<p>Work Location: 1051 Manatee Avenue West, Bradenton, Florida 34205</p> <p>Work Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 5:00pm</p> <p>Expected Starting Hourly Range: $17.36 - $21.70</p> <p>This is a highly independent, responsible position focused on achieving the GAL Program's primary mission: advocating for the best interests of children involved in the dependency court system. In this position, you may work directly with children, as a Staff Advocate, or work with children though assigned volunteers, as a Volunteer Supervisor, or by a combination of the two roles.</p> <p>Note: This position shall serve at the sole will and pleasure of the Guardian ad Litem Program Executive Director and may be terminated by the Executive Director or his or her managerial designee for any lawful reason including no reason.</p> <p>Working Conditions</p> <p>Indoor/outdoor situation. </p> <p>Essential Functions</p> <p>These are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work performed. The omission of specific duties does not exclude them from the position.</p> <p>This is Para-professional work in advocating for the best interests of abused, neglected and abandoned children involved in dependency proceedings.</p> <p>Responsibilities include requesting records from schools, doctors or social service organizations, inputting case related data into the GAL Tracker data base, following up on phone calls, tracking the status of referrals made by the Department of Children and Families or other contracted providers, updating and retrieving files for professional staff, functioning as a court liaison if applicable, and setting up meetings and conducting home visits.</p> <p>Regular contact is made with the child, caretakers, schools, teachers, doctors, attorneys, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, and a variety of other social service agencies and professionals to ascertain if the best interest of the child is being met.</p> <p>Discretion must be exercised in dealing with confidential and extremely sensitive issues.</p> <p>Performs other related duties as assigned, including participation in emergency or disaster response activities, as required and consistent with the employee's qualifications, essential job functions, and applicable federal and Florida law.</p> <p>Bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university with a major in sociology, social work, psychology, child development, or a related social science.</p> <p>Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:</p> <p>Knowledge of social services available to children.</p> <p>Knowledge of the operations of the Florida State Court System and the dependency system.</p> <p>Ability to manage case loads.</p> <p>Ability to maintain proper documentation on case activity.</p> <p>Ability to communicate effectively with people from culturally and economically diverse backgrounds, and people involved in emotionally distressing situations.</p> <p>Ability to maintain confidentiality concerning sensitive information.</p> <p>Ability to establish and maintain good working relationships with others.</p> <p>Ability to utilize and effectively operate a personal computer, including using software programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.</p>