Child Welfare Caseworker, Grade 23

About the Position Please note: The salary range above represents the earning potential for this position. The anticipated hiring range for this position will be $78,929 - $109,175 based on the candidate’s qualifications and experience.

WHO WE ARE

Montgomery County is located adjacent to Washington, D.C., and with over one million residents, is the most populous County in the State of Maryland. The County is also the most diverse County in the State and ranks among the top ten most diverse Counties in the nation. Montgomery County contains many major U.S. government offices, scientific research and learning centers, and business campuses. The Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for delivery of the County’s public health and human services that meets the needs of our community’s most vulnerable children, adults and seniors. The Department provides services through more than 120 programs at more than 20 locations. With over 2,000 employees, the Department of Health and Human Services is the largest County Department. As a department, we believe the health and wellness of the county can only be achieved by ensuring that every resident has fair opportunities to reach their fullest potential. This means access to quality housing, transportation, education, employment, health care, human services, safe neighborhoods, and healthy food. HHS provides critical services for residents who face a variety of obstacles in achieving their full potential. HHS plays an essential role in building a healthy and strong community.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

Child Welfare Services (CWS) is committed to the safety, well-being, and permanency of children in Montgomery County. The agency works in collaboration with families and community partners to build, strengthen, and support stable family life. Child Welfare Services is currently recruiting for an enthusiastic, caring, knowledgeable, and experienced individual to provide clinical case management services to children and families served by the agency. What You'll Be Doing This position provides services to Child Welfare Services clients. The primary case workload will consist of one of the following:

• Family Preservation/In-Home Services
• Foster Care/Kinship/Adoption
• Resource/Foster Homes

Other caseload assignments may include screening abuse/neglect reports; completing home studies for and/or supporting foster/adoptive families; and/or handling other specialized projects and responsibilities.

Duties of this position will include, but are not limited to:

• Conducting home, school, and community visits with children and families
• Writing Reports and case plans/service agreements
• Implementing and monitoring service agreements
• Supervising parent-child visits
• Collaborating with professional and community resources such as hospitals, schools, and other providers
• Preparing court reports and testifying; and,
• Maintaining files and statistics, electronically and manually, as required

Work Schedule: Although the normal hours of operation for CWS are from 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., staff providing direct services to children/families may be required/expected to work earlier or later (for example, home visits, an emergency removal, extended court hearings, etc.)

This position requires a valid driver’s license at all times as the employee will travel throughout the county to perform job duties, transport and supervise parent–child visits.

The selected candidate for this position will be subject to a pre-employment medical exam, drug screening, and criminal history records checked through the Maryland State Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. Candidates will also be checked through the Maryland Registry for Child Abuse and Neglect and federal and state sex offender registries. Any applicant who fails the medical exam, background check, or whose name appears on either of the registries may be disqualified from employment for this position.Minimum Qualifications Experience: One (1) year of professional experience in casework management which included short-term counseling of individuals in the areas of family relationships and personal adjustments/development. Education: Graduation from an accredited college or university with a master’s degree in counseling, Psychology, Social Work, or a related field. Equivalency: An equivalent combination of education and experience may be substituted. License: Following appointment, successful completion of Maryland State mandated pre-service training and competency testing will be required for continuation in this class. Driver’s License: Possession and maintenance at all times a valid driver's license from the candidate’s state of residence. Preferred Criteria, Interview Preferences Preference for interview will be given you qualified candidates with experience in the following areas:

• Experience and knowledge in client case management.
• Experience working with children and family systems.
• Experience working with culturally diverse populations.
• Experience in, and knowledge of, community resources and services for children and families.

Relevant experience in these areas must be included in your resume.

Benefits

Leave Benefits

Our generous leave package starts with non-MLS permanent and term employees earning 15 days of sick leave and 15 days of annual leave in their first year, as well as up to three additional personal days each calendar year. Positions in MLS earn 35 days of paid time off each year. In addition, we offer all employees 10 paid holidays. Our leave policies adhere to the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993, and we provide six weeks of paid parental leave for new parents.

Retirement Benefits

All permanent and term positions are eligible for robust retirement plans. Public safety positions are eligible for a defined benefit pension plan in which they are vested after only five years. Employees in non-public safety positions can participate in retirement plans that contribute up to 12 percent of their annual salary. All employees can also participate in a supplemental retirement plan, the 457 Deferred Compensation Plan, to contribute even more to their retirement goals.

Tuition Assistance & Student Loan Forgiveness

Montgomery County employees are eligible to participate in the Federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. Participants who meet all requirements may qualify for forgiveness on the remaining balance on their Direct Loans after making 120 qualifying monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan while working full-time in a qualifying public service position. To learn more about PSLF, please visit the Student Loan Repayment Benefits page. Our tuition assistance program allows you to receive up to $2,130 annually in tuition assistance to help you achieve a degree that supports your career path.

Free Mass Transit Benefit

County employees are entitled to use the RideOn Bus service for free with a valid County-employee ID. This benefit can be used any time of the day or evening, including weekends. We also offer a pre-tax flexible spending account to reduce the cost of other mass-transit options such as MARC trains and Metro.

Reduced Child and Health Care Costs

Working for Montgomery County also entitles permanent and term employees to participate in healthcare and childcare Flexible Spending Accounts. These plans allow eligible employees to save on a pretax basis for healthcare and dependent care costs incurred during the plan year.

Employee Wellbeing

We deeply care about your holistic wellness. Our award-winning wellness program, LiveWell, will support you in improving and maintaining your physical, mental, financial, social, and intellectual well-being.

Learn more about our wonderful benefits available to you once you join our team. Montgomery County Benefits

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The Office of Human Resources (OHR) reviews the minimum qualifications of all applicants, irrespective of whether the candidate has previously been found to have met the minimum requirements for the job or been temporarily promoted to the same position. This evaluation is based solely on the information contained in the application/resume submitted for this specific position.

Montgomery County Government(MCG) is an equal opportunity employer, committed to workforce diversity. Accordingly, as it relates to employment opportunities, the County will provide reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, in accordance with the law. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should email OHR at Hiring@montgomerycountymd.gov. Individual determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made in accordance with all applicable laws.

MCG also provides hiring preference to certain categories of veterans and veterans/persons with a disability. For more information and to claim employment preference, refer to the Careers webpage on Hiring Preference.

All applicants will respond to a series of questions related to their education, relevant experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities required to minimally perform the job. The applicant's responses in conjunction with their resume and all other information provided in the employment application process will be evaluated to determine the minimum qualifications and preferred criteria or interview preference status. Based on the results, the highest qualified applicants will be placed on an Eligible List and may be considered for an interview. Employees meeting minimum qualifications who are the same grade will be placed on the Eligible List as a "Lateral Transfer" candidate and may be considered for an interview.

This will establish an Eligible List that may be used to fill both current and future vacancies.

If selected for consideration for this position, you may be required to provide evidence that you possess the knowledge, skills, and abilities indicated on your resume.

Montgomery County Ethics Law: Except as provided by law or regulation, the County's "Public Employees" (which does not include employees of the Sheriff's office) are subject to the County's ethics law including the requirements to obtain advanced approval of any outside employment and the prohibitions on certain outside employment. The outside employment requirements of the ethics law can be found at 19A-12 of the County Code. Additional information about outside employment can be obtained from the Ethics Commission website.