Protective Services Specialist 1/2 Juneau - Traveling

Job Description

Come join the State of Alaska!

This job class uses Competency Based minimum qualifications (MQs). Please read the

Competency Based MQ instructions below to learn more.

The Department of Family and Community Services,

Office of Children's Services (OCS) is

recruiting for full-time

Protective Service Specialist 1/2 - Traveling

in Juneau Alaska.

The position is open to All Applicants

What You Will Be Doing

:

As a Protective Services Specialist (PSS), responsible for Child Protective Services in the Family Services Unit, the Investigations & Assessment Unit, or as a Generalist covering both. This position is based out of the Juneau Field Office, and incumbents will typically work two weeks in the office (50%) and spend two weeks traveling (50%) each month. Casework is for all Southeast Regional Field Offices which consist of Juneau, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Sitka, and Craig. Travel to villages or cities for placement or visitation varies based on regional needs.

This case carrying positions offer a range of duties, including investigating reports of child abuse and/or neglect, preparing plans for intervention by soliciting the cooperation of the family and others, and gathering information about family dynamics/functionality. The Protective Services Specialist will develop plans to ensure child safety while assisting parents in addressing their protective factors, may be placing children with a relative or licensed foster home when applicable, provide ongoing and/or in-home services to families, writing and submitting reports to Court, working closely with Tribal/Community Partners, frequent face-to-face and telephonic contact with parents and caregivers of children in custody, and making referrals to other service providers and agencies.

For more information:

OCS Practice Model

Mission and Values/Culture:

The Mission of the Office of Children's Services is: Ensuring the safety, permanency and well-being of children by strengthening families, engaging communities, and partnering with Tribes.

The

Office of Children's Services

is dedicated to a diverse and inclusive workforce where safety and wellbeing are paramount. Employees all contribute to building a culture where everyone is valued, treated equitably, and treated respectfully.

Everything we do is underpinned by our

Core Values

Hope, Integrity, Respect and Empathy.

Benefits of Joining Our Team

:

The Office of Children's Services is committed to an organizational culture that values each team member. We are committed to building and sustaining a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment. We celebrate and value the diversity of our employees, partners, and families we serve.

Your first twelve months in the agency are probationary and considered a training period, with formal virtual training, on-the-job training with your supervisor, and with other colleagues.

While this is a field-based position that involves working in the community, part-time telework within the duty station is an option upon eligibility.

Full-time benefits of this position include but are not limited to: Insurance Benefits; Retirement Benefits; Paid Leave; and twelve paid holidays per year. Please see the benefits tab on this posting for more information.

The Working Environment You Can Expect:

This position is based out of the Juneau Field Office, and incumbents will typically work two weeks in the office (50%) and spend two weeks traveling (50%) each month. Juneau is the hub community that also provides back up to our more rural offices in Southeast. Travel may involve small aircraft, all-terrain vehicles, or small boats to small villages or field offices. Travel to field offices is expected as allowed by budget constraints. Some of the small village communities are not equipped with modern conveniences, hotels, or bed and breakfasts thus the incumbent must be prepared to sleep in offices, schools, tribal community buildings or other accommodations as required.

The work we perform is critical and significantly impacts the communities we serve.   As a result, the Office of Children's Services (OCS) works on evenings and weekends as well as weekdays, so overtime and on-call work are expectations of our workers. OCS Staff are considered essential, so are expected to work during pandemic and other natural disasters.

Our teams are based around having a strong work ethic and high ethical standards, believing in treating all people with dignity and respect, as well as being self-motivated, organized and honest. We are all about getting the job done while still contributing to a positive, upbeat work environment.

For information on the Juneau community (including schools, hospitals, housing) please review the

Alaska Community Profiles

.

Who We Are Looking For:

We are interested in candidates who possess some or all of the following position specific competencies:

Stress Tolerance:

Deals calmly and effectively with high stress situations (for example, tight deadlines, hostile individuals, emergency situations, dangerous situations).

Self-Management:

Sets well-defined and realistic personal goals; displays a high level of initiative, effort, and commitment towards completing assignments in a timely manner; works with minimal supervision; is motivated to achieve; demonstrates responsible behavior.

Teamwork:

Encourages and facilitates cooperation, pride, trust, and group identity; fosters commitment and team spirit; works with others to achieve goals.

To view the general description and example of duties for the position please go to the following link:

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/Alaska/classspecs

If you can imagine yourself in this role, we encourage you to apply!

Minimum Qualifications

Competency Based Minimum Qualifications Instructions

This job class uses competency based minimum qualifications.

Please ensure your application

(through work history, volunteer experience (duties summary), training, education, licenses, certifications, etc.) supports how you have gained the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors (competencies) and that you possess the minimum required competencies for the job class.

Competency Description

The competency description(s) listed below have been designed to promote a common understanding of the essential elements of the job class. They highlight the more general and customary knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs), tasks, and behaviors used to describe the competency. They typically list expectations, as opposed to specific tasks, and are to be used only as parameters and guidelines. A competency’s description is not intended to exclusively define every KSA, task, and behavior needed to successfully meet the competency, but rather to provide the manager/agency with a broad reference of options as to how an applicant can meet the job expectation.

Any combination of education and/or experience that provides the applicant with competencies in:

Analytical Thinking/Problem Solving:

Uses a logical, systematic, and sequential approach to address problems or opportunities or manage a situation by drawing on one’s knowledge and experience base and calling on other references and resources as necessary.

Customer Service

: Works with clients and customers (that is, any individuals who use or receive the services or products that your work unit produces, including the general public, individuals who work in the agency, other agencies, or organizations outside State government) to assess their needs, provide information or assistance, resolve their problems, or satisfy their expectations; knows about available products and services; is committed to providing quality products and services.

Integrity/Honesty:

Contributes to maintaining the integrity of the organization; displays high standards of ethical conduct and understands the impact of violating these standards on an organization, self, and others; is trustworthy.

Interpersonal Skills:

Shows understanding, friendliness, courtesy, tac