Residence Requirements:

RESIDENCE REQUIREMENTS:  CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT. There is one present vacancy at the Erie County Department of Social Services. 

Examples of Duties:

A Community Coordinator assists community advisory groups, such as the Erie County Community Coordinating Council and the Welfare Advisory Board, in planning, coordinating and implementing programs and activities which address the needs of Department of Social Services clients; 
Prepare agendas, reports, meeting notices and official for appointed community advisory groups;
Handle inquiries from the public and officials on behalf of appointed community advisory groups;
Represents appointed community advisory groups at meetings and conferences;
Investigates and analyzes services available for Social Services clients within County government and programs funded by the County and recommends measures to coordinate, consolidate, or improve these services to provide maximum efficiency;
Maintains constant communication with public and private agencies which provide services on behalf of the Department of Social Services, developing a knowledge and understanding of their services and problems;
Assists in developing and coordinating a public awareness program to inform the public of the needs of Social Services clients;
Works with public officials, semi-public agencies and County departments in the development and coordination of services and opportunities for Social Services clients in such areas as transportation, employment, education, recreation, health care, day care and more;
Conducts investigations, research studies and analyses of conditions which may result in unmet needs of Social Services clients;
Assists, advises and cooperates with Federal, State, County and local governmental agencies and public and private organizations on matters involving the needs of children and families, and acts as the formal planning coordinator on matters regarding children and families, and may recommend such procedures, programs or legislation to promote opportunities for all children and families;
Networks with national, State and local commissions/councils and similar bodies;
Submits an annual report of work performed and recommendations to community advisory groups and submits such interim reports and recommendations as necessary;
Performs such further duties as may be prescribed. 

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test: 

A.) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered year college or university with a Master's Degree in Business, Public Administration, Social Work or closely related field and one year of experience in community relations, public affairs or related field; or;

B.) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered four year college or university with a Bachelor's degree in Business, Public Administration, Social Work or closely related field and three years of experience in community relations, public affairs or related field; or;

C.) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A) and (B).

Notes:

NOTES: 1.  Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full-time experience requirements. 2. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of "D" or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However,candidates may find information in the publication "How to take a written test" helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at: www.cs.ny.gov/testing/localtestguides.cfm

Subjects of Examination:

Subjects of examination: A written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Evaluating conclusions in light of known facts

These questions will consist of a set of facts and a conclusion. You must decide if the conclusion is proved by the facts, disproved by the facts or if the facts are not sufficient to prove or disprove the conclusion. The questions will not be specific to a particular field.

2. Preparing written material

These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

3. Public contact principles and practices

These questions test for knowledge of techniques used to interact with other people, to gather and present information, and to provide assistance, advice, and effective customer service in a courteous and professional manner. Questions will cover such topics as understanding and responding to people with diverse needs, perspectives, personalities, and levels of familiarity with agency operations, as well as acting in a way that both serves the public and reflects well on your agency.

4. Understanding and interpreting written material

These questions test how well you comprehend written material. You will be provided with brief reading selections and will be asked questions about the selections. All the information required to answer the questions will be presented in the selections; you will not be required to have any special knowledge relating to the subject areas of the selections.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES:  It is recommended that candidates use a quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculator.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited.  You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.