YOUTH ADVOCATE

The position of Youth Advocate works directly with children in foster care in the AZDCS Child Specific Recruitment program. Youth Advocates are responsible for meeting one on one with children on their caseload in order to build a relationship, work through adoption readiness curriculum, and develop a recruitment strategy with the youth. In addition, a Youth Advocate is responsible for working with individuals assigned to the youth's case in order to identify permanency for the child. In order to find permanency, the Youth Advocate will also need to do file digs for every child case and do research to find any relatives or permanent adult relationships in the child's life. The Youth Advocate is also responsible for gaining a depth of knowledge into the youth's history, special needs, and future goals in order to advocate for the youth's needs. Youth Advocates will be expected to travel to youth placements in order to complete visits in addition to attending monthly Child Team Meetings and relevant court cases. Youth Advocates need to have administrative skills in order to write reports that need to be submitted in a timely manner based upon the report in addition to being highly organized. The Youth Advocate position is ideal for someone who has a passion for foster youth and has a desire to walk alongside them in their journey toward permanency. This journey for youth in Child Specific Recruitment can take anywhere from 1.5-3 years and requires someone who is willing and able to commit to the position for this length of time. The CSR contract covers the entire state of Arizona and a Youth Advocate will be expected to travel outside of Maricopa county in order to meet with youth at their placements. Further, Youth Advocates will be expected to participate in photoshoots and match events held for youth on their caseloads that may be scheduled on weekends. A typical work schedule varies depending upon the number of children on a caseload and their physical placements.

• Bachelors degree
• Ability to relate well with families of varied lifestyles, backgrounds, and ethnicities
• Experience in cultural diversity
• Staff should have a minimum of one (1) year of experience working with individuals transitioning out of a behavioral health facility or higher level of care. This can be a combination of education, experience and completed training necessary for the type of service they are delivering
• Have both a clear Central Registry Background Check and a current Level One fingerprint clearance card prior to delivering services to ADCS clients and review and update annually.
• Upon hire and on a bi-annual basis, verify that drivers providing services to the ADCS' clients have:
• No Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) or Driving Under the Influence (DUI) during the life of the Contract or in the five (5) years preceding the Contract.
• No At Fault Accidents during the life of the Contract or in the five (5) years preceding the Contract.
• No more than two (2) moving violations during the life of the Contract or in the five (5) years preceding the Contract.
• No more than one (1) excessive speed (per the A.R.S. § 28-701.02) violation during the life of the Contract or in the five (5) years preceding the Contract.
• No criminal violations during the life of the Contract or in the five (5) years preceding the Contract.
• A valid driver's license that has not been suspended or revoked due to a moving violation within the last three (3) years of date of hire.
• New hires and current employees who have had their license suspended or revoked for issues other than moving violations (i.e. due to nonpayment of registration fee or parking ticket), can provide transportation to ADCS clients if:
• Their license has been reinstated, and
• They have had no further moving or nonmoving violations for at least six (6) month from first date of suspension.
• Have valid car insurance
• Current CPR certification
• Have not been placed on probation or parole for the last ten (10) years from date of employment.
• Have no civil, criminal, or juvenile restraining orders within the last ten (10) years from present date.
• Have a clear pre-employment drug test result, as well as clear random annual drug testing results
•