Job Description

Closing Date: Open Until Filled

Montgomery County is located adjacent to Washington, DC and with over one million residents, is the most populous County in the State of Maryland. The County is also the most diverse County in the State and ranks among the top ten most diverse County's in the nation. Montgomery County contains many major U.S. government offices, scientific research and learning centers, and business campuses.

The Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for delivery of the County's public health and human services that the needs of our community's most vulnerable children, adults and seniors. The Department provides services through more than 120 programs at more than 20 locations. With 1,750 employees, the Department of Health and Human Services is the largest County Department.

As a Department, we believe health and wellness of the county can only be achieved by ensuring that every resident has fair opportunities to reach their fullest potential. This means access to quality housing, transportation, education, employment, health care, human services, safe neighborhoods and healthy food. HHS' provides critical services for residents who face a variety of obstacles in achieving their full potential. HHS plays an essential role in building a healthy and strong community.

If you are interested in working for the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, we invite qualified candidates to apply for our Manager III, Child Welfare Services, Out-of-Home Placement position.

About the Position:

This position is located in the Department's Children, Youth and Family Services, Child Welfare Services division.

Child Welfare Services provides protective, rehabilitative, and supportive services for children who are maltreated and their families. This program also provides supportive and clinical services to foster parents, kinship providers and those interested in becoming a foster parent. Investigations, protective services, kinship care, foster care, adoption, and in-home services are also provided through this program. In-Home Services provide social services to families with children who are at risk of removal from home due to neglect or abuse. The Screening and Assessment Unit serves as the point of entry for all Child Welfare Services cases and receives more than 14,000 calls from concerned citizens and professionals seeking assistance with suspected child maltreatment and other family issues. The Screening and Assessment Unit responds to allegations of suspected physical and sexual child abuse, neglect, and mental injury with an Investigative or Alternative Response.

This position provides leadership and management for the unit within Child Welfare Services that focuses on children and youth in out-of-home placements, the recruitment and retention of foster/resource homes and Family Team Decision meetings. The work focuses on providing services to children in foster care (including older youth in Independent Living), ensuring safe and stable placements for children in foster care, the recruitment and retention (including work with the Foster Parent Association and planning meetings/events) that support foster parents and work related to the State mandated Family Team Decision meetings (FTDMs).

The manager must be able to engage and work effectively with parents, relatives, foster parents, and a variety of internal and external stakeholders. The position works independently to plan, implement, oversee, and evaluate an extensive continuum of care to abused/neglected children.

The Manager III, Out-of-Home Placement Services duties include:

• Works independently, under the direction of the CWS Administrator, and works collaboratively with the other CWS managers.
• Is responsible for the professional development and supervision of five (05) Social Worker supervisors, who each provide clinical and management oversight to 8-10 social workers as well as one Office Services Coordinator.
• Provides clinical supervision that is based on best practices and meeting mandates regarding State and Federal regulations and performance measures.

As a manager/supervisor of unionized employees, this position has a responsibility for fostering a positive labor relations environment based on mutual trust, respect, and cooperation.

This position requires the ability to attend meetings or perform work at locations outside the office. Employee must be available to consult on weekends, evenings, holidays as it relates to emergency case/clinical situations and attend evening/weekend foster parent recruiting events in the community.

Employee will need to be able to operate a motor vehicle to attend County and State in-person meetings, attend foster parent recruiting events in the County, and may occasionally be required to lift, carry and manage stairs with children, equipment, and supplies.

Selected candidates for this position will be subject to a pre-employment medical exam, drug and alcohol screening and a criminal history records check through the Maryland State Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. Candidates will also be checked through the Maryland Registry for Child Abuse and Neglect and federal and state sex offender registries. Any applicant who fails the medical exam, background check or whose name appears on either of the registries may be disqualified from employment for this position.

Additional Employment Information

OHR reviews the minimum qualifications of all applicants, irrespective of whether the candidate has previously been found to have met the minimum requirements for the job or been temporarily promoted to the same position. This evaluation is based solely on the information contained in the application/resume submitted for this specific position/IRC.

Montgomery County Government is an equal opportunity employer, committed to workforce diversity. Accordingly, as it relates to employment opportunities, the County will provide reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, in accordance with the law. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the Office of Human Resources via email to OHR@montgomerycountymd.gov . Individual determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made in accordance with all applicable laws.

Montgomery County Government also provides hiring preference to certain categories of veterans and veterans/persons with a disability. For more information and to claim employment preference, please refer to the Careers webpage on Hiring Preference .

All applicants will respond to a series of questions related to their education, relevant experience, knowledge, skills and abilities required to minimally perform the job. The applicant's responses in conjunction with their resume and all other information provided in the employment application process will be evaluated to determine the minimum qualifications and preferred criteria status. Based on the results, the highest qualified applicants will be placed on an Eligible List and may be considered for an interview. Employees meeting minimum qualifications who are the same grade will be placed on Eligible List as a "Lateral Transfer" candidate and may be considered for interview.

If selected for consideration for this position, you may be required to provide evidence that you possess the knowledge, skills, and abilities indicated on your resume.

Montgomery County Ethics Law: Except as provided by law or regulation, the County's "Public Employees" (which does not include employees of the Sheriff's office) are subject to the County's ethics law including the requirements to obtain advanced approval of any outside employment and the prohibitions on certain outside employment. The outside employment requirements of the ethics law can be found at 19A-12 of the County Code . Additional information about outside employment can be obtained from the Ethics Commission website.

Minimum Qualifications

Experience: Five (5) years of progressively responsible professional experience in providing leadership and management of children and youth services in Child Welfare Services with a concentration in Out-of-Home Placement Services.

Education: Possession of a Master's Degree in Social Work (MSW) from an accredited college or university that meets the criteria of a graduate social work program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.

LICENSE:

At application possession and maintenance at all times:

• A license as a Licensed Certified Social Worker - Clinical (LCSW-C) by the Maryland State Board of Social Work Examiners prior to appointment for a supervisory position that involves clinical supervision.

• Registered with the Maryland Board of Social Work as a Supervisor

• Possession and maintenance at all times of a valid Class C (or equivalent) driver's license from the applicant's state of residence when required for job-related duties.

Preferred Criteria

There is no Preferred Criteria. All applicants will be reviewed by OHR for minimum qualifications. Those applicants who meet minimum qualifications will be rated Qualified, placed on the Eligible List, and may be considered for an interview.

Preference for interviews will be given to applicants with education and experience in the following:

• Extensive knowledge of State and Federal regulations and policies governing Child Welfare Services.
• Knowledge and experience of resource and services for children and youth in an out of home placement. Knowledge and experience in risk and safety protocols associated with children in an out of home placement.
• Experience in providing clinical supervision and oversight to licensed social workers who provide services to foster care youth and resource parents.
• Experience in using an integrated practice model approach focused on family teaming and permanency outcomes for youth.
• Experience and knowledge of working with foster/resource families, residential programs and congregate settings.
• Knowledge and Experience with Family Team Decision Meetings and family involvement meetings.
• Experience working with culturally diverse populations
• Experience reviewing and evaluating program trends, data, and outcomes to improve Best Practice guidelines and positively influence the safety, well-being, and permanency for children.

Minimum Salary 86401

Maximum Salary 152940

Currency USD