Community Family Advocates

Resource Navigator

Background

Allegheny County and CFA are building a team at the Engagement Center in downtown Pittsburgh that will help adults move from homelessness to housing and advance in the other goals that matter to them.

The Engagement Center is a low-barrier, welcoming place for adults to get the services and advocacy they need—and where they can come inside, get a shower, socialize and “just be.” Some of the clients who come into the Center may be unsheltered while others will be connected to emergency shelter, including the shelter in the building. The building also is home to a health clinic, a behavioral health residential program and, with the Engagement Center, will be a place for community providers to meet their clients and a hub for crucial information.

Summary of Role

The Resource Navigator is critical to making the Engagement Center welcoming and valuable to clients. They will engage people who come into the Center, sit down with them to listen and hear what they want and need, help them develop a short-term game plan, and support them in taking steps so that they make some progress that day, including connecting them with resources that are the next best step. Resource Navigators also will engage clients who don’t walk in—those who may be outside the building or individuals whom street outreach staff know and introduce to the Resource Navigators, so they can feel more comfortable coming into the Center.

The Resource Navigator will work primarily at the Engagement Center located at the Second Avenue Commons building in downtown Pittsburgh. They also will be mobile - walking with clients to government offices downtown, and, at times, accompanying street outreach workers to meet and engage clients.

Ideal Candidate

We are looking for an individual who listens very well, cares, and who understands what people are having to live through and the trauma that may have caused homelessness (and that homelessness only worsens). They already know community resources and are resourceful—good at figuring out how to get what the client needs. They do what it takes to make sure someone gets the health and human services they need. They have the skill, experience, training and knowledge in motivational interviewing, trauma, advocacy for clients, homelessness and housing, substance use, aging; and have demonstrated abilities to find and tap resources for their clients. The ideal Resource Navigator also enjoys learning from others and sharing what they know; they are great collaborators.

What we aren’t looking for

People who tend to judge others instead of seeking to understand.

People who talk more than they listen.

Responsibilities

Resource Navigators will help clients feel welcome, engage them, and support them in taking steps that help them with what they want and need. They will do this by working as part of a well-coordinated team of Resource Coordinators who take turns on these roles:

Concierge

• Welcome clients and help them register and know what services the Engagement Center offers
•  Sign them up for services and help with wayfinding
• Find clients when it is their turn for a service appointment

Triage and navigation

• ·Sit down with clients who opt to meet with a Resource Navigator to listen, hear what they want/need, apply motivational interviewing skills--and develop a game plan for what they need that day and in the coming days.
  •  For clients who are living in emergency shelters that have case managers, this will entail connecting clients with the case manager in the shelter where they live
  • For other individuals, the Resource Navigators will support clients in taking their next best step/action toward housing or other goal
  • Identify people with significant needs and make quick connections with those systems of care, including individuals who are in or nearing crisis; and who have complex needs (e.g., serious mental illness and older adult)
• Participate in “rounds” outside of the Engagement Center building to connect with people and help them feel more comfortable approaching a Resource Navigator or other staff member
• When necessary, accompany street outreach to engage clients who are unhoused and for whom meeting a caring Resource Navigator might encourage them to come into the Center

Housing coach

• Informally coach clients as they use computers and resource materials to search for housing, set up email accounts, complete applications, call landlords, email family and friends

Resource Navigators will not have caseloads; they will share information with other Resource Navigators and Supervisors. They therefore need to be excellent collaborators—imagining what another staff member needs to know, documenting well and quickly, and sharing responsibility for supporting clients in moving ahead.

Resource Navigators also will be attuned to issues they see in the Engagement Center and other programs—and raise those issues and help to shape solutions so the Center works well for clients, staff and the community.

Skills and experience

Preferred

• Four or more years’ experience in successfully providing services to people facing housing crises
• Understanding of psychiatric rehabilitation principles, addiction recovery practices, and trauma-informed care.
• Skill in using Motivational Interviewing
• Understands the principles of Harm Reduction and Housing First and has experience in applying these principles to support/serve others.
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment and collaborate with other professionals.
• Proficiency in documentation skills and adherence to confidentiality standards.
• Excellent working knowledge of human services and public benefit programs in Allegheny County
• Good written and oral communication skills
• Skill in building partnerships with a wide range of individuals and organizations
• Assessment and service coordination skills
• Approachable, flexible, organized and ready to solve problems
• Ability to efficiently manage time and work well under pressure of a fast-paced environment, while maintaining confidentiality and professional conduct
• Ability to work independently
• Comfortable finding answers to difficult/complex questions

Minimum:

• At least two years’ experience in successfully providing services to people facing housing crises.
• Knows the resources that are available to people who are experiencing crises, including homelessness. Can, in response to client scenarios, identify action steps and specific resources that they would recommend to the client.
• Able to demonstrate how they would apply resourcefulness and energy to support clients.
• Skilled in Motivational Interviewing and trauma-informed care; and committed to promoting hope, recovery, and wellness in individuals and communities.
• Respects clients, sees each client as an individual, and is skilled in establishing rapport and trust with people who have diverse life experiences.
• Able to use Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Teams, PowerPoint). Able to learn the software and computer applications that are integral to the Engagement Center program.
• Maintains the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct, including maintaining client confidentiality and treating others with respect.
• Willingness to accompany clients, when needed, to appointments; and accompany street outreach staff if it would help a client feel more comfortable using the Center.
• Willingness to adjust work schedule.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions, consistent with applicable law.

Salary and Benefits

Salary range: $50,000 - $55,000

Benefits:

• 18 days of Paid Time Off
• 5 Sick Days
• Health Insurance Coverage
• Dental Coverage
• Vision Coverage
• Life Insurance
• Short Term/Long Term Disability
• Employee Assistance Program
• Benefit Option Fund

Educational Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in a Human Services-related field of study

-OR-

Any equivalent combination of education and experience which meets the required knowledge, skills and abilities.

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations

Act 33, 34 and FBI clearances.

-AND-

Valid driver’s license and access to a reliable, insured vehicle, or other reliable form of transportation to locations around the county is required.