Women’s Resource Center of Newport/Bristol County
Salary: $34,000 – $37,000
Start Date: 12/20/2021
Full Time, Permanent
Job Description
POSITION SUMMARY
Under the guidelines of the Office on Violence Women grant the Housing Advocate will report to Housing Advocate Manager. The Housing Advocate will provide advocacy and support to the Housing Advocacy Program of the WRC. These responsibilities include interacting with residents on a daily basis through active listening and offering non-judgmental responses, crisis intervention, mediating house problems, performing hotline calls screenings, delivering warnings, intakes and discharges as needed. The most important aspect of this position is to provide advocacy services in the form of a case plan and appropriate referrals on a weekly basis. The Housing Advocate will be assisting the Housing Advocate Manager in the managing and coordinating the maintenance and repairs of the safe home and transitional housing units.
ROLE SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES
• Works cooperatively with others across the organization to achieve shared objectives.
• Work closely with property owners.
• Daily interaction with stakeholders—residents, staff, volunteers, community, and vendors.
• Engage in training community members and other agencies on domestic violence issues.
• Collaborate and partner with local police department, housing authority, food pantries, school department, and childcare facilities to meet the needs of clients.
• Credit others for their contributions and accomplishments.
• Gain trust and support of others.
• Provide trauma-informed direct services; including support, advocacy, crisis. intervention, safety planning, information, and referrals to residents.
• Serve as a role model while maintaining professional boundaries in relationships with residents.
• Demonstrate the ability to relate with women and children from all walks of life.
• Provide full case management to support residents in moving toward self-sufficiency and monitor residents progress with individual case plan.
• Identify appropriate clients for transitional housing services.
• Promote economic independence with residents.
• Complete the Financial Literacy Class and utilize those skills with residents to enable them to become financially self-sufficient and assist in clearing up any debts.
• Assist clients in obtaining long-term housing support.
• Provide follow-up supportive programming for residents in the Housing Advocacy Program who have transitioned into the community.
• Stay up to date on changes in policies and procedures, community resources, and other information.
• Have a strong understanding of community resources in Newport and Bristol County.
• Understanding of trauma informed care and empowerment philosophy of advocacy; ability to interact sensitively with traumatized populations and to handle crisis with empathy
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced and high-pressure work environment
• Ability to quickly assess volatile situations and use good judgement to resolve or diffuse situations.
• High level of problem-solving skills.
• Ability to set appropriate limits and boundaries.
• Remain non-judgmental and be culturally competent.
• Be willing to enforce policies and guidelines.
ESSENTIAL COMPETENCIES
• Attend and be committed to on-going training and growth opportunities.
• Adheres to agency policies, procedures and processes, including strict adherence to WRC confidentiality policy and ethical standards.
• Commitment to WRC’s mission, vision and values.
• Perform screenings, intakes, discharges, and issue warnings when necessary.
• Establishes and maintains professional boundaries.
• Maintain resident files, agency files, statistics, forms, and other record keeping as required.
• Complete documentation and enter it into the client records database in a timely manner.
• Accurately report all statistics in the JustGrant System.
• Must carry work phone to be available for staff/clients crisis calls as necessary.
• Excellent organizational skills.
• Attend and actively participate in agency meetings as required, including department meetings, and regularly scheduled supervision.
• Identify and consult with Housing Advocacy Manager and the Housing Advocacy Team on any potentially high-risk client situations and/or any areas of concern about services or the agency. Bring forth ideas for service delivery improvement.
• Facilitate house meetings with Housing Advocacy Team.
• Commitment to social justice, gender and racial equity
• Excellent interpersonal skills; communication, conflict management, empathy, leadership, negotiation, positive attitude and teamwork.
• High level of listening skills with an attention to detail and curiosity.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.; is effective in a variety of communication settings: one-on-one, small and large groups, or among diverse styles and position levels.
• Generate program reports and statistics.
QUALIFICATIONS/PHYSICAL DEMANDS
• Experience working with victims of domestic violence
• Bilingual (Spanish/English/Portuguese) preferred
• Must have a vehicle with car insurance
• Must have a current (MA/RI) driver’s license
• Hear average or normal conversations and receive ordinary information
• Manual dexterity and able to use wrists, hands and/or fingers in repetitive motion
• Prepare and/or inspect documents and communications on computer or on paper
• Sitting for extended periods of time
• Bending, lifting and carrying up to 40 pounds (donations/commodities)
• Ability to turn over transitional housing units, include cleaning, removing, and adding furniture.
• Lifting from floor or from inside car, truck, or from trunk
• Moving up and down stairs in facilities
• Pick up donations when necessary
How to Apply
Send resume and cover letter to careers@wrcnbc.org