Program Coordinator in Chicago, Illinois at Centers For New Horizons Inc

Position Description
Under the general direction of the Youth Team Lead, The Program Coordinator (PC) initiates and maintains ongoing personal contacts with a variety of business and industry representatives and job placement/training agencies to promote programs for participant placement; makes cold calls to potential employers; explains the benefits and employment support services provided by programs to employers, including addressing employer's special needs; researches Internet, newspapers, agencies, and other resources for job leads; locates jobs for participants who have successfully completed training programs; collects data from employers related to job orders including job requirements and skills; matches job skills with applicant qualifications; refers qualified applicants to employers and conducts necessary follow-up when applicants are placed in positions; keeps updated regarding job fairs and Internet resources; researches various resume programs; creates monthly quantitative and qualitative reports; participates in outreach and recruitment activities by coordinating and attending job fairs.
This position also includes direct supervision of youth enrolled in our EmpowerU workforce program. In addition, this role may serve as a backup for after-school support.
Responsibilities:
• Assists participants in assessing their job skills for positions
• Administers and scores standard career assessments
• Instructs in job seeking, application procedures, resume writing, interview preparation and job retention skills and attitudes
• Assists participants in preparing job search portfolio
• Provides job search/career information workshops and presentations
• Arranges for interviews
• Provides labor market and community resource information
• Monitors participant performance on the job and counsels’ participants when job performance is not satisfactory
• Works with participants to improve job performance and gain necessary job skills or reviews other employment options
• Maintains contact with employers during the participants' employment and reports results to appropriate staff
• May drive participants to interviews, job fairs, and other organizations
• Prepares forms and reports related to placement activities
• Tracks clients progress in the program as needed
• Assists instructors in the collection of educational materials as requested
• Provides program information to various businesses, schools, chambers of commerce, and committees, and updates information as needed
• Coordinates business orientations
• Maintains contact with and assists in researching problems, complaints or concerns
• Provides networking opportunities between agencies
• Assists in program presentations to the Board of Education
• Serves as a member of various committees as requested
• Assists in developing flyers, brochures and other methods to advertise job placement activities
• Coordinates and distributes information and materials for meetings
• Assists in planning meeting agendas
• Assists in meeting set-up
• Maintains current committee member lists for various committees
• Keeps current with trends and maintains updated labor market information by researching web sites, attending meetings, maintaining contacts with various trade schools, and professional/community organizations that are involved in job placement/training activities
• Qualifications
• Bachelor’s degree preferred, in a related field such as social work or psychology or from a credited institution in a related field.
• Must maintain a valid driver’s license and have access to a vehicle on a daily basis
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills
• 3 - 5 years’ experience performing case management, counseling, and/or coaching in a social service setting, preferably with formerly incarcerated individuals, opportunity youth, or similarly at-risk populations

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Effectively market and represent a program, its clients and services to employers; communicate effectively in both oral and written form; plan and make presentations to small groups including potential employers, business representatives, teachers, and program participants; assess the interests and aptitudes of participants; operate a variety of office equipment; use a computer to prepare documents and presentations, maintain various databases, and search for information on the Internet; utilize time management techniques to organize and prioritize work; work independently and meet timelines; coordinate a variety of projects simultaneously; interpersonal skills to work cooperatively and effectively with individuals and groups; interact with students and adults from different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds; provide instruction and make presentations on resume preparation, job seeking, job retention, and interview skills; read, interpret, and apply rules and procedures.

Knowledge of workforce development and employment services for chronically unemployed individuals or individuals experiencing poverty
Methods and techniques of job development and client placement; current practices in vocational education
Local labor market trends and employment opportunities in both the private and public sectors in the Chicago-land Community
Effective procedures in identifying and securing training sites for participants
Available community resources and services principles of marketing and public relations
Basic internet research techniques
Various types of filing systems
English grammar, punctuation, and spelling

EEO Statement
Centers for New Horizons, its partners, and subcontractors are committed to a policy that provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, medical condition, including genetic characteristics, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identification and expression, sexual orientation; and to making all employment decisions so as to further this principle of equal employment opportunity.

Requirements are representative of minimum levels of knowledge, skills and/or abilities. To perform this job successfully, the incumbent will possess the abilities or aptitudes to perform each duty proficiently. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” employment relationship.