Refugee Remote Services Specialist

Refugee Remote Services Specialist

Inspiritus is designated by the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to administer the Alabama state refugee resettlement program and serve as the State Refugee Coordinator (SRC) office, also known as the Alabama Office for Refugees (AOR). This office is responsible for overseeing the design, implementation, and coordination of refugee services in the state, and includes the responsibility of the administration of the Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA) program. The Refugee Remote Services Specialist will be responsible for assisting in the administration of the Refugee Cash Assistance program in Alabama and providing support services for clients outside of a subgranted agency’s service area.

Initial responsibilities with a client include determining RCA eligibility and issuing benefit payments. The Refugee Remote Services Specialist also accompanies clients on their journey to self-sufficiency both while they are enrolled in the RCA program and for up to 5 years by providing remote support to assist clients with job readiness and placement. This includes helping clients improve financial literacy and accessing English learning resources. In addition, this position will provide instruction and assistance in accessing federal/state/local-funded programs (i.e., Food Stamps, Medicaid, WIC, energy assistance, low-income housing, child-care assistance, etc.) and community resources. The Refugee Remote Services Specialist will also cultivate relationships with employers and community stakeholders.

Position Details:

• Full Time position
• Department – Alabama Office for Refugees
• Located in Birmingham, AL
• Reports to the Refugee Cash Assistance Manager
• Mostly Virtual/Remote with some on-site required, Travel (0 – 25%)
• Monday through Friday; 8:30AM – 5:00PM
• Compensation $18.27 - $20.19 an hour
• Full range of benefits, including health care, vision, dental, voluntary life insurance, voluntary short term and long-term disability, sick leave, flexible paid time off, 403(B) with 3% match for eligible employees after 1 year of service, and vesting for employees after 1000 hours of employment.

Responsibilities:

• Assist in administering Refugee Cash Assistance benefits monthly to eligible clients.
• Connect with clients monthly to ensure continued eligibility for Refugee Cash Assistance and compliance with program requirements.
• Document services provided to clients and ensure accuracy of client details, documents, program participation, and case notes within client management database, Apricot.
• Create and update outreach materials, maps of community resources, and stakeholder contact lists.
• Coach clients, develop trainings, and provide instructional opportunities to support their path to self-sufficiency.
• Assess clients’ education, marketable job skills, career goals, and individual barriers to employment.
• Provide individualized goal setting, financial counseling sessions, and develop individual action plans with each client.
• Assist clients with applying for an EAD, creating a resume, online job searches, employment applications, preparing for interviews, and developing skills for long term employment. 
• Help troubleshoot client transportation needs to and from job interviews, training, and day-to-day employment. 
• Interpret for clients or arrange for interpretation.
• Engage in relationship-building with employers, nonprofits, recruiters, and community stakeholders. 
• Conform with and abide by all regulations, policies, work procedures and instructions. 
• Maintain personal and professional boundaries in the performance of the job.  
• Forge mutually respectful partnerships with clients, employers, funded partner agencies, co-workers, and volunteers.  
• Participate in training, professional development, fundraising events and other Inspiritus activities and initiatives. 
• Perform other miscellaneous responsibilities and duties as assigned such as providing back-up services for other Employment staff and for other Refugee Services staff as appropriate. 

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or international equivalent in human services, public health, social work, or other applicable field and minimum of two years of relevant work experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Ability to navigate and regularly use Microsoft Office products such as Teams, Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, and SharePoint.
• Experience with a case management database such as Apricot, CaseWorthy, Salesforce, or equivalent preferred.
• Ability to create and edit PDF’s using Adobe Acrobat.
• Familiarity with major Alabama employers, educational and financial institutions, community resources, public transportation, and federal/state/local-funded programs preferred.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Excellent organization, attention to detail, time management, and critical thinking skills.
• Conviction about the capacity of people to grow and change. 
• Must have the ability to communicate with all people in a culturally competent manner. 
• Must be sensitive to the service population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics.
• Previous experience collaborating with refugees or other vulnerable populations preferred.
• Ability to read, write, and speak a relevant foreign language preferred.

The Refugee Remote Services Specialist role detailed in this description is not a comprehensive list of all duties that may be requested for the successful completion of this role and may garner some circumstantial duties deemed critical to meeting performance goals.

Physical Demands:

Regularly required to talk and hear. Required to stand, walk, sit, use hand to finger, handle or feel objects, tools and controls: and reach with hands and arms. Required to operate personal vehicle.

Employees frequently lift and or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and ability to adjust focus.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Inspiritus is dedicated to providing equal opportunities and equal access to all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, national origin, genetic information, age, physical or mental disability, service in the uniformed services, genetic information, or any other category protected by applicable law. Inspiritus does not discriminate in employment on the basis of any factor stated above or prohibited under applicable law. Inspiritus complies with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, the Vietnam Era Veteran's Readjustment Assistance Act, and applicable executive orders, federal and state regulations regarding nondiscrimination, equal opportunity and affirmative action. Inquiries regarding this policy should be directed to the Inspiritus Department of Human Resources, 731 Peachtree St NE, Suite B Atlanta, GA 30308.