Senior Advisor

Who We Are:

Foster America is transforming the way our nation supports families. Together with communities and local governments, we’re creating a just, equitable alternative to today’s child welfare system—so parents and children stay together with access to the resources they need to thrive. To foster a future where all children and families thrive, we:

Drive Innovation: We are designing solutions alongside our nation’s boldest governments and communities. Together, we demonstrate that bolstering support for families is an effective alternative to referring them for a child welfare investigation that may lead to the separation of families.

Develop Changemakers: We’re building a network of people with the imagination—and determination—to transform the child welfare system. We nurture and connect leaders, growing their skills and amplifying our collective impact.

Disseminate Knowledge: We share what works, so more families and more organizations in more places have the support they need. Our workshops and training allow child welfare practitioners, community leaders, and those who have experienced the foster care system firsthand to learn from our team and one another. 

Foster America cultivates a network and staff team that values and elevates diverse perspectives, experiences, and expertise as we shape new ways forward for children and families. 

To learn more about Foster America, please visit https://www.foster-america.org/  

The Opportunity:

Foster America seeks a Senior Advisor- Washington for a three-year initiative working alongside child welfare officials to increase the use of prevention services that reduce entry into foster care. This role spearheads systemic change efforts by leveraging expertise in community co-design, collective impact methodologies, and strategic stakeholder alignment.

Responsibilities:

The Senior Advisor-Washington will lead and support the design and implementation of prevention frameworks and pathways, including those for families involved in pre-placement services in the child welfare system, as well as those adjacent to but outside the formal child welfare system. In support of this work, they will establish and support governance structures that enhance collaboration and innovation among diverse stakeholders. They will integrate Racial Equity and Social Justice ensuring equity principles are embedded throughout the initiative. Additionally, they will amplify the voices of lived experts—individuals who have been personally impacted by the child welfare system—to ensure policy and practice changes reflect the real experiences of families. The Senior Advisor-Washington will coordinate efforts between fiscal and child welfare teams to optimize resources and align strategies.

This includes: 

• Explore Options and Establish Governance Structures
• Form and facilitate a Steering Committee
• Recruit key stakeholders, including government leaders and community organizations.
• Lead strategic planning to address how a strengthened governance structure can help to reduce silos and improve coordination within the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF).
• May include creation and management of an additional community advisory body:
• Ensure at least 50% representation of lived experts.
• Support members through education, compensation, and engagement activities.
• Integrating Racial Equity and Social Justice
• Collaborate with the office of Racial Equity and Social Justice.
• Embed the DCYF guiding principles of Racial Equity and Social Justice into all strategies.
• Review and utilize disproportionality in child welfare reports to inform decisions impacting marginalized and tribal communities.
• Supporting Lived Experts
• Prioritize impacted perspectives in decision-making processes.
• Engage with communities to understand their context and needs.
• Facilitate integration of lived experts into public systems (e.g., health, education, human services).
• Designing Alternative Pathways
• Lead and support development of a framework for prevention using participatory and community-engaged processes.
• Collaborate with governmental leaders and technical assistance providers.
• Coordinate support from Foster America specialists in fiscal, data/technology, and design.
• Enhancing Data Systems
• Assess data infrastructure:
• Evaluate current data processes and identify current assets and gaps.
• Implement data-driven practices:
• Support the production of biannual outcome reports.
• Align metrics with evolving initiative priorities.
• Building Strategy and Alignment between Fiscal,Child Welfare and Program Teams
• Enhance Collaboration:
• Foster teamwork between fiscal, child welfare, and program teams to improve funding agility and accountability.
• Optimize Resources:
• Align strategies and utilize data-driven insights to optimize resource allocation.
• Support Preventive Initiatives:
• Coordinate efforts to enhance preventive services and support system transformation.

The responsibilities outlined in this section are intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of this position and is not exhaustive. Further details will be provided to candidates that are advanced in the recruitment process.

First Year Success:

The Senior Advisor-Washington will demonstrate success during the first year through:

• Building Relationships and Trust (5%)

Engage stakeholders—including DCYF staff, government officials, community organization, and tribes—to foster collaboration and develop mutual accountability for reaching shared goals.

• Aligning Fiscal, Child Welfare, and Program Strategies (10%)

Facilitate meetings between fiscal and program teams and optimize funding opportunities and resource allocation.

• Enhancing Data-Driven Decision-Making (10%)

Assess data systems, address gaps, and reports to guide strategic adjustments.

• Lead and Support Design and Implementation of a Prevention Framework (25%)

Lead and support design and implementation of a prevention framework to reduce foster care entries, developing and testing preventive solutions while coordinating with specialists and technical-assistance providers.

• Engage and Support Lived Experts (15%)

Engage lived experts by prioritizing their perspectives in decision-making and optimizing opportunities to integrate their insights into systems-change efforts.

• Integrating Racial Equity and Social Justice (10%)

Collaborate with relevant offices to embed equity and use data to address disparities among marginalized populations.

• Explore and Establish Governance Structures (20%)

Form and lead strategic planning sessions through a Steering Committee and explore and establish governance structures. Facilitate engagement activities.

Education & Work Experience:

• Master’s degree in Social Work, Public Administration, or related field preferred.
• Minimum of 7 years in child welfare/or prevention or systemic change initiatives.
• Proven experience with community co-design, collective impact, and organizing systems-change efforts.
• Data driven decision making experience and skills at creating and managing data dashboards. 

Reporting:

This role will report to the Director of Discovery and Engagement and the Senior Vice President of Programs. This role provides dotted-line supervision to Foster America specialists (e.g., data, fiscal, co-design, system-mapping, and equity) assigned to work alongside selected jurisdictions.

Start Date:

This position will start on March 31, 2024. 

Benefits & Compensation:

Salary is commensurate with experience in the range of $126,000 – $140,000. Foster America offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical insurance, paid vacation, paid parental leave, paid holidays, commuter benefits, participation in a retirement plan, paid sick time, and professional development opportunities. See our detailed benefits package here.

Work Location:

This is a remote position. It requires prolonged periods sitting at a desk and working on a computer. The role may include up to 40% travel. 

Foster America is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in professional and lived experience. Frequently cited statistics show that underrepresented groups apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. Foster America encourages you to break that statistic and apply. No one ever meets 100% of the qualifications.

We look forward to reviewing your application.