ABOUT GROUNDWORKS COLLABORATIVE Established in 2015, following the merger of the Brattleboro Area Drop-In Center and Morningside Shelter, Groundworks is a dynamic organization committed to providing food, shelter and supportive services with dignity throughout the greater-Brattleboro area.
Groundworks’ mission is to work with individuals and systems to create solutions for ending hunger and homelessness for all people in our region. We envision a community in which all members have their basic needs met, including food security and a safe and dignified place to call home. We view poverty, housing and food insecurity to be byproducts of societal conditions, generational discrimination and public policy, rather than as a result of individual choices. Therefore, Groundworks fosters a culture of nonjudgement and compassion for the people we serve.
POSITION SUMMARY The Shelter Coordinator provides programmatic and operational leadership to Groundworks’ shelter at 81 Royal Rd, which operates 24/7 and maintains a sober living environment to support all residents. This position ensures program quality, a safe, welcoming and pleasant environment, and efficient and effective operations while building a great place to work and volunteer. The Shelter Coordinator sets high service-delivery standards and embodies Groundworks’ philosophy of dignity and respect.
The Shelter Coordinator supervises all advocate shelter staff and ensures that the collaborative team provides nonjudgmental and compassionate care. This is considered a high barrier shelter, and residents may not be under the influence of substances while in the space. This position builds strong relationships with residents, assists them in navigating resources, and seeks their feedback and input to inform continuous program and operational development. The Shelter Coordinator also ensures compliance with all federal, state, town and private funding regulations, and serves on the agency’s Leadership Team to support Groundworks’ overall success and impact. RESPONSIBILITIES
PROGRAM LEADERSHIP (15%)
● Ensure shelter serves clients’ needs through person-centered service, responsive programs, operational excellence and continuous quality improvement.
● Communicate and model Groundworks’ philosophy, mission, values, theory of change and standards of excellence to staff and volunteers.
● Work directly with Director of Shelters to update program and shelter policies, guidance, rules and procedures
● Maintain high service standards; ensure a compassionate, nonjudgmental approach.
● Maintain current knowledge of resources and effectively navigate community services.
● Develop clear programmatic goals, objectives and work plans to improve quality and the responsiveness of services; ensure that goals and objectives are fulfilled.
● Provide staff and volunteer trainings to enhance skills and performance.
● Participate in on-call services, including evenings, weekends (at least one Saturday and one Sunday each month), and holidays with a minimum of 10 on-call shifts per month
● Solicit client feedback and staff input to identify improvement opportunities, lead change and adjust programs based on observations and feedback.
CLIENT SUPPORT (25%)
● Interact regularly with clients, build trusting relationships.
● Ensure that staff members are meeting clients’ individualized needs.
● Oversee daily logs, coordinate effective follow-up/responses and communicate information back to staff and other affected parties.
● Ensure that community resource information is on hand and available.
● Provide direct services to clients as needed.
● Follow up around challenging situations, including setting expectations and providing policy reminders when needed.
● Work with clients and case management team to help navigate resources, ensure seamless referrals, and to help clients transition to stable housing.
● Review all event reports, ensure timely follow-up with staff and clients.
OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT (20%)
● Ensure adequate staffing levels, anticipate staffing needs and maintain effective scheduling practices. Provide direct staffing if needed.
● Ensure that all day-to-day operations meet the needs of clients, staff and volunteers.
● Develop and enhance efficient and effective operational systems.
● Set up space and ensure a clean, welcoming, healthy, safe environment, inside and outside.
● Oversee supply needs and facility routine maintenance and cleaning.
● Oversee the coordination of food/meal needs
● Ensure shelter complies with funder and regulatory requirements.
● Oversee the accurate, complete, timely collection and submission of program data.
PEOPLE LEADERSHIP (20%)
● Recruit, hire, onboard, support and provide regular supervision to all Advocate staff.
● Ensure all staff initially receive robust training including working with clients in an open, welcoming way as well as firm, direct responses to maintain safety including CPI and CPR/First Aid/Narcan training.
● Ensure staff are skillful at managing and deescalating crisis situations with nonjudgmental and compassionate approaches.
● Observe staff, identify performance goals, provide feedback, coaching, and consultation. Facilitate staff access to clinical supervision as needed.
● Foster direct reports’ leadership growth; evaluate performance annually.
● Address employee relations, concerns or grievances.
TEAM AND CULTURE BUILDING (10%)
● Create an exceptional workplace and a team culture of collaboration, ownership and leadership in order to attract, fully engage and retain staff members and volunteers.
● Uphold, model and maintain Groundworks’ values. Foster dedication to Groundworks’ service mission and a culture of understanding, compassion and positive regard for clients.
● Ensure shelter team members embrace diversity, equity and inclusion.
● Enable staff and volunteer skill-building and understanding of anti-racist and anti-oppression frameworks, mutual aid vs. charity, and the root causes of poverty.
● Plan and facilitate regular, participatory team meetings that promote teamwork, ownership and collaborative problem-solving.
● Model accountability in relation to individual, programmatic and organizational goals.
ADMINISTRATION (3%)
● Help develop annual budget; ensure program and operations adhere to that budget.
● Provide timely and accurate nightly shelter stay and utilization data to Director of Shelters as needed
● Provide additional program data as needed for reports or internal use.
● Help coordinate public health efforts including safety protocols, internal testing system, tracking and monitoring cases, providing staff updates, etc.
AGENCY WIDE LEADERSHIP (7%)
● Participate in Leadership and Operations Team meetings.
● Enhance Groundworks’ agency-wide success by contributing to organizational learning, problem-solving, planning, coordination and communication.
● Remain current understanding of Groundworks’ priorities, budget and financial status.
● Support the seamless integration of Groundworks’ various programs and services for all clients served by the agency. COMPETENCIES
● Excellent communication and interpersonal skills that inspire a dynamic team environment.
● Leads change and develops new systems using a creative and innovative lens.
● Outstanding people leadership and supervisory skills including recruitment, onboarding, expectation and goal setting, feedback giving and coaching.
● Delegates effectively, involves people in decisions that affect them and builds effective teams.
● Manages complex operations and scheduling thoughtfully and strategically.
● Embraces continuous learning in leadership, operations and program excellence.
● Flexible, willing to be hands-on and multitask in a fluid and fast-paced work environment.
● Strong time management skills, prioritizes competing tasks and meets deadlines.
● Highly organized, plans effectively and is attentive to details and accuracy in work.
● Remains calm under pressure, models effective stress management and self-care.
● Analyzes problems/issues, gathers data and information, and finds effective solutions.
● Exercises solid judgment and critical thinking.
● Takes initiative and works without direct supervision.
● Sets boundaries, practices self-care and working adeptly with challenging situations.
● Balances the needs of clients as a whole with individual client needs, with a steadfast commitment to fairness, consistency and consideration of individual circumstances.
● Exhibits empathy while maintaining professional boundaries.
● Personal commitment to social justice, anti-racism and equity.
● Understands trauma-informed care and program design.
● Understands complex challenges associated with poverty, addiction, mental health.
● Knowledge of area resources and systemic barriers; effectively navigates services.
● Understands anti-oppression frameworks, mutual aid vs. charity in program design, harm reduction and the root causes of homelessness.
● Passion for Groundworks’ mission, philosophy and nonjudgmental, compassionate approach.
● Working knowledge of Microsoft Office or other software applications to retrieve data, create spreadsheets, and generate reports.
Pay: $59,779.00 - $70,013.00 per year
Benefits:
- 403(b) matching
- Employee assistance program
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
Work Location: In person
