Summary:
The City of Charleston's Coordinated Addiction Response Effort (CARE) is an initiative launched in 2019 by the Mayor's Office to coordinate, enhance and expand efforts to address the impact of substance use disorder (SUD) on individuals, families and communities in Charleston, West Virginia. CARE aims to work closely with organizations across the City to reduce the number of overdoses, overdose deaths, and individuals in active addiction and to prevent initial drug use. CARE will bring key stakeholders together to increase the availability of high-quality treatment options and reduce barriers to accessing treatment, expand outreach and offer support services to individuals in active addiction as well as family members and peers of those facing SUD and create an engaging and caring community to prevent addiction in future generations.
The Director will lead the CARE office's efforts to improve coordination and collaboration using a data-driven approach. He or she will work with local stakeholders to improve data sharing and utilize local data and published research to identify key gaps in services and opportunities for improvement in treatment, recovery, and prevention services in Charleston. The Director will work with the Mayor's Office, Charleston Police and Fire Departments, and potential funders to convene stakeholders with the goal of addressing gaps in the continuum of care and aligning services with best practices.
This job description only contains a general summary and overview of the duties and responsibilities of the position, and may not be all-inclusive of the actual duties on any given day. In addition to the duties described herein, successful candidates may also perform other and/or additional duties as may be assigned, necessary and or required.
The City of Charleston reserves the right to change, add to and/or modify this job description at any time for any reason, with or without notice. This job description shall not be construed or implied to be a contract for permanent employment, or a promise or guarantee of continued employment for a specific term or duration.
Work Hours: The general work hours/schedule for this position may normally be 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. In addition, this position may also work additional and/or other hours, including nights, weekends and/or holidays as may be necessary, required or requested.
Qualifications: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Essential Duties: The CARE Director will be responsible for building relationships with partners across the city, identifying best practices, and utilizing data to understand and address key gaps in the continuum of care.
Additional Department, Division or Work Unit Duties:
Work closely with stakeholders to aggregate data to identify gaps and opportunities to improve treatment, recovery, and prevention services in Charleston.
Work with other cities or identify best practices and share information with stakeholder in Charleston.
Convene stakeholders working on treatment, recovery, and prevention in the Charleston area to improve coordination and adherence to best practices.
Engage community groups including employers, faith-based organization, etc.
Work with the City's Park and Recreation Department to expand opportunities to engage the community and expand prevention programming.
Work closely with the Charleston Police Department to explore opportunities to expand outreach and adopt programs used to address SUD in other cities.
Work with partner organization to aggregate and share resources widely.
Prepare and write grant applications to support the work of the CARE office and partner organizations.
Represent the City at community forums, events and meetings
All other duties assigned by the Mayor's Office.
Education / Experience:
Bachelor's degree (master's degree preferred) in healthcare, social work, public policy, emergency services, law, or a related field.
Five (5) or more years of experience working in the law enforcement and/or mental health fields preferred.
Experience working in the field of substance use disorder preferred.
Certifications / Licenses: None
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Ability to interact effectively with widely diverse audiences and collaborators (i.e. emergency services, researchers, medical professionals, business, government, media, social service organizations).
Ability to multi-task and work on multiple projects and/or tasks simultaneously.
Excellent and persuasive communication skills, both verbal and written.
Ability to solve problems, make decisions and meet deadlines.
Track record of success in grant writing and data-driven decision making.
Experience facilitating and building strong coalitions.
Knowledge of best practices and research on substance use disorder.
Familiarity with the treatment, recovery, and prevention organizations in Charleston.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office products such as Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
Core Competencies: In order to provide efficient and effective services, the City seeks team members who possess the following core competencies that are aligned with the City's vision: Accountability - takes responsibility for own actions; Adaptability - responds positively to change; Communications - listens, speaks and/or writes in a clear, concise and respectful manner; Initiative - takes proactive action to complete work or resolve issues; Judgment & Decision Making - evaluates issues and makes sound factual decisions; Customer Service - provides courteous, accessible and quality assistance to internal and external customers; Professional Development - seeks opportunities to enhance technical skills and job knowledge; Teamwork and Cooperation - collaborates with other team members to fulfill the City's vision and achieve departmental goals and strategic objectives; Leadership - Effectively manages and guides group efforts; tracks team progress, adequately anticipates roadblocks, and changes course as needed to achieve team goals; Performance Management - Clearly establishes and communicates expectations and accountabilities; monitors and evaluates performance.
EEO: The City of Charleston provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all current employees and new applicants for employment without regard to sex, race, color, age, national origin, ancestry, religion, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship, pregnancy or maternity, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable national, federal, state or local law.
NOTE: Employment at the City of Charleston is considered to be at will and may be terminated by you or the City at any time.