Job Description

The Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) at the Westchester Institute for Human Development is expanding their Aftercare Program and in search of a Bilingual Victim Advocate. The CAC seeks to minimize further trauma to children and families by coordinating objective, state-of-the art forensic evaluations of alleged child victims in coordination with investigative and protective agencies.

The Westchester Institute for Human Development (WIHD) was recently named one of the Best Places to Work by 914Inc. WIHD’s mission is to create better futures for people with disabilities, for vulnerable children and for their families and caregivers. WIHD accomplishes its mission through professional education; innovative services and supports; community training and technical assistance; and research and information dissemination.

The Child Victim Advocate will assume a critically important role in welcoming and orienting families to the CAC. The advocate may provide crisis intervention, safety planning and ongoing telephone and in-person follow up support to non-offending family members, keeping them apprised of the status of referrals and/or the status of the investigation, as appropriate. They will be trained to provide valuable psycho-education to children and their non-offending caregivers about the impact of trauma on one’s functioning and can offer parents information about what they can expect from their child(ren) and themselves, in the days and weeks that follow a disclosure of abuse.

The Bilingual Child Victim Advocate will:

• Act as a liaison between the Children’s Advocacy Center and/or Child Abuse Pediatrics (CAP) practice and members of the multidisciplinary teams to ensure that children served by the CAC and patients served by CAP receive necessary supports and services in their own communities. Keep CAP providers apprised of any information that is relevant to medical diagnosis and treatment.
• Describe the multidisciplinary team process and the role of the CAC and explain the benefits available to crime victims through the New York State’s Office of Victim Services (OVS).
• Provide client-centered services to children and their families, including assistance with access to emergency food, clothing, transportation and orders of protection, as well as assistance in completing the OVS crime victim application, and providing information and support to families around the medical evaluation and referrals for mental health treatment.
• Collaborate and communicate with members of the multidisciplinary team to ensure that children and families are linked to the appropriate team member and responded to in an efficient and expeditious manner.

Qualifications:

• College degree in social work or other related field preferred OR at least two years’ experience working with children and families who have experienced abuse and trauma
• Ability to communicate orally and in writing in Spanish
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, listening and organizational skills
• Ability to stay calm in stressful situations and ability to work with a multidisciplinary team of professionals
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office

WIHD is deeply committed to inclusivity and diversity in the workplace. We welcome and encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds. We offer flexible work schedules for many positions providing a setting with a desirable work-life balance. Our benefit package is generous and provides options to meet the needs of each employee.

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