About Casa Esperanza

Casa Esperanza, Inc. is a bilingual/bicultural behavioral health treatment provider serving Boston and the Merrimack Valley. Our mission is to empower individuals and families to recover from addiction, trauma, mental illness, and other chronic medical conditions; overcome homelessness and discrimination; and achieve health and wellness through comprehensive, integrated care. Casa Esperanza has an operating budget of $15 million and more than $11 million in assets.

About the role

Job Summary Statement: Casa Esperanza is currently seeking an enthusiastic and detail-oriented individual who is passionate about public health and understands the impact social determinants of health have on a person’s ability to recover.   The Program Manager will oversee the development, and implementation of Casa’s new PALS: Promotores Amplificando La Sabidura initiative focused on reducing rates of drug overdose deaths and suicide in a social and community context.  PALS is an innovative Promotores Model collaborative that incorporates culturally appropriate and linguistically accessible Community Health Workers into a trauma-informed continuum of care to build the capacity of Latines to address health quality problems in their communities.

At the center of this model are the Promotores de Salud/Community Health Workers, who address health equity and access to health for Latines struggling with mental health and substance misuse using strategies that combine innovative outreach service delivery models and community engagement. Outreach strategies and action plans are oriented towards the completion of pre-established objectives and involve many cross-sectoral collaborations with internal organizational partners and external partners in the community.

The PALS Program Manager is responsible for developing and implementing a community engagement and outreach plan that includes street outreach, culturally and linguistically appropriate workshops for community members, and developing collaborative working relationships with community partners, agencies and stakeholders. They will also work closely with the Research & Evaluation Department to ensure that benchmarks, timelines, goals and objectives are being met and reported as required.

The ideal candidate will be a member or have a close understanding of the Latine community in Boston, have a desire to help improve the health and well-being of our community, possess a passion for helping others; ability to take initiative; display sympathy, respect, understanding of community values and members; have experience with navigating community resources; be an effective communicator with strong public speaking and relationship building skills; can work in an outdoor setting as part of a field-based team (including tabling); and demonstrates problem-solving skills and a collaborative approach to teamwork.

The Promotores program functions out of the Department of Recovery Support Services and will include a team of two Community Health Workers, a Peer Recovery Coach, and per diem Peer that work a varying work schedule with an average of 4-10 hours per week. The team will draw on their own lived experience to learn about community needs, promote preventative health services, and reduce overdose rates within the Latine community.

What you'll do

Essential Functions and Responsibilities:

Project Planning & Service Delivery:

·       Play a lead role in developing an outreach campaign to engage family members and community leaders

·       Collaborate with other RSS Leaders to develop annual outreach plan that includes map, schedule, and staffing.

·       Support transition of Consume Advisory Board to a Community Advisory Board that includes family members, trusted community messengers, and current and past consumers.

·       Identify peer leaders and community leaders who would benefit from Promotores training

·       Provide training about the origins and development of the Promotores/Community Health Workers model

·       Engage external and internal service providers to better meet clients’ needs

·       Ensure supported referrals to behavioral health, primary care, peer support, medication management, and vocational/educational opportunities are completed and follow-ups are documented

·       Develop and deliver educational presentations to Latino-serving organizations and community groups regarding signs of substance abuse and mental illness; recovery resources; medical consequences of addictions and medically assisted treatments; and available family support resources

Staff Management

·       Ensure scheduling of staff is appropriate and within program needs/ compliance

·       Develop, coach and mentor a team that will support direct service staff across the programs and in community

·       Ensures all staff receive regular supervision, training, and regular performance evaluations

·       Work collaboratively with the HR department on all staff management needs

·       Enforce a trauma informed, person centered approach to patient care is upheld.

·       Ensures staff maintains client and program records in accordance with agency, regulatory, and funder requirements and timelines

Administrative/Data Management

·       Collaborate with Clinical Leadership Team to ensure all project components and evidence-based practices are delivered to the target population and addresses barriers to implementation.

