Program Manager – Transform Lives Program

Job Description

Company Description
Creating a brighter future for all
Griffith University is a progressive, values-led university dedicated to learning, leadership, and innovation. This is your chance to help us achieve our vision to transform lives and add to human knowledge and understanding in a way that creates a future that benefits all.

Since opening in 1975, Griffith has grown from one campus and 451 students to become a comprehensive, multi-campus institution, with 50,000 students and more than 200,000 graduates.

Griffith Criminology Institute
Griffith Criminology Institute (GCI) is a large, diverse, and high-performing group of scholars focused on crime and justice issues. Through collaboration and innovation our research is helping find solutions to universal problems. GCI is a world leader in the criminology field and has twice achieved the highest possible ranking for research quality in the Australian Research Council Excellence in Research Assessments. Our research is distinctive in its focus on rigorous scholarship coupled with engaged translation, to achieve real world change.

Job Description
The newly established Transforming Corrections to Transform Lives (TCTL) Centre is seeking to appoint a Program Manager for the South East Queensland area. The Program Manager will work under the direction of the TCTL Centre Director, and collaboratively with their counterpart in the North Queensland region, to develop and deliver a support program for mothers in prison and their children. The program of support will:

• Be multimodal in its approach (addressing not just parenting skills but also mental health needs, substance use problems, housing needs, etc);
• Be multisystemic, working across the multiple developmental systems that parents and children have contact with (e.g., prisons, family, schools, community, employment, multiple agencies, and service providers), and
• Work with parents and their children during the custody period and for a substantial period after release.
• Be rigorously evaluated by the TCTL Centre researchers.

Key responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to:

• Draw on emerging best practice in working with families of prisoners, and families with complex needs, to lead development of a practice manual for the Transform Lives Program that aligns with the multimodal and multisystemic TCTL model. The Transform Lives Program will provide for continuity of support, proportionate to needs, during custody and for up to three years after the mother returns to the community.
• Oversee the implementation of the trial of the Transform Lives Program in Queensland women’s correctional centres and in the community, including the implementation of individual and ongoing case planning for mothers and their children, with practitioners (i.e., Transform Lives Coaches).
• Supervise a team of Transform Lives Coaches and Program Assistants while carrying a small caseload of families in the Transform Lives Program.
• Establish, maintain, and lead Communities of Practice with relevant stakeholders that promote and enable holistic case planning, information sharing and professional development.
• Work collaboratively with correctional centre staff and relevant staff within other government departments and service providers to ensure that Transform Lives Coaches are supported and that positive outcomes for mothers and their children are achieved.
• Work collaboratively with TCTL leadership and the research team to support the research and evaluation required to establish the effectiveness of the Transform Lives Program.

This is a full-time, fixed term (3 years) position with a potential for extension based at the Griffith University Mt Gravatt campus. It is expected that the successful candidate will undertake regular travel within South East Queensland, meeting with stakeholders, partners, Transform Lives Coaches and mothers and their children in the Program. A competitive salary package (including vehicle expense/provision) will be negotiated with the successful candidate.

Qualifications
The occupant of this position will hold a minimum four-year degree in psychology or social work or a related discipline; completion or progression towards the completion of a higher degree (Masters, Professional Doctorate, PhD) in a relevant discipline; and registration with relevant professional bodies.

You will demonstrate a breadth and depth of professional skills and knowledge in the human services/social work/community service/youth work field with excellent knowledge of the issues affecting incarcerated women and their children.

You will have demonstrated experience working cross culturally with a solid understanding of cultural competency. You have the ability to work effectively with members of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, as well as people from other diverse backgrounds.

You will also have:

• Demonstrated ability to work cooperatively and effectively with government and non-government agencies and with clients and their families through the use of well-developed communication, consultation and conflict resolution skills.
• Knowledge of (or the ability to rapidly acquire knowledge of) social ecological, multisystemic and multi-agency case conceptualisation, intervention and support, and First People cultures and the issues that may impact upon them in contemporary society and in a forensic context.
• High-level interpersonal skills and highly developed verbal and written communication skills, organisational skills and experience supervising clinical/practice staff and leading a team. You will be self-motivated and able to demonstrate a high level of individual initiative, discretion, attention to detail and judgement. You will have demonstrated ability to work independently and with minimal supervision to meet competing deadlines and work effectively as a team member.
• You will hold a valid driver’s licence for Queensland. The successful candidate must undertake and pass, on an annual basis, a Criminal History Check for the purposes of entering correctional centres.
• You will hold a valid blue card in Queensland or be eligible to obtain one upon appointment.

The TCTL Centre is committed to ensuring that program delivery and evaluation recognises, respects, and is inclusive of, Indigenous ways of knowing, being and doing. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander applicants are strongly encouraged to apply.

Additional Information
Salary Range
A competitive salary package (including vehicle expense/provision) will be negotiated with the successful candidate.

How to Apply
Please submit your application online and ensure your application includes the following:

• A covering letter outlining your suitability for the role, in particular addressing the Key Responsibilities listed in the Position Description (click here).
• Current curriculum vitae/resume which should include:
• Full name, address, telephone number and email address;
• Details of education, professional training and qualifications;
• Employment history, including present position and details of relevant professional experience (both as a practitioner and supervisor/team leader);
• Registration with, or membership of, professional bodies;
• Research interests and list of publications/grants/awards (if applicable);
• Any other relevant information, such as offices held in professional bodies, experience with relevant client groups, community services etc.
• At least three professional referees

Applicants must have unrestricted work rights for the duration of this appointment. Visa sponsorship is not available.

Successful candidates will be subject to a criminal history check and will be required to hold a valid blue card in Queensland.

What Griffith University Offers

• Flexible working options and genuine work-life balance
• Salary packaging options & corporate health discounts
• Generous leave entitlements including paid parental leave

Griffith University values diversity, inclusion and flexibility and we encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, and people of all backgrounds to apply. For more information please visit our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion page.

Further Information
For further information about this role, please contact Professor Susan Dennison via email: susan.dennison@griffith.edu.au

For application queries, please contact Mrs Marina Dos Prazeres, Talent Acquisition Consultant on +61 (07) 3735 8106 or via email: m.dosprazeres@griffith.edu.au

Closing date: Monday, 20 March 2023 at 5:00pm AEST. All applications must be submitted online.