Job Description

Project Renewal is a leading non-profit organization with the mission of building supportive communities where people achieve dignity and independence, renewing their lives with health, homes, and jobs. Our comprehensive and integrated 24/7 programs are designed to offer the holistic care our clients need. With a staff of 950+ and an annual budget of $140 million, Project Renewal is one of the larger social service nonprofits in New York City.

Title: Assistance Director

Program: New Providence Women’s Shelter

Salary Range: $75,000 - $79,000

Program Description

The New Providence Women’s shelter is located within the Ramada Inn in West Midtown Manhattan and provides 100 emergency shelter beds for homeless women diagnosed with mental illness and/or substance use disorders. Our comprehensive services include case management, individual and group counseling, recreational activities, and housing placement assistance.

Overall Responsibilities:

Under the general direction of the Shelter Director, with latitude for independent action, the Assistant Director coordinates with the Hotel Manager and the Director of Social Services to ensure that the day-to-day operations are up to Project Renewal and Department of Homeless Services (DHS) standards. The Assistant Director supervises the Residential Aides, making sure the shelter is staffed by them on a 24/7 basis in accordance with DHS guidelines, which include the necessary ongoing First Aid training, fire safety certification, and Opiate Overdose Prevention Training; oversees the activities providing for the safety of the residents and staff in the building; performs related work.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The essential duties of the Assistant Director include but are not limited to the following activities:

• Monitors day-to-day activities to ensure there is a clean, safe, and secure environment provided for both clients and staff. Regularly tours the interior and exterior of the building to make sure conditions are in accord with established standards. Initiates corrective action if necessary.
• Ensures that required Incident Reports are prepared by staff and submitted to both Project Renewal and DHS staff in a timely fashion, providing all relevant information and documentation as soon as possible following the incident.
• Supervises Residential Aide program staff to ensure that services are being provided to the clients, security protocols are being followed, and that notations are being made in the designated logs.
• Ensures that staff are provided training in required skills, including communicating and interacting with clients, security protocols and use of security equipment, record keeping and incident reporting.
• Monitors the implementation of the Shelter Emergency Plan, which includes conducting required Fire Drills three times a month; maintaining the records to have current certificates for Fire Safety, scheduling staff for training as needed.
• Participates in case conferences in response to client complaints, using conflict resolution techniques to amicably resolve issues.
• Assists the Director in compiling information and documentation needed to defend a claim submitted by either a client or staff member.
• As designated by the Director, attends the District Service Cabinet Committee meetings and Council meetings.
• Performs other duties as assigned by the Shelter Director.

Available to respond to emergencies on a 24/7/365 basis, especially after normal working hours and on weekends.

Physical Activities

While performing the duties of this position, the Assistant Director must walk between all floors of the facility, climbing up and down staircases to observe staff/clients in the event the elevator is out of order. The AD also walks the exterior of the facility to ensure that a proper appearance is being maintained. Finally, the AD must stand talking to clients and staff, sit for extended periods of time at the computer, and reach or squat to retrieve file records.

Education and Skills Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
• 2 years of experience working with individuals who struggle with homelessness, mentally illness and substance use and/or other special needs populations is preferred

Preferred skills

• Leadership: Demonstrated ability to manage and motivate staff to accomplish stated program goals and objectives while developing their individual and group skills.
• Program Evaluation and Performance Management: Capacity to develop/exhibit, in collaboration with the staff and the Performance Evaluation and Quality Assurance Department (PEQA), the ability to independently evaluate and manage program performance using data.
• Team Building: Ability to develop and foster, through demonstration, a team spirit, enabling staff to overcome the challenges of providing services needed to a special client population.
• Communication: Excellent oral, writing, listening, and negotiating skills.
• Organizational: The ability to work well within a high-pressure environment and meet the short and long-term mandates of the program.
• Interpersonal: An ability to interface with clients as well as all levels of staff.
• Computer: Knowledge of case management software as well as proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite.
• Language: Bilingual or multilingual a plus.

Project Renewal is an equal opportunity employer. Its long-standing policy has been to embrace the equality of opportunity for all employees and applicants without regard to actual or perceived race, color, national origin, alienage or citizenship status, religion or creed, gender (see separately issued Gender Discrimination policy for more detail), physical or mental disability, age (18 and over), military status, arrest record, marital status, domestic partnership status, genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristic, sexual orientation, status as a victim or witness of domestic violence, sex offenses or stalking, unemployment status or any other basis protected by applicable federal, state and local laws.