Bilingual Foster Care Case Manager

Position Summary

The Transitional Foster Care Case Manager is primarily responsible for coordinating case management and safe and timely release services to youth placed in transitional foster care. The Transitional Foster Care Case Manager coordinates each child’s case from admission through discharge, including assessments, case planning, sponsor identification and communication, family reunification and release planning, service coordination, documentation, and collaboration with foster families, potential sponsors, service providers, legal representatives, and appropriate funding source personnel. The Transitional Foster Care Case Manager maintains regular contact with assigned youth and ensures timely delivery of case management services while youth clients remain in program care. This position is expected to function effectively with moderate supervision while adhering to agency policies and procedures, as well as federal, state, and contractual requirements. This position ensures that child-facing services are provided on-site and in a confidential manner.

Annual Salary Range: $44,200.00 - $52,000.00

Are you passionate about discovering new ways to help empower people and make a difference in their lives?

If you’ve got what it takes to support us in our mission to provide help and create hope through innovative, collaborative, and diverse programs within the community, then we’ve got the right opportunity for you.

About Catholic Charities West Michigan

• Catholic Charities West Michigan (CCWM) is a community-based agency providing programs in Western Michigan and offering a variety of services in family preservation, behavioral health, child welfare, and community outreach.
• CCWM is committed to ensuring a diverse workforce and a work environment whereby all staff are treated with dignity, respect, and fairness.
• CCWM encourages persons of diverse backgrounds and faiths to apply for employment.

Essentials Duties and Responsibilities

• Ensures that child-facing services are provided on-site and in a confidential manner.
• Completes required case management intake assessments within 24 hours of arrival and ensures youth are oriented to the program and foster home environment.
• Maintains regular direct contact with assigned youth and provides weekly updates to assess case management needs, discuss reunification progress, identify barriers, and provide ongoing support.
• Promptly coordinates contact of youth sponsors immediately upon arrival.
• Documents all required child contacts, assessments, case reviews, and reunification activities in accordance with contractual requirements.
• Identifies, assesses, and maintains communication with potential sponsors in accordance with contractual requirements.
• Facilitates family reunification efforts through ongoing sponsor engagement and documentation of progress and barriers.
• Collaborate with sponsors, family members, legal service providers, and community partners to support timely reunification and permanency planning.
• Develops, implements, and updates individualized case plans and service plans for assigned youth.
• Completes required case reviews and assessments within established contractual and agency timelines.
• Monitors progress toward case goals and modifies case plans as needed in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team.
• Coordinates release and discharge planning activities and communicates case progress, barriers, significant developments, and reunification status to appropriate funding source personnel.
• Identifies cases requiring Home Study and/or Post-Release Services (PRS), coordinates required referrals in accordance with contractual requirements and follows up on recommendations and service needs.
• Ensures that all assigned youth receive mandatory services while in care, including but not limited to mental health, medical, recreational, educational, and other supportive services in accordance with program requirements.
• Maintains effective communication with community agencies or individuals involved in service provision.
• Keeps current on community resources and refers families for support, as needed.
• Maintains accurate and current information on children in care while ensuring contractual and agency documentation practices and reporting requirements are met.
• Ensures timely, accurate, and complete documentation in required data systems in accordance with contractual documentation standards and required timelines.
• Assists the licensing team to ensure foster families are well trained and equipped to support youth in their homes.
• Schedules meetings with foster parents and youth in the foster home within the first 10 days of care, and monthly and addresses any concerns regarding service delivery.
• Attends treatment team meetings, federal and field-support consultations, weekly supervisory meetings, and other required case review meetings to evaluate progress, discuss service needs, and ensure compliance with ORR requirements.
• Attends internal and external training and applies newly acquired knowledge to service delivery.
• Attends and prepares for required court hearings, when applicable.
• Translates written and verbal communication for program clientele and staff, if bilingual.
• May drive for agency business using a personal vehicle.
• Transports clients, as needed, using agency fleet vehicles.
• Performs other duties and special assignments as supervisor’s request.
• Attends weekly treatment team and General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) meetings with supervisor to consult on cases, to review case plan and direction and to evaluate client participation and progress.
• Completes trauma-focused initial intake assessment within 24 hours of arrival and ensures youth feel safe and are well orientated to the agency and foster home.
• Attends internal and external training and applies newly gained knowledge in providing services.
• Attends and prepares for required court hearings (if applicable).
• Attends weekly meetings with supervisor to consult on cases, to review case plan and direction, and to evaluate client participation and progress.
• Provides child-facing services on-site.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this position, the staff member is regularly required to talk and/or hear.  The staff member is regularly required to sit, walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms.  The staff member is occasionally required to stand, climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.  The staff member on occasion may be asked to move or lift items up to 40 pounds in weight.

Work Environment

This position is primarily office based, however, on occasion it may require travel to other agency as required by position responsibilities and/or agency management.  The position is on-site — must be willing to work entirely in person, however, there may be times that ad hoc or situational telework is needed. This position will be routinely exposed to typical office noise levels and/or exposure to various weather conditions.

The qualifications listed above are guidelines for selection purposes; alternative qualifications may be substituted if sufficient to perform the duties of the job.

Other Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Ability to work effectively on a multi-disciplinary treatment team.
• Ability to build rapport with clients to help them adjust to new life circumstances.
• Ability to provide excellent and compassionate customer service.
• Ability to work independently and exercise good judgement, and a high level of confidentiality.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated case management, crisis response, probl