United Way of Central Iowa (UWCI) believes one of the clearest paths to economic self-sufficiency is education and training. Job training and readiness programs remain critical to advancing low-wage, low-skilled workers into self-sustaining jobs. UWCI and its community partners work to strengthen central Iowans' education and skills to prepare them for the better-paying jobs in the local economy.
To help fulfill our mission to improve lives by uniting the care power of our community, UWCI has been awarded a federal grant to implement a program that ensures individuals leaving incarceration have the skills necessary to secure long-term employment. The Central Iowa Returning Citizens Achieve (CIRCA) Program goal is that 75% of the individuals served will secure employment and less than 20% will return to prison. To reach this goal, UWCI is seeking two case managers for the program over a three year period. Additionally, we are seeking a case manager for Central Iowa HealthWorks, also a federally funded program to assist and support participants with employment and a career pathway in the health care industry ranging from laboratory technicians to home health aides, nurses and medical assistants. All of these positions are time-limited for three-years and based on grant funding.
- Initiates and maintains strong relationships with all partners, employers, and community organizations.
- Meets regularly with each client on their assigned caseload and provides support and counseling throughout the participant’s job process
- In collaboration with the Program Manager, will recruit and enroll participants in the program.
- Develop a case management plan for each participant which outlines goals, objectives, and strategies to achieve goals with timelines and delineation of responsibilities for each element of the plan
- Complete a career interest inventory and the following assessments on each participant on caseload: academic, risk, barriers, and needs.
- Provide comprehensive employment preparation services to participants including career pathway navigation, job placement and retention services, resume development, interview preparation, and barrier mitigation.
- Help participants to assume responsibility for directing their own service plan, becoming their own advocates and making informed decisions that will facilitate a successful return to work and the community
- Arranges for interviews and provides labor market and community resource information for each participant.
- Participate in community education efforts related to the program.
- Ensures accurate recordkeeping including participant demographics, case files, referrals, outcomes, etc. Participant confidentiality is maintained throughout the process.
- Monitors participant performance on the job and counsels participants when job performance is not satisfactory
- Maintains contact with employers during the participants' employment and reports results to appropriate staff;
- Prepares forms and reports related to training and placement activities; tracks participant activity and progress data
- Meets regularly with training and education instructors to proactively address participant issues during training
- Experience in case management and direct service delivery related to employment counseling, ability to work with diverse populations facing multiple barriers, excellent verbal communication and writing skills with the ability to format resumes and cover letters, mastery of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Internet applications, experience interacting with a variety of community members and entities including business professionals, public agencies, education and training organizations and employers. One to three years’ experience with job placement is required with a bachelor’s degree in human services, business or related field desired; experience in lieu of some education will be considered.
- The CIRCA case managers will also need to have experience in working with incarcerated individuals, the ability to travel to correctional facilities in Newton and Mitchellville, Iowa and an understanding of money management skills.
- The Central Iowa HealthWorks case manager will also need to have knowledge of and experience in the health care industry.
- The successful candidates will demonstrate and role model UWCI’s Core Values of Compassion, Integrity, Community Engagement, Responsiveness and Striving for Excellence and be passionate about our aspiration to “Engage Community to Empower All.” Individuals with diverse backgrounds and experiences, including those with records, are encouraged to apply.
Salary: $41,000 to $50,000 per year