Family Empowerment Coach (Bilingual, English/Spanish)

Description

Habitat for Humanity is seeking a full-time, Family Empowerment Coach (FEC) to provide direct services and support for applicants and Habitat Partner Families. This position requires bilingual language skills in Spanish and English. 

Summary of the Position:

The Family Empowerment Coach (FEC) is part of Habitat’s Department of Family and Community Partnerships, which provides direct services and supports for Habitat applicants, homebuyers, and homeowners. The Family Empowerment Coach provides a variety of direct services for low to moderate-income individuals including conducting financial empowerment workshops, assessing individuals’ and families’ financial capabilities, and providing personalized one-on-one financial coaching sessions. Empowerment coaching involves an ability to engage and motivate clients, a capacity to deepen one’s understanding of personal finances, and the ability to teach that knowledge to others. The Family Empowerment Coach is responsible for assisting clients in developing plans of action that are intended to help individuals and their families reach their goals and achieve financial stability.

The FEC will support the Pathways to Housing program, a financial empowerment program for aspiring homebuyers that face income and/or debt barriers to homeownership. The FEC will be responsible for supporting partnerships and pathways to affordable homeownership outside of Habitat. This position reports to the Associate Director of Homeowner Services.

Job Duties

Direct Client Services

• Provide one-on-one financial coaching to low-income families and individuals enrolled in Habitat’s programs
• Conduct financial empowerment and homebuyer education workshops that cover topics such as: budgeting, savings, banking products, credit building, predatory lending, identity theft and more
• Assist clients in resolving current financial situations, while providing a wide lens on their financial health to shift the approach to proactive financial management
• Employ motivational interviewing techniques and strengths-based approaches to build effective, long-term relationships with program participants
• Work with clients to complete a detailed financial assessment and build a holistic plan of action that address barriers to financial stability and self-sufficiency
• Work with individuals to document a budget and build a spending/savings plan that supports their goals and values
• Understand services and resources offered in the community, such as employment services, child care supports, housing, counseling, and other critical social services and connect the clients to these resources

Case Management

• Use Outcome Tracker, a client management system, to document and report on client outcomes accurately and in a timely manner
• Collect required income documentation for partner families: pay stubs, income/ expense trackers, bank statements, W2s/ tax returns
• Access credit reports/ scores and provide strategies for improving credit
• Utilize and maintain up-to-date financial calculators to track client progress

• Monitor sweat equity, credit and income for partner families
• Administer surveys, collect data, enter data and provide information for various grant applications and reports

• Document the stories and successes of program participants

Program Development

• Develop workshop materials or tailor existing materials to meet the needs of families
• Develop relationships with local financial institutions and community organizations
• Work with mainstream financial institutions to understand the needs of the community so they can provide products and services that fit
• Create a network of referral organizations to help you assist the client meet their goals (e.g. local housing counseling agency, legal aid, etc.)

Application Support

• Meet with applicants to assist them with the application process and discuss the Habitat program
• Work with Homeowner Selection Committee to evaluate applications, conduct home visits, conduct financial interviews and make recommendations for partnership to the board

Skills Required

• Bilingual, Spanish and English
• A Bachelor’s degree or relevant professional experience in similar field
• HUD housing counseling certification preferred, but not required (must take and pass exam within first 4 months of employment)
• Previous experience serving low-income population and/or the ability to provide services in a compassionate and culturally sensitive manner
• Previous experience working in social services/non-profit sector
• Previous experience in project management
• Comfortable working independently with strong initiative
• Aware of and sensitive to a diversity of cultures, life experience, power/privilege and backgrounds
• Experience in facilitating adult education groups and/or developing curriculum
• Experience or interest in mentoring and/or coaching
• Excellent interpersonal skills and strong ability to listen
• Excellent communication skills both oral and written
• A strong understanding of personal finances, particularly in the areas of budgeting, asset building, and credit building
• Ability to manage confidential material
• Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with volunteers, colleagues and Board members

• Ability to adopt flexible, creative approaches to helping low-wealth families achieve financial stability
• Demonstrated ability to multi‐task, plan, organize, and implement multiple projects and meet
• deadlines
• Command knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), Google Drive (Docs, Sheets, Forms), and other common non‐profit database software
• Flexibility to work frequent nights and weekends
• Positive, “can do” personality

Work Schedule

Frequent evenings or Occasional weekends expected.

One of the Family Empowerment Coach’s key responsibilities includes meeting monthly with clients for personalized one-on-one financial coaching sessions. As many of Habitat’s low to moderate-income families are employed 9-5 PM on weekdays, the Family Empowerment Coach must have the flexibility to accommodate others’ schedules. The Family Empowerment Coach may creatively design their work schedule to better accommodate more frequent evenings or weekend hours as needed.

Additional Info

Please submit a cover letter and current resume to apply.