HERRC Program Manager, National Virtual Resettlement Services

Job Overview:

Beginning in January 2024, the IRC will provide transitional case management services to asylum seekers in New York City under a contract with New York City’s Health & Hospitals (H+H). In 2022, in response to an increase in asylum seekers arriving in New York after having recently arrived via the southern US border, H+H launched several Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRCs) to provide humanitarian reception and supportive services to asylum seekers while they stabilize and organize plans to reach their final destination.

The IRC believes that coordinated, client-centered humanitarian reception can serve as a gateway to a safe and dignified asylum system in the US. With this new program, IRC staff will work with families in HERRC facilities to identify strategies to remove barriers to stability, facilitate safe connections to US ties and communities, and provide basic information on the immigration process to ensure they understand their rights and have access to available legal services in the community, provide referrals to legal and social services in final destinations, and provide more intensive case management for families and individuals with heightened needs. We will leverage our strong infrastructure and technical and emergency expertise to ramp up transitional case management capacity while coordinating closely with agencies providing legal and social services to asylum seekers in New York City (the City).

The IRC will also implement an innovative model to support asylum seekers interested in relocating by leveraging its proven and award-winning virtual case management model and infrastructure. Through this model, trained case managers will provide virtual navigation of resources and information for asylum seekers interested and willing to relocate outside of the City. These virtual services will include cash assistance, guidance on navigating the new community of resettlement, and ongoing virtual case management, including referrals to legal service providers and community-based organizations for up to five months post-resettlement. This virtual case management model endeavors to empower asylum-seekers who wish to resettle outside of the City but lack the resources, information, and support network needed to make the move.

Scope:

The Program Manager brings an understanding of the lived experiences of asylum seekers, including their migratory journey, the barriers they face accessing protection and services, and the duality of migrant agency and structural vulnerability to a critical role.

This position will launch and lead a virtual resettlement program for asylum-seekers, ensuring each asylum-seeker resettled across the country is given individualized information, resources, and referrals to facilitate their successful and dignified resettlement in a new community in the United States.

They will build out the program and train and manage a fully remote, geographically dispersed team of casework professionals whose work will inform the development of a humanitarian resettlement system for asylum seekers that is data-driven, protection-centered, and responsive to client needs and interests.

Major Responsibilities:

Program Delivery

• Lead the development and delivery of virtual case management services, including service mapping, assessment, pre- and post-departure counseling to clients interested in and willing to relocate outside of NYC, and ongoing virtual case management once the clients arrive in their new community.
• Collaborate closely with the IRC technical and operational units to deliver services aligned with IRC’s working methods.
• In collaboration with stakeholders, maintain a comprehensive list of resources and referral options to support the complex needs of asylum seekers nationwide.

Service Coordination

• Act as primary point of contact for the National Virtual Resettlement program with stakeholders that include the Project Director, H+H, and other service providers.
• Ensure close and effective collaboration with IRC New York’s local and national programs serving asylum seekers.
• Engage regularly with top communities of migrant resettlement in order to establish strong referral pathways, resources, and support networks for new arrivals.

Leadership and Staff Management

• Lead a team in accordance with IRC’s People Manager Standards. Train and provide leadership to staff in all aspects of program responsibilities.
• In coordination with colleagues, develop, train, and support adherence to standard operating procedures (SOPs) in line with best practices and IRC policies and procedures to ensure successful program delivery and a safe, supportive environment for clients, staff, and volunteers.
• Other related duties as assigned.

Job Requirements:

Work Experience

• Five or more years of related professional experience, preferably with a non-profit or social service organization.
• Minimum of three years of program management and supervisory experience, including program oversight, review and monitoring of cases, and compliance with contractual obligations.

Education

• Undergraduate degree; graduate degree preferred, ideally in social work, migration studies, or related field of study.

Demonstrated Skills and Proficiencies

• Demonstrated understanding of the U.S. immigration system and stakeholders, particularly the U.S. asylum system; awareness of and dedication to the rights and realities of immigrant communities in the U.S. Lived experience welcome.
• Strong relationship-building, diplomacy, and networking skills.
• Demonstrated ability to promote an organizational culture that reflects IRC’s core values of service, accountability, integrity, and equality. Ability to lead in a way that recognizes that IRC’s work is best accomplished through the true collaboration of individuals from many cultures with a great variety of skills and perspectives.
• Demonstrated success working and communicating effectively in a multicultural environment.
• Self-starter with excellent problem-solving skills combined with a proven track record to prioritize duties and manage time effectively.
• Strong cross-cultural understanding and excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Attention to detail and accuracy in work product.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Outlook); ability to use the internet and other digital tools.

Language Skills

• Fluency in written and spoken English.
• Bilingual ability is preferred in Spanish, French, Portuguese, Mandarin, Russian, Arabic, Turkish, Dari, Georgian, or other New York City refugee/immigrant languages.

Working Environment

• Fully remote.

Compensation: Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances.

Equal Opportunity Employer: We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

US Benefits: The IRC offers a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. All US employees are eligible for sick time, a 403b retirement savings plans: up to 4.5% immediately vested matching contribution, plus an 3-7% additional IRC contribution, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

In addition, full-time employees are eligible for 10 US paid holidays, 20-25 paid time off days, disability & life insurance, medical, dental, and vision insurance (employee contribution starting at $135, $7, and $5 per month respectively) and FSA for healthcare, childcare, and commuter costs. Part-time employees are eligible for a proportionate amount of paid time off. These additional benefits apply to employees who work at least 6 months within a 12 month time period.