Director, Neighborhood Resource Centers, City of Philadelphia

Posted by City of Philadelphia on March 17, 2020

Neighborhood Resource Centers: Philadelphia is launching a citywide network of Neighborhood Resource Centers (NRCs), replicating a successful national model that seeks to reduce recidivism and incarceration rates while also providing services to justice-involved Philadelphians, their families and loved ones, and community members. NRCs aim to reduce probation/parole violations by removing barriers and meeting people where they are and delivering critical programs in welcoming community-centered spaces. NRCs are neighborhood-based one-stop shops that will unite community supervision, access to citywide resources and community-based providers to provide a broad range of services to support holistic reintegration, restoration, and wellness, while also building trust between City agencies and neighborhoods. NRCs will be implemented by the City in close collaboration with Philadelphia’s Adult Probation and Parole Department (APPD), with the support of other criminal justice agencies, and in partnership with neighborhoods.

The Office of Reentry Partnerships (ORP), in Philadelphia’s Managing Directors Office, was formed in August 2019 with the goal of empowering returning citizens, partner organizations, and the public to interrupt the cycle of recidivism and build thriving communities. ORP is Philadelphia’s hub for reentry referrals, resources, and training, charged with elevating and organizing citywide reentry efforts and working to support the Kenney administrations goals for violence prevention, criminal justice reform, and services to formerly incarcerated individuals. Specifically, the goals of the Office of Reentry Partnerships are to: 1) Set a clear vision and direction for a measurable citywide approach to improving reentry outcomes; 2) Drive and sustain an unprecedented level of coordination between the local government, other government partners, service providers, education and training programs, employers, and community members; and 3) ensure that City reentry initiatives are research- and data-driven.

Philadelphia Adult Probation and Parole Department (APPD): The mission of the APPD is to provide protection to the community by intervening in the lives of offenders. The APPD holds offenders accountable by enforcing the orders of the court. Through a balance of enforcement and treatment strategies, the APPD affords offenders the opportunity to become productive, law-abiding citizens. The APPD also provides assistance to the victims of the offenders that it supervises. Each day the APPD strives to become a leading organization in the field of community corrections by implementing evidence-based strategies. APPD is excited about partnering with the Managing Directors Office on the Neighborhood Resource Center initiative, to make a difference in the lives of people on probation and the community through increased collaboration and coordination of services. NRCs will be a gateway to providing community based supervision by the Adult Probation & Parole Department while delivering critical programs in welcoming community- centered spaces.

Job Description

The Office of Reentry Partnerships seeks a dynamic and experienced leader to serve as the Director for the Neighborhood Resource Center (NRC) initiative. The NRC Director will be responsible for launching the first NRC site and subsequent sites to constitute a citywide network which requires complex collaboration between the City of Philadelphia, the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania and APPD, and many partner organizations and communities. The NRC Director will lead a diverse team of direct and indirect reports, foster a culture of partnership and service delivery that is rooted in human dignity and safety, and manage many types of stakeholder relationships including sustained grassroots community engagement. As a senior member of the Office of Reentry Partnerships staff, the NRC Director will work closely with City colleagues, APPD, and key stakeholders to make this exciting new initiative successful. Strong candidates will demonstrate that they possess excellent vision, strategy, management and leadership skills, as well as advanced abilities related to program design, operations, communications, and partnerships, and the capacity to build and use a data- and outcome- framework to define and evaluate impact and system change.

Finally, a successful candidate will be aligned with the Kenney Administrations commitment to help all Philadelphians reach their potential, and take an asset-based approach to individuals, neighborhoods, and systems.

Vision & Strategy

Essential Functions

• Develop proposals for and work closely with ORP leadership and key partners such as APPD and the Criminal Justice Advisory Board (CJAB) to set the strategic direction of the Neighborhood Resource Centers initiative, including:
  • Successful implementation of first site;
  • Scaling and expansion to additional satellite and hub sites constituting a citywide NRC network.
• Cultivate and maintain a culture of intellectual challenge, curiosity, and collaboration, where government, community partners, people on probation, and the surrounding neighborhood work together to address the needs of some of the City’s most vulnerable residents.
• Inspire and communicate expectations for the potential of NRCs to transform supervision by meeting people where they are, lifting them up, and improving outcomes for individuals and communities.
• Develop, direct, and manage research, planning, design, and implementation of various projects related to Neighborhood Resource Centers.

Management & Leadership

• Lead day-to-day and overall project management, supervise and manage performance of the Neighborhood Resource Center staff team, solving problems as they arise, and making sure work moves forward.
• Help to hire and onboard the Neighborhood Resource Center staff team leading up to the opening of the first NRC site.
• Create a continuous professional development framework to ensure that the NRC staff team understands and has the practical knowledge needed to continue innovating and expanding our work while maintaining a positive and healthy work environment.
• Assist in fundraising and development efforts to ensure the sustainability of the initiative.

Communications & Partnerships

• Support a communications strategy that includes people on probation, neighborhood residents, and local stakeholders in the design, launch and ongoing operations of Neighborhood Resource Centers.
• Work closely with MDO, ORP and APPD to represent Neighborhood Resource Centers at external meetings, public and community events, and in the media, and to share learning and best practices with diverse audiences.
• Ensure NRCs operate in an atmosphere of true cooperation and collaboration, maximizing knowledge sharing and efficiency.
• Act as liaison with APPD/ORP management, personnel and staff sharing information and communicating regularly to increase staff awareness and engagement with new initiatives and priorities.
• Maintain close trust- and results-based partnerships with key partners including: APPD, City departments, CJAB, grassroots organizations, service providers, advocates, and researchers.
• Practice evidence-based methods to maintain fidelity to the NRC model through robust stakeholder engagement, staying informed of current related interdisciplinary research, and liaising with other cities, nonprofits and the media covering related policy and initiatives.

Program Design & Operations

• Lead program design and implementation for NRC service delivery.
• Manage complex daily NRC operations including contracted vendors, case management, peer navigation services, other community services, and facility management.
• Track and maintain NRC budget.
• Leverage emerging research to help advance programmatic goals and bring greater cohesion to NRCs including, but not limited to: credible messengers/mentoring, community supervision, case management, public health, etc.
• Develop, collect and report on metrics and quality-control measures to track both process and outcome measures for the NRC initiative, including, but not limited to, number of people receiving services, percentage of probation completions and/or violations, etc.
• Work with MDO, ORP and APPD and the NRC staff team to develop and continually improve standardized project processes, data collection, tracking and reporting tools.
• Initiate and renew data sharing agreements, where applicable, by receiving Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval through the Law Department or in partnership with academic institutions.
• Sustain operational needs as it relates to supplies, equipment maintenance, etc.

Learn more and apply here: https://www.smartrecruiters.com/CityofPhiladelphia/743999708341756-director-neighborhood-resource-centers