend all court hearings; schedule, coordinate and facilitate FST meetings within prescribed time frames.
• Participates in FCCM consortium on-call schedule as EOC (employee on-call) for PCHAS on a rotating basis.

Requirements:

• CM shall possess a bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, counseling, education, criminal justice, or a related human services field.
• Minimum of one (1) year of relevant case management experience.

Skills:

• Represents Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services (PCHAS) to the professional community. Must have strong verbal and written communication and the ability to represent the agency well. Builds and maintains positive community relationships with Children’s Division personnel, placement and treatment providers, schools, and agency partners. Builds and maintains rapport with children, parents, and families; actively manages and resolves conflicts. Excellent time management, organization, planning, and assertive communication skills.
• Works a flexible schedule, as approved by the FCCM Supervisor, to be available at varying times to meet the needs of the family (often outside of normal working hours). Plans arranges, and/or provides crisis intervention services as needed. Maintains confidentiality and HIPAA standards for all assigned clients and families.
• Must be able to operate computer using agency-approved software programs, and other office machines such as copier, calculator, telephone, etc. Must have the ability to navigate multiple data entry systems.
• Must be able to analyze many variables and choose the most effective course of intervention at any given point in time.
• Must handle novel and diverse work problems on a daily basis.
• Personal maturity is an important attribute. Must be able to resolve problems, handle conflict, and make effective decisions under pressure.
• Must have a long attention span in order to listen to people, perceive the real problems and bring issues to a successful conclusion.
• Must have the ability to work with people from various ethnic groups in a culturally competent manner.

Other Requirements:

• Must hold a valid driver’s license, and have and maintain a risk-free driving record.
• Must be willing to undergo initial and periodic child abuse/neglect, criminal history, sexual offender, and child care/elder care disqualification list screenings.
• As requested, must submit fingerprints for review by the state of your employment and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
• Must undergo a pre-employment drug screen and a pre-employment physical with the results showing no evidence of communicable disease.

Christian Commitment:

Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services is a faith-based Christian organization. We provide Christ-centered care and support to children and families in need. We strive to serve like Jesus. We meet our clients where they are and treat them with respect. We focus on our clients’ strengths rather than their problems. And we encourage our clients to focus on their future rather than their past. When we do this well, we help our clients find hope and know the love of God.