Kinnect to Family Coach

To apply, please e-mail your resume to Susie Cummings at Scion Staffing, Inc.

Title: Kinnect to Family Coach

Reports to: Regional Director

Job Location: Hybrid – Northwest Ohio

Benefits: Health, Dental, Vision and Retirement, Paid Time Off, Holidays

Date Posted: October 2023

Overview of Kinnect

Kinnect is a private non-profit that was founded in 2005. Kinnect leverages its leadership expertise to design programs, products, and services that transform the child welfare system. Kinnect leads innovation to reduce the time that children spend in the child welfare system and to prevent entry into the child welfare system. Kinnect achieves this by partnering with organizations to transform beliefs, values, and actions to ensure permanent families for all children in the shortest time possible. We believe that childhood is a fundamental human right and that all children deserve permanent families. We believe that every day that a child is in foster care, separated from their kin and community is a day in crisis. We embrace hope, possibility, and innovation and we treat everyone with dignity and respect.

Overview of the Kinnect to Family Program:

Kinnect to Family is a specialized, intense, family search and engagement program. Diligent search strategies are used to identify a vast array of connections for children and families encountering child welfare. We empower kinship caregivers and wrap them in stabilizing supports using relentless effort, focus, and determination. As with all Kinnect programs, we embrace family to be defined as biological, adoptive, foster, and all other kin and persons who have meaningful relationships with the family of origin; such as neighbors, coaches, and life-long friends. We believe all children have caring and capable extended families that are willing to help raise their kin when needed. With the right tools and engagement, families can be united together to support one another through kinship care.

Position Summary

The Kinnect to Family Coach is responsible for providing coaching and support for Kinnect to Family Specialists and their Supervisors in counties and partner sites located in a geographical region in which Kinnect to Family operates. The support comes in the form of ensuring fidelity to the model and facilitating communication among assigned sites to develop mutual support and case consultation. The Coach also provides technical assistance to support family searches and genogram development, as well as provides training to support and sustain the program.

Essential Functions:

  • Coach Family Specialists and Supervisors in designated counties and partner sites on the program model and best practice strategies
  • Provide direct support to Kinnect to Family Specialists, including:
    • Interpreting and articulating the program model and benchmarks
    • Communication among designated counties to develop mutual support
    • Regular check-in with Specialists and Supervisors for technical assistance, including relative/kin searching to help move service forward, barrier-busting, and finding family supports
    • Regular consultation with each Specialist, including review of search tools, genogram, and family engagement tools
    • Conduct regular program reviews for each Specialist
  • Provide technical assistance on the intake and referral process for prospective Kinnect to Family families
  • Accompany Specialist to home visits, meetings and hearings for families, as needed
  • Utilize technology to ensure that all electronic and paper files are properly maintained
  • Identify, develop, and facilitate trainings to Specialists, Supervisors, and stakeholders as needed
  • Capacity to work among child welfare and court teams
  • Demonstrated commitment to the above core philosophies
  • Ability to work outside of a “business as usual” model, including:
    • a “relentless” search for family
    • vigorous search for and engagement of fathers
    • a strength-based approach to engaging family members in a problem-solving process to identify and organize their collective resources to support relative placement
  • Professional maturity to work independently, while also engaging with peers and supervisory staff
  • Ability to build and maintain effective working relationships
  • Superior advocacy skills

Guiding Principles and Competencies:

Partnership: Bringing our collective experience and skillsets to relationships that support our connectedness and achievement of our mission.

  • I build constructive and effective relationships to find common ground and solve problems
  • When I participate in teamwork, I will ensure that I am giving everyone accurate and timely
    information as needed to move forward on our common goals
  • I reprioritize when needed and create focus to strengthen partnerships throughout times of change
  • I strive to help people feed included, respected, and valuable about being a member of the
    team

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access (IDEA): As a learning organization, we pledge to ongoing and sustained work in diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility through collaboration with families, communities, Kinnect team members and our partners.
I pause for self-reflection and to analyze my own assumptions, behaviors, and previous/current experiences

  • I take responsibility for my own growth and development in this space (i.e. self educationthrough TED Talks, books, articles, and how new information can be applied in practice)
  • I am willing to speak up if I witness exclusionary behaviors, bias, and discrimination
  • I give other’s grace in our learning journeys, we give each other time to process, and we give each other the space to circle back
  • I strive to be a catalyst for change, thought partner and leader in bridging the work of systems innovation and disruption, anti-racism, and transformation
  • I foster belonging by committing to centering the voices of those who have been historically
    and are presently marginalized
  • As a learning organization I pledge to ongoing and sustained work in diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility through collaboration with families, youth, communities, Kinnect team members and partners

Innovation: Continuous and dynamic process where creative ideas are valued, discussed, and implemented to significantly disrupt routing and prevailing structures.

  • I am willing to share my ideas, even the new and unique ones, when brainstorming, problem
    solving and in my daily work
  • I explore issues through a lens of equity and inclusion by co-creating solutions with people, not for people.
  • I am committed to centering and elevating the voice of those we serve, whether it be families, youth, caregivers, team members or our partners.
  • I am willing to design programs and solutions for the future we want to have.
  • When faced with challenges, I remain curious, look beyond the obvious and my own lens and perspective to push myself to look for multiple solutions even though I might not have all the answers.
  • I am open to iterating and continuous learning
  • I choose to view failure as an opportunity to learn

Integrity: Having the courage to live the Kinnect values of dignity, respect and honesty.

