LISC AmeriCorps: Immigration Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator

Overview:

Jewish Family Service of San Diego and Local Initiatives Support Corporation are seeking a full-time AmeriCorps member to serve as an Immigration Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator. We are recruiting a full-time AmeriCorps member to be a part of our team for 11 months. The position will remain open until filled. The exact start and end date of the contract position is confirmed by the Member Agreement of Participation that will require a signature prior to the start of service. This is an AmeriCorps position and the individual selected to serve is not considered to be an employee of Jewish Family Service of San Diego or LISC. Please read more about the LISC AmeriCorps program before applying.

Jewish Family Service of San Diego (JFS) is one of four refugee resettlement agencies in San Diego County, a Department of Justice Recognized organization, and a core partner of the San Diego Rapid Response Network (Network) — a group of 40+ immigrant rights and social service organizations, attorneys and community leaders who educate, protect and assist immigrant individuals and families — including refugees and asylum seekers — with legal support and social services. JFS has a large Immigration Services Department (JFS-ISD) where it not only coordinates the legal services for the Network, but also has a large team of lawyers, DOJ-accredited representatives, and support staff working on a wide range of services for low-income and vulnerable immigrants in San Diego and Imperial counties. The JFS-ISD team specializes in removal defense, family-based petitions and applications, naturalization, and humanitarian relief.

Position Overview:

This is an AmeriCorps position and as such, the member may not engage in prohibited activities as part of their service. The member will have an immediate supervisor at Jewish Family Service of San Diego and a LISC point of contact throughout the term of service for coaching, mentoring, and training support in order to undertake activities to achieve a community goal.

The candidate should have experience and a strong desire to work in a fast-paced, team environment and interact with staff, clients, and guests in a consistently personable, professional, and helpful manner. This is an active position, working with many people across a large Division.

The member is expected to undertake the following activities toward goal achievement:

• Develop and implement effective volunteer management processes and procedures to recruit, orient, train, supervise, place, evaluate, and recognize volunteers.
• Work in the community to build strategic relationships, conduct a variety of outreach activities, and recruit program participants.
• Design and implement outreach activities using a variety of strategies to increase awareness in local refugee, asylee, and immigrant communities about the availability of low-cost immigration services.
• Participate in training seminars, online courses, and shadowing of immigration attorneys and DOJ-accredited representatives.
• Conduct screening interviews with interested volunteers.
• Hold volunteer trainings and orientations.
• Maintain active correspondence with volunteers to ensure the volunteer experience is going well and when it is not, make appropriate adjustments and changes.
• Collect and submit monthly statistics to the Volunteer Engagement Department.
• Work closely with the Immigration Services Team to determine volunteer needs.

Skills/Abilities That Are a Must-Have:

• Sensitivity to the needs of low-income and culturally diverse client population
• Ability to work both independently and in a group setting
• Excellent oral, written, and interpersonal communication skills
• Computer literacy (Excel, Word, reporting database, etc.)
• Flexibility with schedule (some evenings and weekends may be required); willingness to travel to various locations throughout San Diego County as needed
• Must provide own transportation.
• Must have a valid CA driver’s license and reliable transportation.

Skills/Abilities We’d Like You to Have:

• Prior experience working in a nonprofit setting
• Bicultural — Bilingual (English/Spanish) candidates preferred

OTHER SERVICE REQUIREMENTS:

Members are required to track time and submit online timesheets twice per month. They are also required to submit a monthly report through the same system (training will be provided). The person selected for this position will perform their day-to-day service at the partner site and serve on average 40 hours per week. Normal service hours are Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 8:30am–5:00pm with a 1-hour lunch; Wednesday 8:30am–5:00pm with a 30-minute lunch; and Friday 8:30am–4:00pm with a 30-minute lunch. It is expected that the person will be flexible as oftentimes service requires some evenings and weekends.

Members are expected to attend and participate in all LISC AmeriCorps sponsored activities including but not limited to:

• Attending onboarding sessions coordinated by LISC;
• Attending a national leadership conference;
• Attending all locally sponsored monthly meetings;
• Participating in nationally sponsored webinars;
• Actively participating in at least two teams coordinated service projects (one for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service and one for National AmeriCorps Week); and,
• Engaging in any other LISC events as determined by the local LISC office.

What is AmeriCorps:

AmeriCorps is a voluntary civil society program supported by the U.S. federal government, foundations, corporations, and other donors by engaging adults in public service work, with the goal of helping others and meeting critical needs in the community. “The program is often seen as the domestic Peace Corps.” Members commit to full-time positions of completing 1700 hours during an 11-month contract.

Additional benefits for AmeriCorps alumni can be found here.

HOW TO APPLY:

To apply, please submit your cover letter and resume to Celeste Caton at [email protected]. Incomplete submissions will not be considered. Please, no phone calls. Please, local candidates only (relocation is not provided).

The candidate selected for this position will complete an account setup and online application via the My AmeriCorps Portal as well as intake forms via a secure system.

LISC AmeriCorps and Jewish Family Service of San Diego are committed to diversity and inclusion in the selection process.