Social Services Specialist - Wellbeing and Permanency

Frontline Social Service Specialist The Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services has a position available for a Frontline Social Service Specialist position within Wellbeing/Permanency Unit. The Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services (MDCPS) is committed to protecting and nurturing Mississippi's at-risk children and families. MDCPS offers a variety of positions statewide, including social work positions providing case management services and working with potential foster families, supervisor positions providing clinical and administrative support, and agency support positions such as policy development, human resources, information technology, program management, training, and budgeting/finance. Working with MDCPS will give you the chance to make a life-changing difference for Mississippi's most vulnerable children and families. This position is advertised for a Social Services Specialist within the Wellbeing/Permanency Unit. Responsibilities include creating and maintaining case files for children in care; documenting in MDCPS online database program; visiting children in care in foster homes, facilities and hospitals; completing investigations of abuse, neglect for exploitation; completing ongoing safety and risk assessments; participating in scheduled county conferences/meetings for assigned children-in-care; making referrals for children-in-care to receive services including dental, vision and medical; transporting children-in-care to appointments and destinations; arranging for visitation with siblings and parents; attending staff meetings with supervisor (normally) and all-staff meetings; assisting with new hires by being "shadow buddies"; on-call for after-hours situation (rotating responsibility with other staff members); attending court for hearings; communicating with families, service providers, parents, foster parents and the public; scheduling and attending Family Team Meetings. Along with other duties. This consists of 4 weeks (every other week) of on-site training and 4 weeks of On-The-Job Training, and must pass a comprehensive test prior to continued employment and/or advancement. Professional commitment to and caring about clients and the larger profession of child welfare. Personal resilience and strong self-efficacy beliefs about the ability to work with clients to produce positive client outcomes. Efficient organizational and time management skills. Good oral and written communication skills. Positive work morale. Ability to be flexible in thinking and problem solving. Realistic expectations about the difficulty and challenges of the work. Ability to handle an often-unpredictable work environment. Preferred Qualifications typically require a Bachelor's Degree and 1-3 years of experience. Appointing authority may require social worker's license.