About Treehouse:

At Treehouse, we envision a world where every child who has experienced foster care has the opportunities and support they need to pursue their dreams and launch successfully into adulthood. And our team of staff who embody and deliver the heart and care of our work is our secret sauce.

Treehouse seeks to hire passionate individuals who understand the power of young people, celebrate diverse voices and challenge themselves to do better for youth in foster care. We are committed to providing opportunities for staff to learn, grow and stay with the organization during an exciting time as we expand our services and reach statewide.

Benefit Summary:

Treehouse values work-life balance and prioritizes the health and well-being of our staff. Benefits include medical, dental, vision and life insurance plans with 100% employer-paid premiums; a retirement plan with 3% employer match; and paid leave that includes 9 holidays, generous PTO and two weeks of staff appreciation days off.

• Generous PTO of 4 weeks
• Healthcare Benefit plan options include 100% covered preventive care
• 2 Weeks off (separate from PTO) for Staff Appreciation Weeks
• 403B Retirement Plan Matching
• The company covers 100% of payroll taxes for state family medical leave
• Free convenient parking
• Dog Friendly Office Space

Summary:

The Education Advocate provides academic advocacy services for students in foster care, focusing primarily on school enrollment, academic support, and discipline. This position works directly with caregivers, school staff, and social workers and is responsible for building and maintaining strong relationships with community partners. In addition, the Advocate facilitates trainings and provides coaching to build capacity and knowledge around education law, advocacy skills, and foster care.

Essential Functions:

Manage an assigned caseload of youth, using established case procedures.

• Improve educational outcomes for youth in foster care by providing educational planning and advocacy, as well as social emotional development support. Ensure each youth’s educational rights are upheld under federal and state law.
• Responsible for reviewing educational history for assigned youth case load and systematically evaluate educational needs
• Responsible for providing educational planning details and support to caregivers, social workers, school staff and other service providers.
• Responsible for acquiring consent forms for each assigned youth and collecting school records as needed.
• Responsible for attending and scheduling meetings on behalf of Treehouse with schools, caregivers, social workers and other service providers in the local community.
• Responsible for serving statewide cases remotely as needed.
• Conduct training sessions for caregivers, social workers and community partners.
• Responsible for scheduling and facilitating interagency meetings, negotiate services, facilitate transportation plans, assist with credit transfer or retrieval, negotiate disciplinary appeals, etc.
• Responsible for maintaining complete, accurate and updated case records for each youth in program database.
• Report on case progress to supervisor and team on established schedule.
• Provide timely feedback, communication, and reports to social workers and caregivers.
• Provide recommendations on success stories to represent organizational mission upon request.
• Work from within the assigned Department of Children Youth and Families (DCYF) offices and provide outreach and support to other DCYF offices in the area.
• Other duties as assigned

Primary Worksite Location

DCYF – Yakima

1002 N 16th Ave

Yakima, WA 98909

Secondary Worksite Locations

Frequencies for these locations will be determined between employee and supervisor:

DCYF-Toppenish

DCYF -Goldendale

Working Conditions

• Full-time
• Monday to Friday
• 8:00am to 5:00pm
• Occasional evenings and weekends
• Frequent local travel to attend meetings on behalf of youth and to build relationships with schools, caregivers, social workers, and other service providers
• Travel requirements vary per assignment and will change depending on the needs of the Educational Advocates caseload.

• Furlough for the month of July for 3 weeks (4th of July week will be paid time off for Employee Appreciation week)

Overnight travel 1-3 weeks a year for trainings, conferences and retreats

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• High school diploma or GED equivalent
• Demonstrated understanding of federal and state education law, including special education.
• Ability to deploy critical thinking, problem solving, conflict resolution, and emotional intelligence when communicating on behalf of Treehouse.
• Demonstrated commitment to racial equity and the ability to effectively engage in candid conversations about diversity, equity, inclusion and justice.
• Experience facilitating meetings and presentations virtually and in-person.
• Experience providing support services to youth and caregivers from diverse and traditionally underserved populations, including students of color, low-income students, or students with disabilities.
• Must thrive while working independently and be able to maintain relationships with coworkers and managers.
• Ability to maintain records and data to support effective evaluation processes and analysis, and use program data to inform decision making and service delivery strategies.
• Strong organizational skills, ability to multi-task and prioritize tasks to meet deadlines.
• Reliable transportation, current driver's license and minimum WA State driver insurance coverage required.
• Demonstrated ability to build working relationships with individuals of various ages, cultures, socioeconomic backgrounds, and abilities.
• Ability to set boundaries and utilize support services to manage the personal impact of working with youth who have been placed at risk.
• Ability and aptitude with online database systems to maintain records and data to support effective evaluation processes and analysis, and use program data to inform decision making and service delivery strategies.
• Strong organizational skills, ability to multi-task and prioritize tasks to meet deadlines.
• Ability to work independently outside of a business office while maintaining relationships with coworkers and managers.
• Ability and aptitude with Microsoft Office Suite and other technology necessary for successful day to-day functioning in a business environment.
• Knowledge of educational and community resources available to promote educational attainment for youth.
• Clear nationwide criminal background check and driving record background check.

Preferred Experience

• Prior experience facilitating trainings virtually and in-person to an audience of 5 to 100 people.
• Prior experience facilitating and coordinating multiple stakeholders through complex situations.
• Prior experience navigating special education evaluations and education plans.
• 2+ years’ experience providing advocacy of and support of youth experiencing foster care or other vulnerable student populations.

This position pays $25.61 , non-exempt. Treehouse also offers a generous paid time off plan, free medical, dental, vision, and 403(b) plan.

If you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our online application system as a result of a disability, you may request an accommodation by contacting the People & Culture department at jobs@treehouseforkids.org.

Treehouse complies with applicable State & Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of creed, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, citizenship or immigration status, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability.

Physical and Mental Requirements:

Mental Requirements – Ability to reason logically and make sound decisions, to consider alternative and diverse perspectives, to communicate effectively both orally and in writing, to remain poised under all circumstances, and to interact effectively with people in a positive manner that creates confidence and trust.

Physical Requirements – long periods of sitting, working on a computer, walking to various work areas, going up and down stairs, talking on the phone, working with office/computer equipment, attending meetings and sitting at desk or table while listening, talking and taking notes.

DISCLAIMER:

The information presented indicates the general nature and level of work expected of employees in this classification. It is not designed to contain, or to be interpreted as, a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, qualifications and objectives required of employees assigned to this job. As an adaptive organization, responsibilities can and will change in alignment with greater efficiencies and mission metrics.