Career Opportunities

 

United Friends of the Children is a nonprofit organization serving current and former foster youth in Los Angeles County. Through its transitional housing and education programs, UFC helps foster youth develop skills to become successful young adults.

UFC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value a diverse and culturally competent workplace. We offer competitive salaries and excellent benefits in a family environment, and promote advancement within the organization.

Current Job Openings

Administrative
No current openings

Development
No current openings

Finance
No current openings

Transitional Housing Programs
Advocacy Counselor

Education Programs
College Sponsorship Counselor
College Readiness Counselor/Part-time
In-Home Tutor

Career Development
No current openings

advocacy counselor

Position Summary: The Advocacy Counselor (AC) provides case-management, counseling and crisis intervention services to former foster youth in a residential setting.  The AC is responsible for promoting personal growth, independence, responsibility and accountability with the goal of the youth attaining self-sufficiency.

Responsibilities/Duties:

• Support and guide the residents while maintaining an advisory relationship based on trust and respect.
• Work closely with the Intake Coordinator during the application of potential candidates.
• Facilitate the move-in procedure including completing paperwork and coordinating with Property Management regarding apartment readiness.
• Conduct needs assessments, coordinate resource referrals and connect youth to services through effective case management.
• Meet one-on-one with residents on caseload on a weekly basis to discuss goals related to career, education, mental/physical health and basic life skills.
• Work with assigned residents to develop a thorough case plan within the required time frame.
• Provide regular feedback to residents regarding their progress with respect to their case plan.
• Complete detailed case notes in a timely manner.
• Work closely with Property Management team to ensure that the residents assigned to them are paying rent, maintaining their apartments and adhering to all program rules.
• Provide crisis intervention assistance and personal counseling as needed.
• Attend community building activities as part of establishing and maintaining relationships with Pathways youth.
• Meet weekly with Clinical Supervisor to discuss case planning, progress with residents and any problematic cases.
• Guide residents through the transition from the program assisting them with developing a proper exit plan into a permanent housing situation.
• Serve as a team member willing to collaborate and cooperate with other program staff with youth cases, program activities and with any concern that may arise.

Qualifications:

• MSW or related degree with 3+ years post-graduate experience in appropriate and relevant setting.
• Ability to work as a member of a multi-disciplinary service team.
• An understanding and sensitivity to issues concerning former foster care youth from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
• Excellent knowledge of substance abuse and mental health issues preferred.
• Strong problem-solving and crisis intervention skills.
• Experience working with homeless population preferred.
• Travel within in L.A. County required.  Must have valid CDL and an insured and operational vehicle.

This is a full-time position with some evenings and weekends required.  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

College Sponsorship Counselor

Program Description: The College Sponsorship Program Counselor is a full-time position in a growing department available for a qualified individual with 3-4 years experience in education or counseling to help foster youth succeed in and graduate from 4-year colleges and universities. This position reports to the College Sponsorship Program Manager.

Responsibilities/Duties:

Case Management

• Maintain consistent and frequent communication with students on caseload via phone and email to uphold the relationship based model of services.
• Provide quality educational case management for designated cohorts within the CSP Program utilizing ETO reports and other data tracking sources to inform their practice.
• Monitor students’ progress, according to program standards, to ensure that they have a successful transition into college and continue to work towards completing the requirements to graduate from college.
• Help students stay current on changes to state and local policy and legislation that impact their educational choices and access to services.
• Implement program checkpoints to ensure timely intervention services.
• Provide program referrals to facilitate student access to campus and community based support services.
• Meet weekly with College Sponsorship Manager to discuss ongoing performance and progress including but not limited to:  caseload, status of ETO tracking, quality of case management notes, funding requests, etc.

Education Career Services

• Guide and participate in the coordination of College Sponsorship and College Readiness Summer Internship program (securing possible placement sites, reviewing resumes, recruiting student etc.)
• Guide and participate in the coordination of career development workshops for Education program.
• Provide quality case management for Education summer intern candidates (with the goal of placing up to 40 CSP and 10 College Readiness Program (CRP) youth) utilizing ETO reports and other data tracking sources to measure progress.

Outreach and Resource Development

• Develop relationships with external stakeholders, especially college/university admissions counselors, to promote the support of foster youth within their organizations or institutions.
• Serve as UFC liaison at general community meetings.
• Cultivate relationships and serve as a liaison/advocate among high school counselors, ILP coordinators, social workers, foster parents, group homes workers, and community partners to increase awareness of the needs of foster youth and to ensure students’ success.
• Assist with identifying community resources to meet programmatic objectives (mental health, life skills, career, etc.).
• Assist with outreach and selection process of College Sponsorship Program candidates.

Program Development:

• Assist with development and ongoing review of CSP curriculum (check points, workshops, orientations, etc.).
• Assist with coordination of Sponsorship Events including but not limited to: Celebration, Sponsorship Orientation, Internship Orientation, and quarterly special events.
• Assist with reviewing and updating procedures relating to: CSP application process, Internship program, student communication/interview process, student tracking, program evaluation, program growth, and data entry.
• Assist with strategic planning process to ensure continued quality of program services and outcomes.

