Senior Social Worker, Jazz Legacies Fellowship - Jazz Foundation of America

Qualifications: A Master’s Degree in Social Work, LMSW/LCSW preferred, or in the human services field, with a minimum of five (5) years of experience in geriatric care, behavioral health, community-based and/or intensive case management services.

Position Summary

The Senior Social Worker will provide direct services to the recipients of the Jazz Legacies Fellowship (JLF), a lifetime achievement award program for veteran jazz artists ages 62+.

This program allows jazz artists to approach the later stages of their career with a degree of financial security far too uncommon in the profession. It provides resources to address urgent expenses, medical issues, and estate planning. It provides a springboard for creative projects. In short, it provides an unprecedented opportunity for honorees to focus on their wellbeing and their art, as well as relief from the day-to-day burdens that so often become overwhelming.

Reporting to the Human Services Director, the Senior Social Worker will work as part of a four-person team that supports the JLF Program and its Fellows, which includes a Senior Artistic Advisor, and Program Assistant. The JLF Program team works closely with JFA’s Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, Director of Social Services, as well as program staff.

In most cases, JLF recipients experience their honor as a windfall. The Senior Social Worker will be in a unique position that JFA describes as “helping someone when something great happens to them.” They will be a critical resource for honorees as a guide into an unknown territory full of not only new choices and opportunities but also potential dangers and pitfalls. With the support of the Human Services Director, the Senior Social Worker will be a trusted counselor and advisor in the lives of JFL honorees.

The Senior Social Worker will conduct assessments to determine immediate and long-term needs for Jazz Legacies Fellows and then develop an assistance plan in keeping with JFA guidelines. As necessary, they will also work with the JFA Social Work team to provide vital assistance to members of the broader jazz and blues community by helping provide them with financial support to address critical needs, including housing, food, medical, dental, and disaster relief.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Manage a caseload of approximately 15-20 Jazz Legacies Fellows
• Conduct a thorough analysis of client’s circumstances to give informed judgments about fund disbursement
• Develop and administer a two-year care plan with respect to housing, healthcare, long-term planning and related needs for each Jazz Legacies Fellow
• Provide ongoing case management services for each Fellow, including regular calls/visits over their two-year Fellowship period
• Conduct home visits to clients both in NYC and nationally
• Research and connect clients to needed resources, including legal, financial, medical, and environmental support services
• Escort clients to necessary appointments required to achieve their individual goals
• Provide short-term counseling services to clients and/or their caregivers as necessary, as well as connect them to formal mental health supports when indicated
• Advocate for clients' rights and needs within various systems, such as medical, legal, public benefits, and housing systems
• Work with the Senior Artistic Advisor to establish honorees’ priorities for creative and archival projects
• Participate in events and attend performances honoring Jazz Legacies Fellows
• Engage in regular, daily communication with the JLF team and JFA Social Work team
• Maintain accurate and appropriate client records (including quantitative/qualitative data) and complete documentation in a timely manner that meets federal standards
• Collaborate with the Human Services Director on grant reporting and tracking/evaluating program outcomes using client records as the basis for gathering data
• As needed, work with additional clients in the broader JFA community through intake, assessment, and administering of assistance through the Musicians’ Emergency Fund (JMEF)

Skills and Experience

• A passion for helping people in need
• Experience working with older adults, including those with varying degrees of cognitive issues and health challenges
• Experience navigating public benefits and entitlement systems
• Experience working with individuals in times of crisis
• Experience with money management and supporting clients facing financial issues (e.g. credit card debt requiring consolidation)
• Experience working with artists, i.e. clients with nontraditional careers who often lack consistent income and/or retirement savings, etc.
• Some familiarity with the music industry
• The ability to engage in long-term relationship building with clients and their informal support systems
• The ability to maintain confidentiality and privacy
• The ability to interact with diverse communities drawing on emotional intelligence skills
• The ability to work collaboratively
• The ability to demonstrate interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence
• Strong written, verbal and strategic thinking skills
• Experience using client database to document daily contact and facilitate the disbursement of funding

Cover letter and resume should be emailed to Anne Foerg, Human Services Director, Jazz Legacies Fellowship, at anne@jazzfoundation.org

About the Jazz Foundation

For 36 years, the Jazz Foundation of America (JFA) has been keeping jazz, blues, and roots alive by helping the musicians who have played the soundtrack to our lives. With compassion and discretion, the Jazz Foundation makes it possible to pay someone's rent and keep them from eviction or homelessness when illness, accident, or old age prevents them from working. Our social work services and Musicians' Emergency Fund provide housing assistance, pro bono medical care, disaster relief, and financial support to musicians and their families in times of crisis. In the past year, the JFA provided assistance in more than 6,000 cases. Through our Jazz and Blues in the Schools and Gig Fund performance programs, we create purpose and dignified employment for hundreds of musicians every month and bring free concerts to thousands of underserved audience members at public schools, hospitals, nursing homes, museums, parks, libraries and community centers across the country. Whatever the need is, we don't just fix the problem, we heal it with love.

The Jazz Foundation of America has always demonstrated a strong culture of inclusion and respect for the people who give the world music. The Jazz Foundation of America does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, creed, sex national origin, ancestry, age, disability, physical orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression or any other personal expression protected by the law. We are an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate and prioritize having a diverse workforce that is representative of the population we serve.