Job description

ABOUT

Growing Home is a leading social enterprise in empowering people and communities within Chicago. The organization developed Chicago's first USDA Certified organic, high-production urban farms. We strongly believe that organic agriculture is a catalyst for incredible social and economic improvement.

Growing Home focuses its work in three main areas, with our farms acting as our foundation. First, we provide job training and placement for hard-to-employ individuals pursuing careers in agriculture, landscaping, and food or customer service. Our 14-week, paid on-the-job training program includes hands-on training, classroom study, and a unique job readiness curriculum. This business-based enterprise provides experiential learning opportunities that help introduce, or reintroduce, participants into the workforce.

Second, we look to make postive and long-lasting differences in the communities that host our farms. During the growing season, we offer farm stands for our neighbors, host school field trips, and hold open houses with workshops and tours. We also aim to lead by example, and have helped build the Greater Englewood Urban Agriculture Task Force, in an effort to bring economic restoration and opportunity to the Englewood community where our urban farms are located. Our Executive Director was a founding member of the Chicago-based Advocates for Urban Agriculture.

Lastly, while our roots are in Chicago, our initiatives in urban agriculture are far-reaching. We are proud to have many Growing Home staff members in leadership positions as advocates for workforce development, sustainable agriculture, food access and food security, on local, national, and international levels.

POSITION OVERVIEW

We are currently seeking a creative, outgoing, and enthusiastic individual to serve as our Employment Specialist. The Employment Specialist will develop and maintain placement partnerships with employers in the landscaping, food preparation/distribution, urban agriculture, and customer service industries, match program participants to appropriate employment opportunities, facilitate job readiness training sessions, and provide case management.

The ideal candidate will have previous experience with job development, job readiness training, be able to demonstrate connections to local employers, and manage multiple priorities in a self-directed manner. The Employment Specialist is supervised by the Employment Training Manager and works closely with the Field Training Specialist, Employment Training Coordinator and Production staff.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Employer Outreach

• Initiate, develop, and maintain ongoing relationships and contacts with a variety of employers in industries related to Growing Home’s agriculture training;
• Identify relevant academic and vocation training programs;
• Perform labor market research to create and maintain a database of potential employers, employers of interest, and a list of skills and experience needed to qualify for their job openings;
• Develop marketing materials for target employers;
• Create and implement an annual employer outreach plan.

Job Readiness Instruction

• Conduct job readiness assessments and goal planning with participants;
• Using Growing Home’s curriculum, provide job readiness training classes and recruit industry representatives to facilitate ancillary classes and trainings;
• Create and supervise participant’s individual employment plans;
• Modify curriculum in collaboration with Employment Training team when needed;

Job Placement and Retention

• Place 75% of program graduates in full time, unsubsidized employment;
• Provide pre-employment and retention support;
• Maintain detailed case notes, placement data and retention records and provide weekly, monthly, and quarterly reports according to grant and internal requirements;
• Make referrals to appropriate educational institutions and social service providers.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Adult Education, Social Work, Human Services, Social Services or related field;
• At least two years of progressive experience in workforce development, employment placement, career counseling, etc.;
• Familiarity with transitional employment strategies, methods, and objectives;
• Proven track record of success connecting adults with multiple barriers (criminal background, large employment gaps, lack of education credentials, etc.) to full time employment;
• Ability to work well under pressure in a fast-paced, outcomes-oriented environment;
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Work, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills;
• Capacity to successfully take on a caseload of at least 20 individuals per training cohort;
• Knowledge of local community resources and social service providers;
• Comprehensive understanding and commitment to Growing Home’s mission and target population

Compensation

this position is:

Application instructions

Deadline

no deadline