Coordinator-Post Secondary Options & Career Resources

Join our team today! At Mercy Home for Boys & Girls, we are dedicated to empowering Youth, fostering hope, and creating brighter futures. Our mission is to be advocates, educators, coaches, and role models for the Youth we serve. We strongly believe that every young individual deserves a chance to thrive and reach their full potential.

As one of the Top 100 Places to Work in Chicago according to the Chicago Tribune for the past thirteen consecutive years, Mercy Home prides itself on prioritizing the growth and well-being of our team. We provide comprehensive training as well as ongoing professional development opportunities throughout your time here.

If you're passionate, driven, and dedicated to making the world a better place, then we want you on our team. The committed workers at Mercy Home provide healing, guidance, and opportunity to young men and women in need.

How You’ll Make an Impact:

You will focus on the educational and vocational goals of the youth and young adults in assigned program(s), and to represent the Agency at school, post-secondary development programs and employers; to support the educational and vocational development of youth and young adults, to support administrative procedures and processes for the program; to maintain the professional data and program materials.

In this Role, you will:

• Assess and implement Mercy Model programming with assigned youth and young adults. Including, but not limited to: Strengths Discovery, goal setting, problem solving, in-vivo mentoring and skills coaching.
• Coordinate with treatment team to identify roles in youth’s future planning, and include any other necessary key players (family, mentors, etc.) to support youth in vocational and educational planning while at Mercy Home and once they leave the agency.
• Develop, implement, manage and monitor all operational, administrative and programmatic processes and activities related to post-secondary education and vocational planning for youth and young adults in assigned program(s).
• Be responsible for the career and post-high school educational assessment of young adults and the case plan related to their individual needs for career and post-secondary planning, exploring these realms in the community as needed.
• Work collaboratively with Residential, Education and Career Resources, and Community Care staff, ensuring collaboration with advocate in relation to PSO/CR planning.
• Be responsible for the educational and vocational Admissions assessment and progress of young adults seeking placement in assigned homes.
• Maintain educational and vocational records for each assigned young adult, including use of BluePrint database for school records.
• Continually assess young adults’ educational and vocational records and to ensure that resources are available and/or being requested to meet young adults’ needs
• Collate and collaborate on information, data and statistics as it relates to QI and Education and Career Resources department
• Work directly with young adults in seeking on campus, part time, and full-time employment. Participate in the internship prep process and support on-campus employment as applicable and assigned.
• Be responsible for external job placement monitoring and serve as liaison with employers.
• Implement the Job Preparation Program and Financial Literacy with each young adult.
• Research, understand and communicate summer employment and internship opportunities for young adults.
• Coordinate driver’s education for assigned home.
• Plan, execute, and attend post-secondary and career program exposure visits.
• Attend weekly Program staff meetings to maintain clear and direct communication for young adults’ educational and vocational needs.
• Ensure direct communication with the Education and Career Resources team and Program staff for timely daily notification of a young adults’ availability for academic or vocational tutoring.
• Maintain confidentiality of young adults when working with tutors.
• Work two evenings a week to assist during evening programming including tutoring, job skills classes, job lab, or evening education and career workshops.
• Actively seek out, explore, and assess community resources in regard to PSO/CR opportunities for youth and young adults.
• Employ all aspects of de-escalation and behavior management techniques as outlined in CPI protocol.
• Learn, align with, and execute the treatment philosophies, modalities and practices of the Agency
• Actively engage in learning and integrating developmentally appropriate, attachment-informed, and trauma-responsive theory and practice consistent with the Mercy Model of Care Framework.

What we need from you:

At least 21 years of age.

• Bachelor’s degree required, ideally with a major in education, social work, business or related field.
• Keen understanding of, and passion for, the importance of post-high school education and workforce development opportunities, particularly for Mercy Home’s young adult population.
• Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills.
• Experience working with adolescents and young adults, including good relationship building and coaching skills
• Ability to conduct trainings with the young adults on relevant topics.
• Ability to seek and schedule guest speakers and special courses for young adults.
• Ability to research and network with educational or workforce development programs and connect with them in the community.
• Ability to work both independently and as an active member of an interdisciplinary treatment team.
• Is open and respectful of cultural and socioeconomic characteristics of clients and is willing and competent to work with a diverse client population.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel, as well as the ability to become proficient in other software packages and programs.
• Comfortable with record keeping, numbers and performing simple statistical analysis.
• A valid Illinois driver’s license, ability to drive a van, maintain a clear driving record, and retain driving approval through the Department of Children and Family Services.
• Ability to attend required Agency trainings and maintain necessary training compliance. Flexibility to attend daytime trainings or sessions outside of regularly scheduled hours.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Commitment to the mission, values, and goals of the Agency.
• Willingness and ability to work evenings as needed when young adults are in program.

Basic Information / Schedule Details

This job is a full-time position, Monday to Friday 8am to 4:30pm with two late nights ending at 7:30pm

Pay range is between $24.58 to $27.00 Hourly

Location: West Loop Campus- 1140 W. Jackson blvd Chicago, IL 60607

For information on benefits please follow this link- https://www.mercyhome.org/working-mercy-home

Why You Will Love Working Here:

At Mercy Home, our commitment to providing the best care for the Youth we serve extends to ensuring our team receives top-of-the-line training and professional development.

We are a Top Workplace as awarded by the Chicago Tribune.

Mercy Home for Boys & Girls is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to Inclusion and Diversity

• Visit us at www.mercyhome.org/jobs