Job Description

Center for Urban Transformation Overview:

Houston’s Fifth Ward is a culturally rich, historically black, and rapidly changing community. Today’s Fifth Ward is over half latinx, has one of the highest densities of churches of any Houston neighborhood, and is gentrifying due to proximity to downtown and large development projects. Fifth Ward is also home to trailblazers such as the now-deceased Congressman Mickey Leland and Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, and cultural icons the Cotton Club, Deluxe Theater, and Rap-a-Lot records. The Center for Urban Transformation (CUT) was launched to close gaps in services in the neighborhood to support the community thriving, given its currently high poverty and crime rates, and low rates of high school and college graduation and other indicators of economic success and health. CUT was launched by a collaboration between Legacy Community Health (an FQHC clinic), Houston Habitat for Humanity, Pleasant Hill Ministries (a 93-year-old church), the Fifth Ward Community Redevelopment Corporation, and the Berg & Androphy law firm.

Diversion & Empathy Initiatives

A collaboration between CUT, Fifth Ward schools, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, the Harris County Department of Juvenile Probation, and other stakeholders, CUT houses a diversion and preventative program aiming to break the school-to-prison pipeline and build a culture of compassion. Fifth Ward youth who are arrested, or at risk of involvement with the justice system, can be referred to the Center for one-on-one optional case management, instead of having charges filed against them for certain alleged crimes. Program participants meet with Youth Specialists (case managers) regularly to identify and meet goals, talk through emotionally-charged situations, and connect with resources they and their families may need such as for housing, mental health, or food. Youth Specialists serve the family as well as the individual youth client. Most youth clients are between ages 12 and 24 years old. In addition, CUT houses an afterschool program, summer camp, and other programming designed to build emotional literacy and restorative circles/restorative justice practices. Youth Specialists also participate in, and support the implementation of, these preventative initiatives.

Job Summary:

Provide navigation, goal-setting, and emotional support, creating empathetic relationships to improve the quality of life of youth and their families, both one-on-one and in group settings.

Responsibilities include:

• Support youth in setting goals for themselves, and in identifying and enacting achievable steps to realize those goals

• Connect youth and their families to services and resources they identify that they need, such as for food, housing, hygiene & clothing supplies, academic supports (e.g. tutoring), transportation (e.g. bus passes), mental health and physical health

• Provide empathic listening support to students in emotional processing and thinking through difficult situations, and in choosing how to respond to such situations

• While maintaining confidentiality and consent from youth, seek to understand and support youth through conversations with their parents or other guardians, teachers and other school personnel, and others in the youth’s life; as requested by youth, serve as liaison between youth within families, homes, schools, family services, courts, protective services, clinicians, and other supports.

• Follow up with youth within families to support them and navigate with them in completing activities in their service plans.

• Support youth in participating in restorative circles to address or pre-empt pain or harm as appropriate

• Support CUT’s preventative initiatives, for example providing adult presence, mentorship, and logistical support approximately one day per week at CUT’s afterschool program; this may last into the evening. This is an important space in which to connect with current and future clients in a relaxed drop-in atmosphere. Schedule is flexible to accommodate for these hours.

• Maintain weekly (electronic) case files, data, and prepare reports.

• Participate in team and organizational development activities on a regular basis.

Required Competencies:

• Self-Awareness: Emotional literacy and ability to identify and express one’s feelings or requests even during emotional intensity. Knowledge of when self-connection or mindfulness practices are necessary for clarity and/or shift perspective to respond professionally and empathetically.

• Compassionate Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, reflect what is heard, and ask questions to clarify underlying issues (e.g., MI).

• Consent: in relationships with clients, colleagues, and all partners, seeks a collaborative, choice-based relationship where all parties are comfortable with an action before taking action, instead of using “power over” or any kind of emotional or strategic pressure to realize one’s own preferences

• Organizational skills: assesses multiple competing needs and tasks with limited resources and time, and effectively manages implementation according to priorities seeks guidance and assistance when needed.

• Adaptability: adapts to change in the work environment, manages competing demands, invite input from others, changes approach or method to best fit the situation, adjusts to changes in demands and team interactions.

• Client service: promotes client focus as a priority, responds promptly to client (internal and external) needs.

• Systems Understanding & Anti-implicit Bias: ability to identify attitudes or stereotypes that are activated unconsciously and involuntarily & systems at play in individual lives and in the life of the community, e.g. on race, class, gender, sexuality, school-to-prison pipeline, age, ability, body type, etc.

Desired Values & skills

• Fifth Ward networks: Knowledge of Fifth Ward families, institutions, and history.

• Restorative Circles/Mediation/Mindfulness: proficiency with facilitating or training mediation circles and/or other individual or group processes that help restore relationships, identify steps toward healing, and transform conflict.
• Spanish language proficiency desired but not required.

Employment Requirements:

• Any combination of training and experience that provides required knowledge, skills, and abilities

• Valid Driver’s License – if not in Texas, driver will be required to obtain Texas license upon employment.

• Smart phone

• Capacity to lift 25 lbs.

• Capacity to perform frontline work in different settings (schools, public spaces, office, outdoors in varied weather, communities affected by economic destruction, etc.)

Please note, this is a one-year grant-funded position, and the salary is not negotiable, for that reason. Benefits include professional development, flexible schedule to some extent, medical insurance, 403b, PTO

Salary: $50,000

How to Apply

Job Categories: Equal Opportunities. Job Types: Full-Time. Job Tags: social services. Salaries: 40,000 - 60,000.

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