·       Collaborate with Department of Research and Evaluation to ensure data collection and entry are completed.

·       Collaborate with Marketing/Comms department to ensure staff have collateral and engagement materials needed for effective outreach

·       Works with the Evolv team to manage documentation needs

·       Meets all grant reporting and compliance obligations

·       Ability to travel locally as needed.

·       Other duties and special projects as assigned

Qualifications

Experience, Knowledge and Skills necessary for the position:

·       Degree in Social Work, Public Health, Community Development, Mental Health Counseling, or related field and/or equivalent life experience required.

·       Must have at least 3 years demonstrated health care system experience preferably in a community-based health care setting.

·       Certification in Community Health Work required, or willing to obtain upon hire. 

·       One year experience providing community service, outreach and/or health education

·       Experience in cultural mediation between individuals, communities and social and health services systems.

·       Experience working with individuals with substance use disorders, homelessness, justice-involved and trauma preferred. 

·       Experience in coaching, supervising and development of work teams

·       Experience using electronic health record, Netsmart MyEvolv preferred.

·       Experience with project management software, Asana preferred.

·       Demonstrated commitment to social justice, health equity and community empowerment.

·       Knowledge of and/or is part of community served

·       Self-directed with the ability to work both independently and as part of a team and interested in using data to help direct care

·       CPR, First Aid, and Narcan certification

·       Experience with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Publisher

·       Strong attention to detail, tact, and understanding of complex systems and relationships

·       Bilingual Spanish/English required

·       Ability to meet the physical and training requirements of the position

Supervisory Responsibilities: two Community Health Workers, a Peer Recovery Coach, and per diem Peer that work a varying work schedule with an average of 4-10 hours per week

Schedule FT 40 Hours

Monday to Friday Availability from 8am to 8pm

Some Weekends per need

What we offer:

Casa Esperanza Benefits Package:

• Compensation:  $ 60K to $62K Annual Salary
• Holiday Pay (12 days per year + 1 floating holiday)
• Paid Time Off (PTO) - 18 days year one, 20.5 days at year 2, 23 days at year 5
• Sick Pay - 10 paid days per year
• Long / Short Term Disability 
• Paid by Company Life Insurance
• Health Insurance (Medical Dental, Vison)
• Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA)
• FSA/DCA (Flexible Spending Account & Dependent Care)
• ComPsych Guidance Resources - EAP
• Educational Opportunities
• Tuition Remission
• Employee Ticket at Work (Discounts for Entertainment, travel, movies; etc.)
• Career Advancement Opportunities
• Increased Salary for Credentials
• and more....

Physical & Mental Requirements

While performing the duties of this job the employee is regularly required to walk, stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl and talk or hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include distance vision, peripheral vision, and depth perception.

At Casa Esperanza, Inc., the health and safety of our people is our number one priority. That’s why all offers of employment are contingent on the candidate showing proof of being fully vaccinated against COVID 19 (currently one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine or two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine and boosted, when eligible) to pass the pre-employment requirements. Individuals with medical issues or religious beliefs that prevent them from getting the vaccine may request an exemption from the vaccine requirement.

Casa Esperanza’s EEO Statement

Casa Esperanza, Inc. values its diverse workplace and encourages women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with disabilities, members of ethnic minorities, foreign-born residents, older members of society, and others from minority groups and diverse backgrounds to apply.

We recruit, hire, employ, train, promote, and compensate individuals based on job-related qualifications and abilities. Casa Esperanza, Inc also has a longstanding policy of providing a work environment that respects the dignity and worth of each individual and is free from all forms of employment discrimination, including harassment, because of race, color, sex, gender, age, religion or religious creed, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.  All employees, interns, volunteers and contractors of Casa Esperanza, Inc. are responsible for maintaining a work culture free from discrimination and harassment by treating others with kindness and respect.

Casa Esperanza, Inc. also provides reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities or based on a sincerely held religious belief, in accordance with applicable laws. If you need to inquire about an accommodation, or need assistance with completing the application process, please email hr@casaesperanza.org.