ONLY CANDIDATES CURRENTLY SERVING IN THE PERMANENT TITLE OF CHILD PROTECTIVE SPECIALIST MAY APPLY TO THIS OPENING.

The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) protects and promotes the safety and well-being of New York City’s children and families by providing child welfare, juvenile justice, and early care services. In child welfare, ACS contracts with private nonprofit organizations to support and stabilize families at risk of a crisis through preventive services and provides foster care services for children not able to safely remain at home. Each year, the agency’s Division of Child Protection responds to more than 50,000 reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. In juvenile justice, ACS manages and funds services including detention and placement, intensive community-based alternatives for youth, and support services for families. ACS is also a key part of NYCs early childhood and education continuum, providing child care assistance to thousands of child welfare involved and low-income children so they can access safe, affordable, quality care.


The Office of Shared Response (OSR) is within the Division of Family Permanency Services (FPS); under the Provider Agency Collaboration and Engagement (PACE) unit. OSR is responsible for assessing and responding to critical incidents, fatalities, and high-profile and media cases involving children and youth in foster care. OSR consists of the Corrective Action Monitoring Unit (CAMU). After an investigation of a report made to the Statewide Central Register (SCR) of Child Abuse and Maltreatment involving a foster home or a child who is in foster care, the Division of Child Protection, Office of Special Investigation (OSI) may create a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) with recommendations for a foster care provider to enhance the safety and well-being of the child(ren) involved in the report. Under the direction of a CAMU supervisor, the CAMU monitor oversees the progress the provider agencies are making in completing the CAP. The provider agencies are required to submit the CAP to the CAMU monitor within 20 business days of receiving the CAP. The CAMU monitor will review and approve the submissions for compliance with the recommendations and work to resolve any outstanding issues. The Unit's tracking is provided to the Division of Program, Planning, and Measurement (DPPM) for use in the scorecard results of each foster care provider agency. The CAMU monitor is knowledgeable about resources available at ACS and shares all appropriate resources with the provider agencies as needed.

The CAMU Monitor is responsible for the following:

- Review all Inquiries from DCP's Office of Special Investigation (OSI). If OSI identifies safety concerns or service needs after an OSI child protective investigation, OSI shall issue a CAP to the provider agency. OSI may issue a CAP regardless of the investigation determination. CAPs will be required in cases where issues are assessed to be present in any area relevant to the safety and welfare of a child, including, but not limited to, the following areas: - Fatality or serious injury - Medical and/or mental health - Alcohol and substance abuse - Domestic violence - Sexual abuse - Criminal activity and/or history - Educational neglect - Excessive corporal punishment - Inadequate guardianship and lack of supervision - Facility (physical environment of the foster home) requirements (e.g., number of beds, pest control needs) - Noncompliance with certification and/or regulatory criteria (e.g., failure to meet training requirements, non-disclosure of changes in household o composition, repeated violations of corporal punishment regulations) - Multiple SCR reports related to the foster parent and/or members of the household - AWOC /missing children - Medical and/or psychiatric hospitalization o Incongruent information provided in a home study and/or progress notes.

- CAMU shall monitor the progress of the provider agency in completing the CAP. The provider agency is required to submit a response to the CAP within 20 business days after receiving the CAP unless the provider agency has requested it in writing and has been granted additional time to submit the response.
- All responses to CAPs must be submitted to CAMU and will be subject to review and final approval by the CAMU supervisor.
- CAPs are submitted in Connections on the My To-dos tab. CAMU monitors must navigate to the progress notes and ensure that the information entered into the template adequately addresses the recommendations made by OSI.
- The CAMU monitor tracks all progress on a tracking spreadsheet.
- FPS's Office of Placement Administration and contracted foster care agencies may request CAMU to complete local clearances on foster care parents, their households, and potential kinship resources or resources likely to serve in a caretaker role.
- The CAMU monitor will verify that the home status is accurate in FAD/Connections. If applicable, the CAMU monitor will provide feedback on whether a hold should remain or be removed from a foster home.
- CAMU monitors will provide copies of determination letters when needed.
- The CAMU monitor will track CAP recommendation trends using an existing excel data sheet to track the length of time the agency completes CAPs. The CAMU monitor ensures the foster care provider agency staff responds timely to a CAP.
- The CAMU monitor will provide the Division of Program, Planning, and Measurement (DPPM) quarterly data using their existing spreadsheet to track the time to completion and quality of the response.
- The CAMU monitor will utilize data from monthly reports to identify systemic trends and agency deficiencies in child welfare practice by provider agencies and report to ACS leadership to determine appropriate follow-up and recommendations for improvement.
- The CAMU monitor knowledge and skill set around Connections, Excel, and Legal Tracking System (LTS) is a must.
- The CAMU monitor will review and approve all CAPS and then submit all CAPS to the CAMU supervisor for final approval.

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, accredited by regional, national, professional, or specialized agencies recognized as accrediting bodies by the U.S. Secretary of Education and by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) including or supplemented by 24 semester credits in one or a combination of the following fields: social work, psychology, sociology, human services, criminal justice, education (including early childhood), nursing, or cultural anthropology, at least 12 of which must have been in one of these disciplines.

Additional Information: Section 424-a of the New York State Social Services Law requires an authorized agency to inquire whether a candidate for employment with child-care responsibilities is or has been the subject of an indicated child abuse and maltreatment report on file with the Statewide Central Register for child abuse
and maltreatment. Statewide Central Register screening will be conducted prior to considering a candidate for employment as a Child Protective Specialist. Candidates who have been the subject of an indicated child abuse and maltreatment report may be disqualified from appointment to this position.

Requirements for Assignment Level II
a. Upon satisfactory completion of six months of training and experience at Assignment Level I, an employee shall be assigned to Assignment Level II.
b. Upon completion of one year of satisfactory experience at Assignment Level II of Child Protective Specialist and satisfactory completion of the probationary period an employee shall receive no less than the minimum salary after 18 months in title.
c. To be appointed directly to Assignment Level II, a candidate must have, in addition to meeting the minimum qualification requirements set forth above, one year of satisfactory child protective casework experience.

The preferred candidate should possess the following: A proven record of managerial or supervisory accomplishment in foster care with significant experience in handling critical incidents knowledge of child welfare best practices as well as City and State foster care regulations and policies excellent written and verbal communication skills, exceptional critical thinking, analytical, organizational and interpersonal skills proficiency in the use of Microsoft Word for Windows, EXCEL, ACCESS. Expertise in the New York State Connections Comprehensive Case Management System, Legal Tracking System, and WMS/CCRS. Expertise in strength-based, solution-focused, and family-centered practice.

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/

New York City Residency is not required for this position.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.