  • I strive to be self-aware and open to feedback that allows for development and growth
  • I stay aligned with Kinnect’s values while maintaining flexibility to incorporate new ideas and perspectives
  • During difficult times, I strive to maintain composure, self-regulate, maintain my sense of self- awareness and stay in empathy when working through issues
  • I take responsibility for contributing to high quality and inclusive end results, for the good of the greater team
  • I take responsibility for my own boundaries, self-care, and rest so that I am able to engage meaningfully in my work at Kinnect

Outcome Focused: We strive to measure our work, to pivot, iterate, and improve to accomplish desired results.

  • I make time and space to assess process, progress, and results
  • I work with my team to make sure we all have up-to-date information so we can make accurate and informed decisions
  • I ask for what I need to be able to contribute and perform to the best of my ability
  • I keep families, youth, community partners and Kinnect team members in mind when creating goals and throughout the course of the project

Communicate Effectively: Develop and deliver communications using various methods that conveys a clear understanding of the unique needs of the different audiences we communicate with.

  • Attentively listens to others
  • Provides timely and helpful information to others across the organization
  • Encourages the open expression of diverse ideas and opinions
  • Ability to utilize multiples communication methods such as telephone, email, letters, reports, to name a few to share information and to keep people informed of progress or what is needed

Critical Thinking for Managing Complexity: Making sense of complex, high quantity and sometimes contradictory information to effectively solve problems.

  • Ask questions that will help accurately analyze situations
  • Acquire data from multiple and diverse sources to help solve problems and to innovate

Skills and Competencies:
• Strong written and verbal communication
• Organization and superior time management skills with the ability to meet multiple program deadlines and manage multiple tasks
• Facilitation and conflict resolution/mediation skills
• Able to adapt quickly and comfortable working with diverse populations in various environments
• Understanding of, or ability to learn, Genopro (family tree/genogram software program)
• Works independently exercising keen assessment skills
• Ability to use customer service initiatives to work with partner agencies
• Available to work a flexible schedule, which may include nights and weekends
• Basic knowledge of Microsoft Office programs
• Possess a valid driver’s license and dependable transportation

Education/Qualification:
• Bachelor’s Degree required; Social work or related field, preferred
• Experience in the child welfare field with knowledge of foster care and adoption, strongly preferred
• Licensed social worker preferred, but not required
• Past supervisory experience, preferred
• Demonstrated experience working with interdisciplinary teams utilizing innovative strategies to overcome obstacles

Inclusion Diversity, Equity, and Access:
Kinnect is committed to fostering, cultivating, and preserving a culture of inclusion diversity, equity, and access. These commitments are not just part of our value system but are at the core of our intentional actions to eliminate systemic barriers that have produced inequities based on differences.
We commit to a sustained investment of time, resources, and people to advance equitable realities for our employees, and for the children, families, and communities that we serve. We do this by intentional advocacy for social justice and the continuous scrutiny of the systems that we create and those in which we operate.
Our employees are the most valuable asset we have. The collective sum of the individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, innovation, self-expression, unique capabilities, and talent that our employees invest in their work represents a significant part of not only our culture, but our reputation and success, as well.
We embrace our employees’ differences in age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, physical and intellectual or emotional ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation or identity, socio- economic status, parental or family status, medical or genetic status, veteran or disabled veteran status, and other characteristics that make our employees unique.
Kinnect’s inclusion, diversity, equity, and access initiatives involve, but are not limited to, our practices and policies on recruitment and selection; compensation and benefits; professional development and training; promotions; transfers; staffing decisions; terminations; and the ongoing development of an inclusive work environment.

Equal Opportunity Employment: Kinnect maintains a policy of nondiscrimination toward all employees and applicants for employment. All aspects of employment with us will be governed on the basis of competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, or gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, sexual expression or identity, national origin, physical, intellectual or emotional ability, marital or partnership status, parental or family status, medical or genetic status, veteran’s or disabled veteran status, in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. Employment Posters stating current regulatory and legal
requirements are posted in Kinnect’s main office and on the intranet.

Working Conditions:

Travel required, as needed. Must have access to own transportation. Available to work a
flexible schedule.

  • This job requires occasional overnight travel
  • Kinnect as an organization has a Hybrid Work Model that combines remote and on-site work at Kinnect, as well as routine on-site or in-person work with team members, partner sites, community events, and direct service in the field.
  • This role will utilize standard office equipment that will be provided by Kinnect

Hiring Process:
Background Check Information: The final candidate selected for the position will be required to undergo a criminal background check. Criminal convictions do not necessarily preclude an applicant from consideration for a position. An individual assessment of an applicant's prior criminal conviction(s) will be made before excluding an applicant from consideration.

Disclaimer: The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work to be performed. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of employees assigned to this position.

Kinnect maintains a policy of nondiscrimination toward all employees and applicants for employment. All employment decisions at Kinnect are based on organizational needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, and will be governed on the basis of competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, or gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, sexual expression or identity, national origin, physical, intellectual or emotional ability, marital or partnership status, parental or family status, medical or genetic status, veteran’s or disabled veteran status, in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.
Employment Posters stating current regulatory and legal requirements are posted in Kinnect’s
main office and on the intranet.

American’s with Disabilities Act: This position involves sitting in a stationary position for at least 50% of the time and the ability to ambulate without assistance to attend on-site meetings, as needed. The job requires movement in a typical office environment with file cabinets, office machinery, office furniture and typical hallway and access doorways. The position must operate typical office equipment, such as copiers, telephones, computers and peripherals. This job requires that the person must have the ability to access transportation to attend meetings and special events. The organization provides reasonable accommodations for this position.