Placement Coordinator Social Service Specialist ; SSS- Spokane

Overview

Our vision is to ensure that “Washington state’s children and youth grow up safe and healthy— thriving physically, emotionally, and academically, nurtured by family and community.

Job Title: Placement Coordinator Social Service Specialist 3 (SSS3)

Location: Spokane, WA (This is a hybrid position, with three telework days and two in-office days per week. This telework schedule is subject to change to meet business needs. This position serves all offices in Region 1. For a detailed view of DCYF's regional boundaries, .)

Closes: 1/31/26

Salary: $5666- $7622 Monthly

DCYF is looking for Placement Coordinator Social Service Specialists 3 to join our Spokane office. Our office environment excels at team support and collaborative supervision. If you would like a career where you can make a significant difference in the lives of children, apply today.

to learn more about DCYF.

The primary function of this position is to determine if children are safe with their families and caregivers, intervene to protect children who are not safe and develop a case plan with the family and caregivers to remedy the situation. You will assess and plan and ensure timely permanency outcomes for all children on your caseload, including reunification, adoption, guardianship, and third-party custody plans.

• Placement Coordination and Placement Entry.
• Apply child welfare practice, principles, law, rules, and policy in assessing and placing children.
• Maintain thorough knowledge and excellent working relationships with foster parents, placement agencies, other placement coordinators, and office staff.
• Prepare required documents for placement and respite.
• Keep track of placements and respite through approved electronic documents.
• Provide ongoing assessment of risk.
• Assist in the development of strength-based and client-involved plans to address areas of need.
• Assist with evaluating the progress of children via communication with foster care placements and relay information to the social worker for action.
• Document case activities and maintain case records within FAMLINK for child placement and child/family services.

• Social Service Specialist 3:
  • Six (6) years of paid social service experience and 30 semester or 45 quarter credits in a Social Service discipline, OR
  • Bachelor’s degree in social services, human services, behavioral sciences, or any degree that includes 30 semester or 45 quarter credits in a Social Service discipline and two (2) years of paid social service experience, OR
  • Master's degree in social services, human services, behavioral sciences, or any degree which includes 30 semester or 45 quarter credits in a Social Service discipline and one (1) year of paid social service experience, OR
  • One (1) year of experience as a Social Service Specialist 2.
• The ability to take action to learn and grow.
• The ability to take action to meet the needs of others.

* Paid Social Service experience must include at least one year of assessing risk and safety to children and providing direct family-centered practice services.

• Ability to competently evaluate, analyze, and assess the risk and safety of children and implement appropriate procedures using the agency's preferred risk and safety assessment tools.
• Ability to comprehend, interpret, and apply current applicable laws, rules, and policies on the delivery of child protective and child welfare services.
• Ability to effectively partner with community partners and professionals to develop and maintain resource teams to support children and families.
• Ability to develop and maintain good working relationships with child’s caregiver (parents, foster parents, relatives, kin, or facility staff).
• Competent computer skills, including the ability to type and operate basic computer programs, such as Word and Excel.
• Ability to learn the agency’s software programs.
• Proficiency in the utilization of e-mail program functions such as calendar and meeting requests.

As a Social Service Specialist, you are required to successfully complete a mandatory 9.5-week Worker Core Training…