Job Description

THE ORGANIZATION

The Center for Justice Innovation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing community safety and racial justice. Since 1996, we’ve worked alongside communities, courts, and those most directly affected by the justice system to build stronger, healthier, and more equitable neighborhoods. With a team of over 900 staff and an annual budget of $130 million, the Center carries out its mission through three core strategies:

1. Operating Programs that pilot new ideas and address local challenges;
2. Conducting original research to evaluate what works—and what doesn’t; and
3. Providing expert assistance and policy guidance to reformers across the country and beyond.

Backed by decades of on-the-ground experience and nationally recognized expertise, we bring innovative, practical, and lasting solutions to justice systems nationwide.
Learn more about our work at .

THE OPPORTUNITY

Brooklyn Justice Initiatives (BJI), the largest operating project of the Center, seeks to re-engineer the experience of criminal court in Brooklyn, New York, by providing judges and attorneys meaningful alternatives to bail, fines, and jail sentences. Operating out of Kings County Criminal Court and community-based offices, BJI is a team of social service providers, court-based resource coordinators, mental health practitioners, compliance specialists, and others who seek to improve the quality of justice. Supervised Release offers an alternative to jail by providing pretrial supervision, case management, and voluntary social services to people charged with misdemeanor and felony offenses, and in doing so, uses an arrest as a window of opportunity to change the direction of a participant’s life, avoiding the harmful effects of incarceration. Program participants are monitored to ensure their appearance at court dates and mandatory programming, and receive referrals to services like job training, drug treatment, and mental health counseling.

BJI seeks Night Clinical Intake Specialists for the borough’s Supervised Release Program (SRP). Reporting to the Night Clinical Intake Coordinator, Clinical Intake Specialists will leverage social work or mental health training and direct practice experience to facilitate participants’ successful transition into SRP. Clinical Intake Specialists will conduct a comprehensive needs assessment; connect participants with an appropriate case manager, focusing on participant needs and individual case manager skills and strengths; generate mandatory programming recommendations, and refer candidates to services with community-based service providers. Additionally, this position will provide de-escalation and emergency intervention within the courthouse, as needed. 

Night Clinical Intake Specialists are responsible for effective cross-team communication and collaboration to prioritize comprehensive and aligned service delivery; proactively identifying successes, challenges, and opportunities to strengthen programming; create opportunities for meaningful collaboration, and maximize the use of internal and external resources and expertise. 

• Complete intake and comprehensive assessment for all participants mandated to SRP in Brooklyn;
  • Assess for needs presented through participants’ use of direct communication, tone and tenor, the content of self-disclosure, body language, and paraverbal communication; 
  • Treat all participants with dignity and respect;
• Provide voluntary service referrals as indicated by participant needs and goals; 
• Work with the Clinical Intake Coordinator to generate and submit mandatory programming recommendations to court; 
• Work with the Clinical Intake Coordinator to effectively orchestrate case assignments; 
  • Work closely with the case management team to ensure participants are effectively  transitioned from intake to case management teams; 
  • Schedule participants’ first check-in and communicate about new case assignments with the Clinical Intake Manager and the case manager receiving the participant and their direct supervisor;
• Monitor participants’ compliance with supervision requirements; 
  • Conduct outreach to participants, their collateral contacts, and defense attorneys to maximize compliance with supervision requirements; 
• Maintain accurate and timely data entry and case documentation aligned with the program model, court reporting obligations, and best practices; 
• Submit accurate and timely reports to court within designated time frames, including compliance, noncompliance, re-arrest, and mandatory programming court notifications; 
• Provide de-escalation in response to incidents occurring in courthouse and intake; 
• Maintain professional and positive relationships with court staff, judges, and attorneys;
• Responsible for consistent and effective cross-team communication and collaboration to proactively identify successes, challenges, and opportunities to strengthen programming, create opportunities for meaningful collaboration, and maximize internal and external resources and expertise;
• Participate in individual, group supervision, and regular staff trainings to develop program expertise and related skill sets; 
• Participate in all-staff and departmental meetings to build team cohesion, communication, and morale;
• Attend project events, community events, and meetings after hours, as needed; and
• Additional tasks as necessary. 

Qualifications:

• A Master's degree in a mental health field or Social Work and 2 years direct practice (e.g. therapeutic or case management) experience required; license is strongly preferred;
• Ability to work nights and weekends required; 
• Experience in pretrial, court-based, or criminal legal system strongly preferred; 
• Must be detail-oriented with strong organizational and time management skills;
• Experience working within a specialized branch of service provision like substance use treatment, mental health services, co-occurring disorders, or adolescent development preferred;
• Therapeutic intervention training and experience preferred, including but not limited to crisis intervention or de-escalation management;
• Experience using trauma-informed and strength-based approaches strongly preferred; 
• Comprehensive knowledge and experience with local social service providers preferred; 
• Must be able to work effectively independently and as part of a highly interdependent, multi-disciplinary team within a fast-paced and dynamic work environment;
• Professional demeanor and ability to work collaboratively and effectively with a variety of program stakeholders, including judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, court staff, and site partner agencies; and
• Bilingual (English-Spanish) strongly preferred. 

Position Type: Full-time, in-person work is required. The standard 5-day workweek includes one or two weekend nights and three weekday nights, from 5:00pm - 1:00am. The work schedule may occasionally change to ensure coverage. Nights, weekends, and holidays are required.

Position Location: Brooklyn, NY.

Compensation: The compensation range for this position is $58,500 - $73,500 and is commensurate with experience. 

Benefits: The Center for Justice Innovation offers an excellent benefits package including comprehensive healthcare with a national network, free basic dental coverage, vision insurance, short-term and long-term disability, life insurance, and flexible spending accounts including commuter FSA. We prioritize mental health care for our staff and offer services like Talkspace and Ginger through our healthcare plans. We offer a 403(b) retirement plan with a two-to-one employer contribution up to 5%.

The Center for Justice Innovation is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, national origin, age, military service eligibility, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or any other category protected by law. We strongly encourage and welcome applications from women, people of color, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and individuals with prior contact with the criminal justice system. Our goal is to create a supportive and respectful environment where everyone, regardless of background or identity, feels valued and included.

At this time, the Center is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa. All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of application and throughout the duration of employment.

Candidates are expected to provide accurate and truthful information throughout the hiring process. Any misrepresentation, falsification, or omission of material facts may result in disqualification from consideration, withdrawal of an offer, or termination of employment, regardless of when discovered.

In compliance with federal law, all hires must verify their identity and eligibility to work in the United States and complete the required employment verification form upon hire. Please refer to the job posting for relevant contact information. If contact details are not provided, we kindly ask that you refrain from inquiries via phone or email, as only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

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