Kinship Family Specialist
Company: Our Community Our Kids
Location: Fort Worth
Posted on: February 28, 2026
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Job Description:
Job Description Job Description Description: Position Function :
Responsible for casework for family or fictive kin placements to
include monthly contact, providing resources and support, assisting
with community resources and assessing for eligibility for
financial assistance when available. Working Conditions : Position
includes exposure to parents, guardians, and conservators as well
as to youth with behavioral problems, including possible physical
aggression. A personal vehicle is required for travel. Must possess
a valid driver's license. The position is sensitive to the service
population’s cultural and socioeconomic characteristics. Exposure
to Confidential Information : The KFS (Kinship Family Specialist)
will have access to confidential records including youth files,
foster care and adoption records, and foster parent information.
Must maintain confidentiality and follow policies related to
personnel records and client records. Key
Expectations/Responsibilities : · Maintain high ethical standards
which are outlined in the ACH Child and Family Services Code of
Ethics. · A commitment to empowering others to solve their
problems. · Value a nurturing family as the ideal environment for a
person. · A conviction about the capacity of people to grow and
change. · The ability to establish a respectful relationship with
persons served to help them gain skills and confidence. · The
ability to work collaboratively with other personnel and/or service
providers and professionals. · The capacity to maintain a helping
role and to intervene appropriately to meet service goals. ·
Performs other duties as assigned and required to maintain unit
operations. · Attends work regularly in accordance with agency
leave policy. Implementation : · Conducts monthly face to face
contacts to provide support, assessment, education, and connecting
to resources. · Attend family team meetings, family group
conferences, and court hearings as needed to assist the kinship
caregiver in navigating the system. · Assess caregiver capability
for kinship foster licensing, refer families to child-placing
agencies, guide hem through the licensing process and provide
resources, support and encouragement as needed. · Assists with
determining day care eligibility for qualified caregivers. ·
Provides support to the family to assist in meeting the needs of
the child. · Plans for and facilitates permanency and assists
relative and kinship caregivers in providing a safe and nurturing
environment for children in their care. · Maintains a close working
relationship with public and private agencies involved in providing
services/support. · Provides information to the case management
team and internal departments on all matters related to the child,
as required. · Attends case planning conferences at required
intervals. · Conducts home visits at specified intervals, or as
required. · Provides crisis intervention, when required. ·
Coordinates community resources for the benefit of children served.
· Coordinates with intake and other appropriate staff on the
placement of children by offering pre-kinship services in order to
achieve placement with a kinship relative or fictive kin. ·
Completes documentation and forwards reports containing
descriptive, analytical and evaluative content. · Coordinates with
the Agency’s resource family services and licensing staff to ensure
regulatory compliance by kinship caregivers and reviews licensing
standards with kinship caregivers. · Coordinates with the case
management team and staff from external public and private agencies
on the delivery of services to children and families. · Refrains
from assuming any duty that is unrelated to and/or interferes with
the responsibilities of the position. Training and Supervision : ·
Attend continuing education necessary to expand knowledge and
maintain certifications or licenses. · Communicate regularly with
supervisor and seek supervision when appropriate. · Participate in
in-service training. · Participates in applicable agency trainings
as well as seminars/conferences in the community at large.
Requirements: Education : Bachelor’s degree, in a human services
field, is required. Experience : Two years experience working
within human services required. Functional : Knowledge of good
child placement practices. Skills in preparing children for
permanency. Skills in developing and maintaining professional
working relationships. Ability to support families dealing with
separation and attachment issues. Ability to access child’s needs
and process in the placement progress. Ability to maintain timely
documentation and effectively manage caseload. Knowledge of agency
policies, procedures and regulations. Knowledge of laws and
regulations to child care, abuse, and neglect. Ability to assess
current life situations of children to determine the presence of
child abuse and neglect. Ability to articulate an understanding of
the intersection between race and poverty and the different
outcomes and conditions that exist among specific groups as
compared to other groups due to unequal treatment of services.
Ability to negotiate available services. Ability to gather,
assemble, correlate, and analyze facts. Ability to prepare clear
and concise reports. Ability to travel locally and within the
region. Primary coverage area is the Western side of Metroplex West
(Region 3W)- Palo Pinto, Parker, Erath, Wise and western Tarrant
County.
Keywords: Our Community Our Kids, Fort Worth , Kinship Family Specialist, Social Services , Fort Worth, Texas