Program Specialist, Prevention & Outreach

About Missouri KidsFirst

For over 20 years, Missouri KidsFirst’s (MKF) has pursued its mission to empower adults to protect children from abuse and neglect. MKF works toward this mission through its pivotal statewide roles:

• accredited state chapter of the fifteen regional child advocacy centers (CACs),
• coordinator for the Missouri SAFE-CARE Network—the state’s medical response to child abuse, and
• Prevent Child Abuse Missouri Chapter

MKF is a statewide network of individuals, programs and organizations committed to protecting children by preventing harm from happening in the first place and improving the response to abuse if it does.

MKF is currently seeking qualified applicants for the following position: Program Specialist, Prevention and Outreach

Position Summary:

Missouri KidsFirst (MKF) is seeking a creative and passionate Program Specialist to collaborate with the Director of Prevention and Outreach to promote and support Missouri KidsFirst’s primary child abuse and neglect prevention programming, awareness education, and outreach efforts. The Program Specialist will specifically support MKF’s statewide child sexual abuse prevention strategies which include but are not limited to Darkness to Light’s Stewards of Children (www.d2l.org), an adaptation of Children’s Wisconsin’s Awareness to Action program (www.a2awisconsin.org), and development of a community action child sexual abuse and assault prevention toolkit. Communications and outreach responsibilities will support all of MKF’s programming.

Essential functions:

• Deliver child sexual abuse primary prevention trainings to organizations who serve children and provide them to the public.
• Research and build knowledge and expertise in child sexual abuse prevention to provide technical assistance and training to other primary prevention organizations and professionals.
• Coordinate virtual meetings for statewide training networks and support Director of Prevention and Outreach in annual train the trainer events for each strategy.
• Support training materials distribution and evaluation data collection.
• Assist MKF leadership with external communications efforts, including PR, media inquiries, partnerships, and sponsorships.
• Assist in content creation for social media platforms, email marketing campaigns, web content and collateral. Largest annual project- Child Abuse Prevention Month each April.
• Assist with planning, promotion and execution of sponsored event, Standing with Children lunch event each April.
• Represent MKF at various community and/or partner meetings and conferences; promote existing programs.
• Demonstrate teamwork and support of MKF’s mission and values.
• Comply with all MKF’s policies and procedures.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

To be successful in this position, applicants must be able to perform each essential responsibility satisfactorily. The responsibilities listed above are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or ability required.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with varying abilities to perform essential functions.

Education: Associate or bachelor’s degree in one of the following degree categories: social or behavioral sciences, communications, human services, public health, criminal justice, or education.

Work Experience: A minimum of 3-5 years of child welfare, teaching, human services, public health, legal or related non-profit work experience.  Must have professional experience in content creation/communications (non-profit or private sector).

Knowledge, Skills, and abilities:

• Basic knowledge of public health approach to primary prevention of child sexual abuse
• Strong written communication and presentation skills
• High attention to detail, strong problem-solving skills, and the ability to work as part of a team and make decisions independently
• Ability to build and develop internal and external relationships with individuals, groups, and communities of diverse backgrounds through strong interpersonal skills promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Strong planning, organization, and prioritization, with the ability to manage multiple projects.
• Skill in creating and scheduling mass emails and social media campaigns
• Comfortable delivering trainings and hosting meetings both virtually and in-person
• Ability to engage daily in work related to the difficult subject of child sexual abuse.
• Ability to use general office equipment, Mac Book, video conferencing/webinar software, and Microsoft suite of products, including Microsoft Teams.

Travel: This position has the option to work from home, but at least monthly travel to the organization’s office in Jefferson City is required without reimbursement.  Program Specialist may also travel within the state to provide training and technical assistance as needed, with reimbursement. One national conference is available for this position and will be decided upon in collaboration with the Director of Prevention and Outreach.

Other: This job posting provides a general overview but not an exhaustive description of the duties required. Missouri KidsFirst (MKF) is an expanding agency with many exciting start-up projects and activities which require flexibility.

Salary/Benefits:

Hours per week: 40 hours

Salary and benefits: $48,000 – $55,000 with health and dental benefits, paid leave, and retirement match

TO APPLY: All applicants should apply with a cover letter and resume to Jenny Dodson-Weihl, Director of Outreach and Programs, at JennyDodsonWeihl@missourikidsfirst.org. Please visit www.missourikidsfirst.org for more information about Missouri KidsFirst. No phone calls please. Preference will be given to applications received before December 1, 2023.

MKF provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, ability, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.