Homework Club Is Hiring!

Homework Club is hiring a Youth Engagement Worker!
(Closing Date August 24, 2015)
Program Overview
The primary goal of Homework Club is to enhance the educational success of youth living in the Downtown Eastside, Strathcona and Grandview-Woodlands communities. It seeks to address barriers to success in high school by providing youth with social, academic, financial and advocacy supports. Homework Club is one element of the community-driven Our Place Graduation Strategy, a place-based approach to improving the educational success of children and youth living in the inner-city. The Strategy has brought together partners from the health, education, and social services sector, working collaboratively “to provide the necessary supports and services to children and families in order to ensure that the child will graduate from high school”. The Youth Engagement Project (YEP!) is entering its fourth year of advocacy and academic support of seriously at-risk students.
 Position Summary
The Youth Engagement Worker is responsible for providing 1-to-1 case management support to help youth succeed both academically and socially. This position involves outreach in homes, schools, and communities, as well as liaising with family members and school and community staff to support the educational needs of youth. In addition, youth engagement workers will facilitate after-school tutoring programming at Britannia Secondary and program monthly mentoring activities. The successful candidate will be dynamic, skilled and experienced connecting with diverse communities, including Aboriginal, newcomer and LGBTQ youth to ensure they feel safe, supported and connected. This position reports to the Executive Director of the Vancouver Homework Club Society.
 Responsibilities
1. Develop supportive and engaging relationships with youth

• Work with youth to identify goals, strengths, issues and students concerns, while supporting their participation in tutoring, mentoring, school and community activities

2. Monitor youth progress and participation

• Provide case-management support to youth participating in Youth Engagement Project (YEP!)
• Develop a plan in collaboration with student and appropriate adults (i.e. Parents, teachers & other school staff, community partners) to address needs/goals of individual youth
• Collect and monitor youth attendance in school as well as tutoring and mentoring with the goal of informing support strategies for youth

3. Maintain regular contact with families

• Facilitate and support parental involvement in the educational goals and plans for their child

4. Developing & maintaining tutoring programming

• Organize scheduling, space, routines, materials and data collection at tutoring site
• Maintain and develop relationships with community centre staff and other partners
• Develop diverse resources that address specific learning styles and needs

5. Support to volunteer tutors

• Facilitate volunteer training and ongoing supports such as communication and resources
• Develop, model and monitor the volunteer tutor’s role and tutoring techniques

 Required Qualifications

• A relevant post-secondary degree, or Child & Youth Care Diploma, plus 2 years of experience working with at-risk youth populations, or a combination of related education and work experience with youth

 Desired Qualifications

• Experience working with youth and families in the DTES, Strathcona & Grandview-Woodlands communities
• Experience providing case management support
• Knowledge and understanding of the factors affecting educational success for youth in this community
• Knowledge of and/or experience working with the public school system (grade 7 -12)
• Specific training and/or experience with youth with special needs or new language learners
• Experience working with volunteers, including training and developing resources
• Able to work collegially with other Youth Engagement Workers and program staff
• Knowledge of community and social service resources
• Additional languages an asset (Cantonese, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Arabic)

 Dimensions of Work

• Primary interface is with youth and volunteers in the YEP!
• Direct reporting relationship to Executive Director
• Coordination and sharing information with relevant program, school, and community staff

 Work Conditions

• Hours are based on a flexible schedule. Workers should be available to work evenings and potentially weekends, as there may be a need for earlier or later hours depending upon circumstances to offer support to youth at key times.  However, core hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday between 3pm – 7pm.
• Travel between multiple sites in the community

 Basic Requirements:

• Criminal Record Check including the vulnerable sector.
• Valid level 1 First Aid Certificate will be an asset.

Salary Range: $1,500 per month (approximately 15-20 hours per week)
Send Resume and Cover Letter to: Kim Leary, Vancouver Homework Club, kim@homework-club.org
Please reference “Homework Club – Youth Engagement Worker” in all correspondence.


We thank you for your interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.