Youth Life Coach

“For many of our youth, their village isn’t handed to them...it is Found.”

Katie Nzekwu, Co-Founder & Co- CEO

POSITION OVERVIEW

We are looking for an individual who has boundless hope for our youth and a curious mindset to explore what needs young people communicate through their actions rather than a standard scripted set of interventions. If you are open to learning and building your skillset in ways that actively influence and support the needs of young people while empowering them to meet their full potential, then you could be the perfect fit for our Youth Life Coach role!

A DAY IN THE LIFE

As you might imagine, no day is the same for our Found Village Coaches, but below are examples of the type of activities and responsibilities you would experience in this role.

• Stabilize and mobilize youth from hard places, ages 13-25, out of poverty by coaching, mentoring, inspiring, and empowering them to find their innate gifts and talents that help them reach their full potential
• Build strong-tie relationships with young people that create a foundation of trust and high influence
• Collaborate with your teammates and the young people to develop and implement strengths-based goals and success plans that build self-esteem while maintaining a high level of accountability to achieving those goals
• Advocate for young people by consulting and collaborating with families, caregivers, schools, and other agencies
• Promote an environment of safety and stability for young people that encourages healing, belonging, and relational interdependence
• Participate in various programs and fun group activities to build community and comradery among the young people
• Be part of the Found Village team and be constantly learning and growing!

SUCCESS FACTORS

Each of our Found Village Coaches brings a unique blend of skills and experiences, but listed below are what we’ve learned are key “success factors” for thriving in this role and therefore what we look for when hiring.

• 1-3 years of youth engagement experience
• Skilled in building strong-tie relationships with youth
• Boundless hope for youth from hard places and relentlessly advocates for their needs. Highly collaborative and humble enough to seek out knowledge, help, and support to serve the needs of our young people. Open to learning more about youth involved in the foster care system and yourself
• Enjoys working in a fun environment and focuses on personal mental health through positive self-care activities
• Desires to understand the full scope of the youth we serve, without judgment: barriers, motivations, challenges, unique gifts and the context behind them
• Able to allow Young People to lead their plan even if you may not be personally aligned with their choices
• Prefer a team-based approach over working as an individual
• Excited to work with a team of three other coaches to serve 30 youth
• Highly flexible and adaptable, comfortable in a growing organization that pivots when needed to optimize the work for our youth
• Available from 10:00 am - 6:00 pm, Monday-Friday, to participate in after-school engagement activities
• Has a valid driver's license, insurance, and a reliable vehicle. Due to the youth we serve being all over Hamilton County, there is a decent amount of time spent driving in this role
• Bonus: A degree in Social Work, Counseling, or a related field
• Bonus: You are trauma informed and have experience working with youth in the foster care system. If not, a willingness to learn is crucial.

ABOUT FOUND VILLAGE

Let’s face it, our society runs on a network of various systems set in place to meet the needs of individuals. Unfortunately, many of these systems, though well intended, are not designed to raise kids and meet their needs holistically. Because of this, the teens we work with often lose trust, give up, and let their pain drive choices and behavior. They have been in and out of detention centers, courtrooms, foster homes, shelters, different schools and so on. They are from hard places and circumstances that leave them frustrated and discouraged. They are assigned diminishing labels, misdiagnosis, unrealistic work plans and offered subpar support programs. To nobody’s surprise, there is often no real change. We come along to support the families and communities in need. We are here to partner with these systems–to come behind them and fill in the gaps wherever necessary. Without a holistic approach to serving kids in crisis, there are many areas of needs that are left unmet. In turn, this results in deeper levels of trauma, neglect, and misunderstanding. We exist to support our teens and their families so they can understand and navigate the systems that they have become a part of. We aim to help elevate the voices of our youth and provide them with the support that your average teenager born into a different circumstance would inherently receive.

THE YOUNG PEOPLE WE WORK WITH

Our populations consist of foster care teens, young people emancipated from foster care with no family or support, teens living in single parent’s homes, and teens experiencing difficult life circumstances. All of our teens have one thing in common, they come from systems of inequality, generational poverty and extreme dysfunction that has prevented a way out. Found Village is the community that is changing the outcomes!

It takes a Village. For many of our children their Village isn’t handed to them, it is Found. We all have something different to offer each child and we work tirelessly to teach them about the power of finding healthy, stable, connected relationships with the people within their communities.

LEARN MORE!

If you’d like to learn even more about Found Village, please visit www.foundvillage.org. The “Our Voices” section of the site is a great way to see the impact the organization has made on young people in the Cincinnati community.

Job Type: Full-time

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Vision insurance
• Generous Paid Time Off
• 401k Matching
• Short and Long Term Disability Coverage
• Life Insurance
• Mileage Reimbursement