Young Adult Navigator

YOUNG ADULT NAVIGATOR - Full Time

Since 1990 Triangle Community Center (TCC) has been Fairfield County's leading provider of LGBTQ programming and resources to nurture growth and connection within the community. TCC empowers and advocates for LGBTQ people in Connecticut through programming focused on health, community and learning.

Working as part of the clinical team comprised of mental health services and case management, the Youth Homeless Demonstration Project (YHDP) focuses on enhancing the Fairfield County Coordinated Access Network (FC CAN) by providing enhanced outreach and engagement to unsheltered and unstably housed youth. The Young Adult Navigator provides dedicated case management services to individuals and families and continuously engages clients in developing and realizing a plan to end their housing instability through diversion, shelter placement, rapid rehousing, and other interventions. Targeting decentralized, community-based supports to folks at the moment of crisis will allow for fewer entries into homelessness through more exhaustive prevention/diversion efforts, and shorter durations of homelessness by expediting the process of getting folks document ready prior to their possible entry into shelter. This position will remain connected to the young adult/ youth for up to 6 months (as appropriate) to assist with consistency and trauma-informed focus for long-term stability.

This position will report to the Case Management Supervisor.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Conduct outreach and organizational in-reach to identify youth who are experiencing homelessness.
• Engage with youth through social media and other nontraditional ways
• Conduct CAN intake appointments and work with youth to identify and secure safe, stable housing opportunities outside of the homeless system
• Work with households to collect all personal identification and documentation, income verification, homelessness verification, and disability verification (all when applicable and appropriate) and upload them into the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).
• Comply with all HMIS training requirements including HMIS, maintain organized files and adhere to timely data entry into HMIS, SmartSheet, and/or other data system
• Proactively engage all clients in creative problem solving to identify and secure safe, viable housing opportunities outside of homeless system
• Conduct youth-specific outreach, engagement, and CAN intake appointments with young adults and young families
• Assist youth with following through on service linkages made during CAN intake appointment, such as connection to McKinney-Vento liaison, DCF re-entry process (if applicable), etc.
• Ensure young adults are successfully linked to all appropriate resources as quickly as possible
• Guide youth through housing response system process
• Assess client safety and assist clients with meeting basic needs (food, clothing, hygiene, etc.)
• If young adult still requires an additional housing intervention to obtain permanent housing (enrollment in RRH, PSH, etc.), assisting youth with application processes, obtaining necessary documentation, coordinating with the new case manager to ensure a smooth transition
• Participate in YETI meetings, discussing evolving needs of local youth, systemic barriers, and strategies to address them
• Attend all locally and statewide scheduled meetings, trainings and workshops as appropriate
• Engage consumers in feedback mechanism to ensure crisis response system can adequately address client needs.
• Other duties as assigned by supervisor

QUALIFICATIONS:

Bachelor’s degree, three years of experience providing homeless services, or shared lived experience preferred. Must have the ability to work on a community level and engage in a collaborative approach.

• Highly motivated, creative problem solver
• Knowledge of, or ability to quickly develop competency with, issues related to homelessness, effective intervention techniques, and basic understanding of mental health and substance abuse issues
• Project a professional demeanor and exercises mature judgment
• Knowledge of community resources
• Must be able to work effectively with populations that have experienced vulnerability, trauma, economic poverty, incarceration, substance use, developmental delays, compromised mental wellness, brain injuries, literacy and numeracy issues, and/or, other conditions or situations that have impacted housing stability
• Strong organization skills and ability to coordinate and complete multiple tasks simultaneously
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including telephone communication
• Ability to work independently and with a group, and maintain good working relationships with organizational staff and partners
• Driver’s license and daily use of a reliable and properly registered and insured motor vehicle
• Strong computer skills
• Must adhere to all professional standards and ethical practices, including creating and maintaining healthy boundaries and professional relationships with clients, co-workers, and others
• Strong sense of responsibility and a commitment to the mission of ending homelessness
• Bi-lingual candidates preferred

Triangle Community Center, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $40,000.00 - $45,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Monday to Friday

Education:

• Bachelor's (Preferred)

Language:

• Spanish (Preferred)

License/Certification:

• Driver's License (Preferred)

Work Location:

• Multiple locations

Work Remotely:

• Temporarily due to COVID-19