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DIVISION DIRECTOR OF CHILD WELFARE SERVICES

Recruitment #16-SP7-02

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Introduction

  HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT  

The Family and Children’s Services (FCS) Division, comprised of 105 staff members, provides child protection, foster care, family reunification, family maintenance and family stabilization, permanency planning, adoptions, and resource home licensing/approval services to children and families in Santa Cruz County. FCS makes every effort to use evidence-based, evidence-informed and promising practices in order to achieve positive safety, permanency and well-being outcomes for children In Santa Cruz County’s 2015 Child Welfare Self-assessment, the FCS Division met or exceeded 16 out of 19 federal and state performance standards. At any given time an average of 270 Santa Cruz County children are in out-of-home care. Of these, about 50% (135 children) are placed with relatives or non-relative extended family members. Santa Cruz County prides itself on placement with relatives, and is consistently among the top five counties in the state for relative placements. Only about 7% (20 children) are placed in group homes at any given time. Given the high number of children placed with relatives and the low number placed in group homes, Santa Cruz County is well situated to implement Continuum of Care Reform, and the Department is fully engaged in a comprehensive planning process

  Click here to view a video with highlights of who we are and what we do at the County of Santa Cruz Human Services Department

  

  THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ

Santa Cruz County has approximately 270,000 residents and is situated in the northern area of Monterey Bay, 70 miles south of San Francisco and 35 miles southwest of the Silicon Valley. The County’s natural beauty is apparent in its pristine beaches, lush redwood forests, and rich farmland. It has an ideal Mediterranean climate with low humidity and 300 days of sunshine a year. Its unique shops and restaurants, coupled with a multitude of cultural and recreational activities, including theatre, music, art as well as golfing, surfing, hiking, and biking offer a wealth of leisure activities. Higher education includes Cabrillo College and the University of California, Santa Cruz, with two additional State Universities less than an hour away. These elements of high quality living make Santa Cruz County one of California’s most desirable areas.

 

Distinguishing Characteristics

 

 TYPICAL TASKS OF POSITION

  •  Establishes and maintains goals, objectives, and plans for carrying out division functions consistent with overall Department  goals      
  • Coordinates and directs through subordinate managers and supervisors the work of staff engaged in providing a wide variety of casework services      
  • Coordinates and integrates services, resolve administrative problems and develop joint procedures      
  • Analyzes divisional work activities and programs, conducts or directs studies of systems and procedures, evaluates divisional policies, services and systems and formulates needed improvements      
  • Directs and participates in  preparation of the divisional budget      
  • Develops division programs, contracts, grant agreements and memoranda of understanding    
  • Reviews and evaluates services and develops corrective actions as necessary      
  • Serves on County and State task forces, committees and commissions and provides staff support for selected groups

     

     

    SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

     

    Any combination of training and experience, that would provide the required knowledge and abilities, is qualifying.  A typical way to obtain these would be:  Three years of responsible administrative or management experience which would demonstrate application or possession of the required knowledge and abilities listed on job specification located at http://sccounty01.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/personnel/Specs/SP7spec.html. A Master's Degree in Business, Public Administration, Social Services, Social Work or closely related field, may be substituted for one year of the required experience. Desirable Qualification: Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

     

  • Special Requirements: Possession of a valid California Class C Driver License or the employee must be able to provide suitable transportation which is approved by the appointing authority.

     

     

    IDEAL CANDIDATE

    • Experienced leader in the Child Welfare arena 
    •  Able to work collaboratively with the senior management  team, staff, and stakeholders, including other county departments, public safety,   the courts and community group
    • Approachable 
    • Professional demeanor and the ability to advise staff on the best practices for prevention, court work and permanency  
    • A transparent team player committed to working with staff in a progressive manner who is sought after by staff and colleagues as a resource, coach and mentor 
    • Strong verbal and written communication skills 
    • A successful change agent familiar with AB403, the Foster Care Continuum of Care Act, to help lead the organization through the transformation necessary to ensure all children have a home and permanent family connections

    • Benefits

    Medical, Dental, and Vision

    Medical coverage is available through CALPERS with the County paying a majority portion of the cost for the employee and dependents. The cost of the dental plan is entirely County-paid for employees and dependents. The County pays for the cost of an employee vision plan and the employee may purchase dependent coverage.

     

    Retirement and Social Security

    Pension formula 2% at age 60 or 2% at age 62 as determined based on provisions of the CA Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013(PEPRA). Pension benefit determined by final average compensation of three years. County pays a portion of retirement contribution and participates in Social Security.

     

    Life Insurance and Long-Term Disability Plan

    County paid $50,000 term life insurance policy. Employees may purchase additional life insurance. The County pays for a long term disability plan that pays 66 2/3 % of the first $13,500, up to $9,000 per month maximum benefits.

     

           Candidates may be eligible for relocation assistance, advanced paid leave accrual rate and advancement of sick leave accruals  

    Selection Plan

    THE APPLICATION PROCESS

     

    Candidates must submit a County application and answers to the supplemental application questions. The completed application packet must be received by the Personnel Department, 701 Ocean Street, Rm. 310, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 or online at www.santacruzcountyjobs.com before midnight on Friday, September 2, 2016  For more information please call Nisha Patel, Employment Services Manager at (831) 454-2600. Hearing Impaired TDD/TTY – call 711. Following a review of minimum qualifications applicants who are selected to move forward in the recruitment process will be notified that they must submit a completed conviction history questionnaire in order to continue in the examination phase of the process.

     
    You may be required to compete in any combination of written, oral, performance examination or a competitive evaluation of training and experience as described on your application and supplemental application. You must pass all components of the examination to be placed on the eligible list. The examination may be eliminated if there are ten or fewer qualified applicants. If the eligible list is established without the administration of the announced examination, the life of the eligible list will be six months and your overall score will be based upon an evaluation of your application and supplemental application.

     

     

     

    If you have a disability that would require test accommodation, call (831) 454-2600.

      

    Note: Provisions of this bulletin do not constitute an expressed or implied contract.

    The County of Santa Cruz is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to building a diverse workforce