Other:

• Provide support for College Readiness Programming
• Additional duties as assigned
• Must have a reliable personal vehicle

General UFC Responsibilities:

• Act as a role model within the organization to uphold and implement UFC’s organizational values

-Embrace program evaluation that leads to excellence and impact

-Build effective and empowering partnerships with the youth, community and each other

-Create a fun and exciting environment that inspires learning and innovation

-Communicate openly, honestly and with humility across all groups

-Work together as one organization

• Perform duties as workload necessitates
• Maintain positive and respectful attitude
• Communicate regularly with supervisor about program/organizational issues
• Adhere to organization policies and procedures

Qualifications:

Preferred

• Master’s degree in the field of education, psychology or social work
• 3-4 years experience providing case management, educational counseling, or retention support to college students
• Knowledge of the Los Angeles County foster care system

Required

• Ability to establish and cultivate respectful relationships with people from diverse backgrounds
• Strong verbal, written, and interpersonal skills
• Must have a reliable personal automobile
• Ability to manage multiple demanding projects
• Perform well with minimal supervision
• Experience with tracking multiple data points
• Ability to work some evenings and weekends

This is a full-time position.  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

College Readiness Counselor/Part-Time

Position Description: 

Part-time position in a growing department available for a qualified individual with a minimum of 3 years experience in education or counseling to help foster youth prepare for and attend 4-year colleges and universities. Demonstrated experience in the following areas is required: experience with creating and implementing student development curriculum, academic counseling and educational case management, program evaluation, community outreach, and advocacy. Bachelor’s degree required. Master’s degree in the fields of education, psychology or social work preferred. This position reports to the College Readiness Program Manager.

Responsibilities/Duties:

 Case Management

• Meet with students every other month (at a minimum) and maintain bi-weekly communication to provide individualized academic planning for a caseload of 30 middle and high school students.
• Monitor students’ academic progress to ensure successful completion of program requirements (A-G completion, college exploration, successful CAHSEE completion, etc).
• Responsible for collecting and maintaining accurate student records (grades, IEP, WRAT scores, etc) to track student progress.
• Provide program referrals to facilitate student access to campus and community based support services and academic enrichment opportunities.
• Track and document all service efforts made on behalf of students in UFC’s ETO database within a week's period of the event’s occurrence.
• Participate in case supervision under guidance from College Readiness Manager

Outreach and Resource Development

• Help create and implement innovative outreach strategies to ensure program growth.
• Cultivate relationships and serve as a liaison/advocate among middle and high school staff, ILP coordinators, social workers, foster parents, group homes workers, and community partners to increase awareness of the needs of foster youth and to ensure students’ success.

Program Implementation and Development

• Assist with bi-monthly coordination of Readiness Program Events (College Within Reach, Celebration, Readiness Retreat, College Exploration Visits, and Enrichment Activities).
• Lead and participate in the coordination of student academic and personal development workshops and develop curriculum as needed.
• Engage in the development of program infrastructure to ensure sustainability and growth.
• Additional responsibilities and tasks as needed.

General Requirements:

• Tuesday through Saturday work schedule
• 28 hour work week - evenings and weekends
• Valid driver’s license and proof of insurance
• Must be willing to travel throughout Los Angeles County

UFC Responsibilities:

• Acts as a role model within the organization

-Acts as a role model within the organization to uphold and implement UFC’s organizational values

-Embrace program evaluation that leads to excellence and impact

-Build effective and empowering partnerships with the youth, community and each other

-Create a fun and exciting environment that inspires learning and innovation

-Communicate openly, honestly and with humility across all groups

-Work together as one organization

• Performs duties as workload necessitates

• Maintains positive and respectful attitude

• Communicates regularly with supervisor about program/organizational issues

• Adhere to organization policies and procedures

This is a part-time position.  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

In-Home Tutor

Position Description: Tutors will work with middle and high school students in UFC’s College Readiness Program in need of academic assistance. All tutoring will take place in a one-on-one environment in the student’s home or at a nearby location (school, public library). Tutors will need to be willing to service the Los Angeles County area, have reliable transportation, and a flexible schedule. Tutors work from 2-15 hours a week. Tutorial hours generally take place Monday through Thursday, between the hours of 4:00pm and 9:00pm.

Responsibilities/Duties:

• Tutor middle and high school students in at least one of the following areas: language arts, math, science, history, Spanish, and/or more.
• Schedule all tutoring sessions by contacting the students’ guardians and finding a mutually agreeable time.
• Maintain positive relationships and ongoing communications with both the students and guardians.
• Submit weekly progress reports to both guardians and to UFC staff.

Qualifications:

• A minimum of an Associate’s Degree OR 3 years tutoring experience.
• 1 year tutoring experience required; proficiency in the area in which he/she plans to tutor and the ability to convey that knowledge clearly via spoken and written word; and the ability to motivate students.
• High level of commitment; Passing of a criminal background check; and character references.

This position is available immediately. This is a part time hourly position. Pay is dependent upon education and experience, $17+ per hour. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .