Job Description

DEPARTMENT: Youth & Workforce Development Programs

POSITION TITLE: Youth/Young Adult Career Navigator

LOCATION: Greenfield/Northampton

STATUS: Non-Exempt, 37.5 hours/week

SUPERVISOR: Workforce Development Coordinator or Manager

We work with youth/young adults who are historically and ongoingly impacted by systems of oppression towards achieving economic justice. The Career Navigator develops compassionate and respectful relationships with participants using a strength-based, goal-oriented approach. The Youth/Young Adult Career Navigator provides outreach, case management, and support to young people aged 17-24 who are working towards their next steps in education, training, and employment. The position is the direct support for youth in exploring and achieving their short, medium-, and long-term goals to map a pathway for their futures. The Youth/Young Adult Career Navigator works with youth to complete their High School Equivalency, attend training or college, develop internships, explore employment, and support youth to overcome barriers to those goals. When working with parenting youth, the Career Navigator provides support for parenting and family, personal and life goals. The Youth/Young Adult Career Navigator assists youth in resume and cover letter development, interview skills and conducting job search. Additionally, the Youth/Young Adult Career Navigator is responsible for administrative tasks including maintaining case notes, data entry, document collection, and ensuring that program standards are maintained.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Provide individual support/case management to 20-25participants.
2. Work with participants to complete assessments, establish and support progress of their goals.
3. Build relationships and attend meetings with community partners, area coalitions, youth/young adult serving non-profit organizations.
4. Serve as a liaison to coordinate services and opportunities for participants.
5. Work in partnership with other Youth & Workforce Development staff to plan and coordinate opportunities to support interdepartmental integration services and activities across programs.
6. Communicate regularly with supervisor to maintain weekly work schedules and locations in Outlook calendar.
7. Complete all required paperwork, data collection and case records as required.
8. Remote work available complying with the agency’s policy.
9. Required to travel regularly throughout the Youth and Workforce Development Programs service area, to other Community Action sites and service locations, and occasionally out of the service area.
10. Follow guidelines, procedures, and policies of the program contract, of Youth & Workforce Development Programs, and of Community Action
11. Respond clearly and in a timely manner to emails, chats, and complete required work documents within established timelines.
12. Attend regularly scheduled supervision meetings, staff and department-wide meetings, mandatory agency training, and participate in professional development activities.
13. Maintains strict confidentiality.
14. Perform other reasonable duties as assigned by the supervisor, director, or designee.

This does not cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Other duties, responsibilities, and activities may be adjusted to meet the operational needs of the agency.

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS/SKILLS

The ideal candidate will demonstrate the following competencies:

• Interpersonal communication – verbal and written.
• Conflict resolution, problem-solving, establishing priorities, navigating change.
• Judgement and decision-making
• Practiced organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Openness to understanding participants as experts of their own varied experiences and identities.
• Skillful relationship building with participants, staff, and community members.
• An understanding and willingness to talk about issues using an approach that is positive, engaging, accessible, and inclusive, such as Positive Youth Development and harm reduction.
• A balance of initiative to work independently and collaboration to work with others.
• Understanding and willingness to learn data capture and tracking methods
• Promote equity by deconstructing barriers to a racially just system. Cultivate work environments that value truth-telling, courage, vulnerability, space to think and reflect, community-mindedness, hope, and openness to difficult conversations.

Key Knowledge and Experience:

• Knowledge of social services, advocacy, and navigating resources
• Knowledge of Franklin and Hampshire counties and North Quabbin regional organizations and resources
• Experience working with marginalized communities and individuals with low incomes.
• Experience working with youth/young adults who have low incomes, are youth of color, queer, trans, disabled, and/or housing insecure.
• Experience with data management, data capture, tracking methods and analysis for outcome measurements.
• Computer skills (Microsoft Suite-Outlook Email, Calendar, and Teams chat, Discord, Zoom, and databases

To Qualify

Minimum Qualifications/Transferable Skills:

• Three years' experience working with youth/young adults, providing individual support/case management.
• Bi-lingual/Bicultural (Spanish/English) preferred.
• CPR/First Aid (will provide if needed)

We encourage individuals who believe they have the skills necessary to thrive to apply for this role. We will consider any combination of relevant work experience, volunteering, education, and transferable skills as qualifying. Please be clear and specific in application materials how your background, lived experience, and transferable skills are relevant to this position.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORKING CONDITIONS:

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

• Requires sitting for prolonged periods.
• Working in office environment
• Some bending and stretching required.
• Extensive use of telephone required.
• Manual dexterity required for use of agency provided cell phone and computer keyboard.
• Must be able to lift up to between 20 and 30 lbs.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include vision, color vision, and the ability to adjust focus.
• The work environment includes indoor office environments or comparable spaces, and community spaces, with occasional exposure to outdoor weather when traveling to outreach or meeting sites. The noise level varies by site.

AA/EOE/ADA

Employment is contingent upon successful completion of Criminal Offender Record check (C.O.R.I.) prior to hiring and every three years. Evidence of a good driving record and ability to be covered under Community Action’s non-owned and hired vehicle policy.