Schenectady County Department of Social Services serves the community of Schenectady County by assessing and addressing child welfare concerns. Our agency oversees a multitude of responsibilities.
The New York State Child Abuse Registry, takes reports of child abuse and maltreatment and assigns them to Schenectady County for investigation when families reside in our jurisdiction. Our caseworkers are assigned to investigate allegations and to provide caseworker services to the families they are assigned to. Over the course of an investigation, caseworkers interview children, parents, and relevant collateral contacts to make a determination about the validity of the reports. Caseworkers make assessments on how to best assist families in all situations, and when necessary seek Family Court intervention, provide preventive services to avoid the need to seek Family Court intervention, or when appropriate, close cases not requiring further intervention.
Family Support caseworkers provide ongoing assistance to families in an effort to alleviate safety and risk concerns. Caseworkers link families with services , oversee court orders, and build relationships that allow them to continually assess for safety. Our caseworkers work diligently with children and families when children are placed in foster care to address the concerns that lead to placement and return the children to safe and appropriate situations as soon as possible. When necessary, caseworkers work with children freed for adoption to find permanency.
The Department has a unit of caseworkers devoted to overseeing children identified as Persons in Need of Supervision, who exhibit difficult and often delinquent behavior. The Department also has a unit of caseworkers in a foster care/home finding unit responsible for recruiting, training, and retaining foster parents. Furthermore, the Department oversees a unit of staff who handle all daycare/grant matters for Schenectady County.
An intern placed with Schenectady County Department of Social Services will have ample learning opportunities. Intern will work closely with caseworkers throughout the child welfare process. After learning the policies, procedures, and demonstrating general skills, intern will have the opportunity to work closely with families at high risk, and often confirmed abuse/neglect concerns. Intern will be able to interview children, parents, and collateral contacts to gain a holistic view and assessment of a family's situation. Intern will have an opportunity to work together with law enforcement, our local district attorney, and our own legal team when criminal concerns, or legal concerns rising to the level of Family Court intervention exist.
Intern will have an opportunity to establish rapport with a family, learn how to appropriately assess for safety and risk - and document such concerns in a case record through formal assessment and progress notes.
Where appropriate, intern will learn how to refer a family for long-term services, and how to assess which programs would work best relative to existing health and safety concerns. Intern will be able to work with family support caseworkers to monitor and assess the long-term efficacy of such programs, and a family's overall improvement or continued need.
Special placement information:
Accepting MSW 1st-year and MSW 2nd-year/advanced standing (SL + clinical) students. Full- and part-time positions available.
Agency operates 24/7, 365 days a year. Intern expected to work within our typical 8:30AM - 4:30PM standard hours of operation. *On occasion and situation-dependent*, intern could work later in the day, but the hours spent in such a capacity could be "flexed" on a different internship day.
Intern will need transportation. Agency is accessible by bus. Intern not permitted to drive agency vehicles, but will be able to work with a case manager who can drive the cars so they will not need to use personal vehicle.
Audio/video-taping of caseworkers permitted, but not of clients.