Senior Peer Specialist

Job Title: Senior Peer Specialist

Job Summary:

newSTART is seeking a Senior Peer Specialist who is responsible for providing individual and group rehabilitation support to participants using brief interventions targeting mental health, substance use, education, employment, and vocational needs. The Sr. Peer Specialist provides services within the framework of the core principles of recovery and self-determination. The Sr. Peer Specialist will work at various sites to connect with participants, including the Manhattan courthouse, CASES' Harlem office, and will visit participants in the community.

CASES Short-term Alternatives and Referrals to Treatment (newSTART) program is a short-term alternative-to-incarceration (ATI) program that provides rapid screening, identification of need, and brief interventions (individual and group) for individuals with extensive low-level involvement in the criminal legal system. The program serves individuals with a range of needs, including severe substance use disorders, serious mental illness, education/employment needs, homelessness, tenuous engagement in treatment/social services, and repeated misdemeanor arrests primarily for theft and drug possession.

Shift Hours: This position is full-time Monday - Friday from 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Salary: The salary for the Senior Peer Specialist role is $53,045.


Location Address: 2090 Adam Clayton Powell Jr Boulevard, 8th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10027. Our office is easily accessible by public transportation.

Workplace Flexibility: Flexible - for roles that have days that can be partially remote, e.g., being able to draft notes at home after going to the office/community in the morning.


What You Will Be Doing:

• Utilize Motivational Interviewing techniques to engage participants and support them in successfully completing their mandates
• Conduct group rehabilitation sessions
• Conduct physical outreach to connect participants to newSTART and other community-based providers
• Plan and deliver peer support services, including using self-disclosure as an intentional strategy, and advocacy that address risk factors for criminal recidivism (e.g., navigating housing system, income support, medical/mental health care)
• Complete timely and accurate documentation following newSTART and CASES policies and guidelines
• Provide culturally sensitive services and participate in CASES' antiracism efforts
• Any other duties as required by newSTART or CASES leadership

What We Are Looking For:

• High school degree with related work experience
• Participant or graduate of a recognized peer specialist training program; such as the Howie the Harp Peer Advocacy and Training Center Forensic Peer Specialist Program or the Recovery Coach Academy
• Must have full classification as a New York Certified Peer Specialist, or provisional classification / full classification as a Certified Recovery Peer Advocate, or provisional classification / full classification as a Recovery Coach Professional
• Must be a mental health treatment consumer or substance use treatment consumer with a history of involvement in the criminal legal system
• Strong knowledge of wellness, recovery, and self-help
• Effective communication and written skills
• Proficiency with computers and databases

Preferred Skills:

• Fluency in Spanish a plus

Employee Benefits:

CASES cares about employee wellbeing, and we offer a comprehensive benefits package to support you and your family, including:

• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• Vacation and Paid Time Off - starting at 25 days-off annually
• 12 Paid Holidays per year
• Retirement 403b Competitive matching up to 6%
• Employee Referral Program
• Visit to learn more about benefits offered by CASES

Although we would love to learn about the skills of every candidate, only selected candidates that are selected will receive a response. We encourage you to apply for any position(s) you feel you are qualified for.

CASES is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment with CASES is based solely on qualifications and competence for a particular position without regard to race, color, ethnic or national origin, age, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or marital, military, or citizenship status. We also actively recruit individuals with prior involvement in the criminal legal system.

Monday - Friday, 9am to 5pm
35 hours per week excluding breaks