Senior Case Assistant-Social Services PROMOTIONAL

Modified: March 9, 2018 11:42am

COUNTY OF ERIE - DEPARTMENT OF PERSONNEL
invites applications for the position of:

Senior Case Assistant-Social Services PROMOTIONAL

#79-514 - Promotional (for current employees only)

Salary: $28,378 - $49,229 Annually
Opening Date: March 9, 2018
Closing Date: April 4, 2018
Application fee: None

Residence Requirements:

THIS EXAMINATION IS OPEN TO ALL QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES OF THE ERIE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES.  At present there is one vacancy at the Erie County Department of Social Services. 

Examples of Duties:

A Senior Case Assistant-Social Services assists Caseworkers and Child Protective Workers in the performance of duties, which involve the coordinating of visits between children in foster care or placed with kin and their parents and siblings; 

Prepares plan of work for unit to include objectives, time frame for completion and evaluation; submits to supervisor for discussion/approval;

Trains and supervises direct reports in interviewing applicants and referrals for childcare, foster care adoption, adult services, preventive services, or other services of the department;

Directs unit and supervises staff; disseminates official policy materials; is sensitive to needs of the unit regarding training in the use of supplementary resources; coordinates the work load of all direct report staff;

Prepares reports based on activity records of the unit;

Assists in the review of cases periodically to determine changes affecting client circumstances and need for service;

Assists in coordinating a visitation plan, which may involve the supervising and transporting of children for visits and appointments, as well as, establishing suitable locations for such visits;

Documents interactions with clients and children, collateral information on cases and performs written work as directed;

Designs and coordinates parent orientations and parent/child workshops, designed to promote positive visits between children, parents and foster parents/caretakers;

Assists parents, foster parents and caretakers with providing positive experiences for their children and assists with transportation as directed;

Oversees preparation of appropriate information for client files, court proceedings and other casework/CPS related events;

Provides back-up assistance to the department in covering in-house and in-territory client related events, such as remanding children into care, overseeing children while parents are interviewed or taking/retrievinginformation to/from agencies, etc.;

Provides case related and/or program related information in relevant meetings and conferences;

Assists other staff with assessing the needs of clients and their children;

Operates personal computer for word processing, e-mail and case recording.

Qualifications:

QUALIFYING EXPERIENCE FOR TAKING THE TEST: Candidates must be permanently employed in the competitive class and must be serving and have served continuously on a permanent or contingent permanent basis in the competitive class for 24 months immediately preceding the date of the written test in the position of  Case Assistant-Social Services. 

Notes:

None

Examination date:

May 12, 2018

Applications Must Be Postmarked or Hand Delivered By:

April 4, 2018

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. Interviewing

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices employed in obtaining information from individuals through structured conversations. These questions require you to apply the principles, practices, and techniques of effective interviewing to hypothetical interviewing situations. Included are questions that present a problem arising from an interviewing situation, and you must choose the most appropriate course of action to take.

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. Principles and practices of social casework

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices used to provide casework services. Questions may cover such topics as developmental, mental, physical, and social disabilities and/or impairments; assessing client strengths and needs; building and maintaining relationships with clients and their support network; ability to make and advocate for appropriate service referrals; ability to provide advocacy and support; and professional and ethical concerns in casework practice.

4. Supervision

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices employed in planning, organizing, and controlling the activities of a work unit toward predetermined objectives. The concepts covered, usually in a situational question format, include such topics as assigning and reviewing work; evaluating performance; maintaining work standards; motivating and developing subordinates; implementing procedural change; increasing efficiency; and dealing with problems of absenteeism, morale, and discipline.

5. Working with individuals to promote mental health

These questions test for knowledge of characteristics, causes and treatment methods associated with chronic mental illness and/or addiction. Questions cover such topics as establishing, maintaining and terminating client relationships; recognizing, interpreting, and responding to individual and group behaviors; providing access to essential services such as financial, housing, medical, educational, legal, vocational, and recreational; and eligibility criteria of programs and agencies offering such services. 

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES:  Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators.  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.

INFORMATION FOR PROMOTION CANDIDATES

Unless otherwise indicated, the eligible list resulting from this examination will have a duration of four years and will not supersede existing promotional lists, if any.

RATINGS REQUIRED:  Test is rated on a scale of 100 with a passing mark at 70.  Test instructions may further divide the tests into parts and set minimum standards for each part.

Points will be added to scores of candidates who achieve a passing mark as follows: Seniority:  For each year of service in the classified service:

Less than 1 year……………………..................…0 points

1 year up to 6 years…………….…........................1 point

Over 6 years up to 11 years.....………......….........2 points

Over 11 years up to 16 years….…........….........…3 points

Over 16 years up to 21 years………..................…4 points

Over 21 years………………………..................…5 points

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A None 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.