Clinical Intake Specialist, Supervised Release Program - Courtinnovation : Job Details

The Center for Justice Innovation is a community justice organization that centers safety and racial justice. Since our founding in 1996, the Center has partnered with community members, courts, and the people most impacted to create stronger, healthier, more just communities. Our decades of experience in courts and communities, coupled with our field-leading research and practitioner expertise, help us drive justice nationwide in innovative, powerful, and durable ways. For more information on how and where we work, please visit www.innovatingjustice.org.

The Center is a 900-employee, $100 million nonprofit that accomplishes its vision through three pillars of work: creating and scaling operating programs to test new ideas and solve problems, performing original research to determine what works (and what doesn't), and providing expert assistance and policy guidance to justice reformers around the world.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Brooklyn Justice Initiatives (BJI), the largest operating project of the Center, seeks to re-engineer the experience of criminal court in Brooklyn, New York, by providing judges and attorneys meaningful alternatives to bail, fines, and jail sentences. Operating out of Kings County Criminal Court and community-based offices, BJI is a team of social service providers, court-based resource coordinators, mental health practitioners, compliance specialists, and others who seek to improve the quality of justice. Supervised Release offers an alternative to jail by providing pretrial supervision, case management, and voluntary social services to people charged with misdemeanor and felony offenses, and in doing so, uses an arrest as a window of opportunity to change the direction of a participant's life, avoiding the harmful effects of incarceration.

BJI seeks Clinical Intake Specialists for the borough's Supervised Release Program (SRP). Reporting to the Clinical Intake Coordinator, Clinical Intake Specialists will leverage social work or mental health training and direct practice experience to facilitate participants' successful transition into SRP. Clinical Intake Specialists will conduct a comprehensive needs assessment; connect participants with an appropriate case manager; generate mandatory programming recommendations, and refer candidates to services with community-based service providers. Additionally, this position will provide de-escalation and emergency intervention within the courthouse, as needed.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Complete intake and comprehensive assessment for all participants mandated to SRP in Brooklyn;
  • Assess for needs presented through participants' use of direct communication, tone and tenor, the content of self-disclosure, body language, and paraverbal communication;
  • Treat all participants with dignity and respect;
• Provide voluntary service referrals as indicated by participant needs and goals;
• Work with the Clinical Intake Coordinator to generate and submit mandatory programming recommendations to court;
• Monitor participants' compliance with supervision requirements;
  • Conduct outreach to participants, their collateral contacts, and defense attorneys to maximize compliance with supervision requirements;
• Maintain accurate and timely data entry and case documentation aligned with the program model, court reporting obligations, and best practices;
• Submit accurate and timely reports to court within designated time frames, including compliance, noncompliance, re-arrest, and mandatory programming court notifications;
• Provide de-escalation in response to incidents occurring in courthouse and intake;
• Participate in individual, group supervision, and regular staff trainings to develop program expertise and related skill sets;
• Attend project events, community events, and meetings after hours, as needed; and
• Additional relevant tasks, as necessary.

Qualifications:

• A Master's degree in a mental health field or Social Work and 2 years direct practice (e.g. therapeutic or case management) experience required; license is strongly preferred;
• Experience in pretrial, court-based, or criminal legal system strongly preferred;
• Must be detail-oriented with strong organizational and time management skills;
• Experience working within a specialized branch of service provision like substance use treatment, mental health services, co-occurring disorders, or adolescent development preferred;
• Therapeutic intervention training and experience preferred, including but not limited to crisis intervention or de-escalation management;
• Experience using trauma-informed and strength-based approaches strongly preferred;
• Comprehensive knowledge and experience with local social service providers preferred;
• Must be able to work effectively independently and as part of a highly interdependent, multi-disciplinary team within a fast-paced and dynamic work environment;
• Professional demeanor and ability to work collaboratively and effectively with a variety of program stakeholders, including judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, court staff, and site partner agencies; and
• Bilingual (English-Spanish) strongly preferred.

Position Type: Full-time in-person work required; weekend and evening hours required, as needed.

Position Location: Brooklyn, NY.

Compensation: The compensation range for this position is $58,500 - $73,500. The Center for Justice Innovation offers an excellent benefits package including comprehensive healthcare with a national network, free basic dental coverage, vision insurance, short-term and long-term disability, life insurance, and flexible spending accounts including commuter FSA.

The Center for Justice Innovation is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, national origin, age, military service eligibility, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or any other category protected by law. We strongly encourage and welcome applications from women, people of color, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and individuals with prior contact with the criminal justice system. Our goal is to create a supportive and respectful environment where everyone, regardless of background or identity, feels valued and included.

Candidates are expected to provide accurate and truthful information throughout the hiring process. Any misrepresentation, falsification, or omission of material facts may result in disqualification from consideration, withdrawal of an offer, or termination of employment, regardless of when discovered.