Skills Coach - Dignity Rising

At The New York Foundling, we trust in the power and potential of people, and we deliberately invest in proven practices. From bold beginnings in 1869, our New York-based nonprofit has supported hundreds of thousands of our neighbors on their own paths to stability, strength, and independence. We help children and families navigate through and beyond foster care. We help families struggling with conflict and poverty grow strong. We help individuals with developmental disabilities live their best lives, and we help our neighbors access quality health and mental health services—core to building lifelong resilience and wellbeing. Together, our interrelated programs provide a whole-person, whole-family, and whole-life approach that unlocks solutions for a lifetime.

Reporting to the Clinical Supervisor, the Skills Coach provides home- and community-based skills training to people age 16+ with intellectual or developmental disabilities involved in the justice system. The role reinforces individualized treatment goals through structured practice, strengths-focused engagement, recreational activities, and coordination with each person’s support network.

Reporting to the Clinical Supervisor, the Skills Coach provides home- and community-based skills training to people age 16+ with intellectual or developmental disabilities involved in the justice system. The role reinforces individualized treatment goals through structured practice, strengths-focused engagement, recreational activities, and coordination with each person’s support network.

Core Responsibilities:

• Engage people supported in individualized skills-training activities one to three times each week, aligned with treatment-plan goals in areas such as behavior management, communication, coping, problem-solving, education, and vocation.
• Reinforce skill development through e-learning, role plays, guided practice, weekly recreational activities, and appropriate incentives that recognize positive behavior and newly learned skills.
• Implement evidence-based MST-EA and Skills System modules, using a strengths-focused approach that builds on each person’s positive attributes. Follow directives by the Dignity Rising Therapist and Supervisor in providing services. Engage the person's social network when providing services.
• Collaborate with the Therapist to coordinate community-based support and referrals, building relationships with external providers, and accompanying people and families to appointments, as necessary, and helping address identified community needs.
• As needed, collaborate with the Clinical Supervisor and Therapists to facilitate Skills Systems groups at the Queens and Brooklyn NYF office locations, which may require flexibility in the evenings 1-2 days a week. Works with staff and people supported to motivate attendance. Supports clients in travelling to group sessions.
• Identify and address social risk factors that give rise to possible re-arrest and incarceration due to continued referral behaviors or new risk/safety factors. This includes the completion of safety plans, court notifications, and incident reports if necessary. Adopt a strength focused approach with person supported, families, stakeholders, and within the program/treatment team.
• Document every visit and provide clear, timely weekly oral and/or written reports to the Dignity Rising Supervisor on activities completed, participation, progress, and concerns.
• Participate in supervision, required trainings, and all meetings mandated by the agency and MST-EA and DBT-SS program models, and follow supervisory direction and applicable program protocols.

The New York Foundling is committed to attracting and retaining a diverse employee population, the Foundling will honor your experiences, perspectives and unique identity. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable and welcoming.

• High school diploma or General Educational Development (GED) certificate required. Some work experience or college education required.
• Strongly preferred experience supporting people with intellectual/developmental disabilities, supporting people with serious mental illness, supporting people with justice involvement, and/or lived experience with criminal justice system involvement.
• Preferred knowledge: Trauma-Informed Therapy, Social Ecological, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy particularly in trauma treatment and anger management, Dialectic Behavioral Therapy, exposure-based cognitive behavioral trauma treatment, and social skills assessment and intervention.
• Ability to engage and advocate for people supported using respectful, culturally sensitive, trauma-informed, and strengths-focused practices.
• Ability to implement behaviorally based approaches, conduct structured skills practice, solve problems, make sound decisions, and respond appropriately to changing community-based needs.
• Ability to communicate and collaborate effectively with people supported, families, stakeholders, supervisors, and the program/treatment team while maintaining self-awareness, managing stress, and practicing self-care.
• Ability to maintain HIPAA compliance in community-based settings and meet agency expectations for attendance, documentation, training, teamwork, conduct, and adherence to applicable policies, laws, regulations, and program requirements.
• Bilingual in Spanish preferred, but not required.