Healthy Families Indiana Program Director

Position Summary

The Program Director – Healthy Families Indiana (HFI) is responsible for the overall leadership, administration, implementation, and performance of Cornerstone Community Services’ Healthy Families Indiana program. The Program Director ensures that services are delivered in accordance with Healthy Families America (HFA) standards, Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS) requirements, contractual obligations, Cornerstone policies and procedures, and applicable federal and state requirements.

The Program Director provides day-to-day leadership of the program and is responsible for program planning, budgeting, staffing, training, quality assurance, continuous quality improvement, evaluation, and operational performance. The position maintains collaborative relationships with DCS, referral sources, community and state partners, early childhood providers, and other organizations serving children and families.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Program Leadership and Administration

· Provide overall leadership and day-to-day management of the Healthy Families Indiana program.

· Ensure program operations comply with HFA standards, Indiana DCS requirements, contractual requirements, Cornerstone policies and procedures, and applicable laws and regulations.

· Develop, implement, monitor, and continuously improve program procedures and operational practices.

· Maintain current knowledge of HFA standards and HFI requirements and communicate changes to program staff.

· Lead implementation and ongoing maintenance of HFA accreditation and fidelity requirements.

· Develop annual and ongoing program goals, implementation priorities, and performance expectations.

· Work collaboratively with Cornerstone executive leadership regarding program strategy, organizational priorities, risk, and resource needs.

Fiscal and Contract Management

· Develop and manage the HFI operating budget in collaboration with Cornerstone leadership and finance staff.

· Monitor program revenue, expenditures, staffing costs, service volume, and financial performance.

· Monitor completed assessments, active family census, billable service units, staff caseload capacity, and other factors affecting program revenue and sustainability.

· Identify significant variances from budget or service projections and implement corrective strategies.

· Ensure services and documentation support accurate and compliant billing.

· Participate in contract monitoring, audits, program reviews, and corrective-action activities as required.

Staff Leadership and Development

· Recruit, select, orient, develop, and retain qualified HFI staff.

· Provide direct supervision and leadership to Healthy Families Supervisors and the Operations Manager.

· Ensure Family Support Specialists (FSS) and Family Resource Specialists (FRS) receive the frequency, duration, and type of supervision required by HFA standards.

· Ensure supervisors have the training, competency, support, and protected time necessary to provide effective reflective supervision.

· Promote reflective practice throughout the program, including self-awareness, thoughtful consideration of interactions with others, openness to supervision, and continuous professional growth.

· Establish a work environment that supports staff working with families experiencing significant stress and promotes staff retention and professional development.

· Manage and support staff with humility and respect for individual and cultural differences.

· Ensure staff complete required HFA, HFI, DCS, Cornerstone, and position-specific training within required timeframes.

· Evaluate staffing levels and deployment based upon referrals, enrollment, caseloads, case weight, geography, program requirements, and financial sustainability.

These responsibilities reflect HFA's emphasis on supportive supervision and the "parallel process"—supporting and building on staff strengths so that staff can do the same with families.

Program Quality, Fidelity, and Continuous Quality Improvement

· Establish and oversee a comprehensive quality assurance and continuous quality improvement (CQI) process.

· Monitor compliance with HFA Best Practice Standards and applicable HFI requirements.

· Review program data, documentation, outcomes, fidelity measures, and performance indicators to identify strengths, trends, and areas requiring improvement.

· Ensure supervisory and management record reviews occur as required.

· Develop and monitor corrective action plans when performance or compliance concerns are identified.

· Use program data to guide decisions related to staffing, training, service delivery, outreach, family engagement, and program improvement.

· Prepare for and participate in HFA accreditation activities, DCS monitoring, audits, quality reviews, and other external reviews.

· Promote accurate, timely, complete, and defensible documentation throughout the program.

· Prepare a monthly budget with recommendations for changes when needed.

HFA specifically identifies administrative experience in human services, including quality assurance and continuous quality improvement, as a Program Manager selection criterion.

Community Partnerships and Referral Development

· Establish and maintain effective working relationships with DCS, healthcare providers, hospitals, prenatal providers, pediatric providers, early childhood programs, community organizations, and other referral partners.

· Develop and maintain strategies to generate sufficient appropriate referrals to support program capacity and community need.

· Represent Cornerstone Community Services and HFI in community meetings, collaborative initiatives, councils, and other stakeholder activities.

· Educate community partners regarding HFI eligibility, services, referral processes, and program benefits.

· Identify gaps in community resources and develop partnerships that strengthen supports available to participating families.

· Maintain positive relationships with organizations serving culturally and geographically diverse populations.

· Coordinate public relations and community awareness activities related to HFI in collaboration with organizational leadership.

Community/state collaboration, public relations, and relationships with early childhood partners are expressly included in HFA's description of the Program Manager role.

Family-Centered and Trauma-Informed Practice

· Ensure services are delivered using family-centered, strength-based, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive approaches consistent with HFA principles.

· Promote practices that recognize and build upon family strengths, protective factors, resilience, and parent-child relationships.

· Ensure staff respect diverse family structures, cultures, values, experiences, and parenting practices.

· Promote family engagement and retention while respecting family choice and self-determination.

· Support practices that strengthen healthy parent-child attachment and promote positive infant and child development.

Performance Expectations

The Program Director is accountable for the overall performance of the HFI program, including:

· Compliance with HFA fidelity and accreditation requirements.

· Compliance with DCS contractual and program requirements.

· Timely response to referrals and family engagement.

· Appropriate program enrollment and retention.

· Appropriate staff caseloads and case-weight distribution.

· Timely and accurate documentation and data entry.

· Achievement of required program outcomes and performance measures.

· Staff training and supervision compliance.

· Quality assurance and CQI performance.

· Referral-source development and community partnerships.

· Financial performance within the approved program budget.

· Appropriate management of program revenue, expenses, staffing, and service capacity.

Education and Experience

Required:

One of the following combinations of education and experience:

· Master's degree in public health, human services administration, social work, psychology, counseling, early childhood, nursing, or another field related to working with children and families; or

· Bachelor's degree in a related field and at least three years of relevant experience; or

· Less than a bachelor's degree with commensurate Healthy Families America experience sufficient to demonstrate competency for the position.

In addition, the successful candidate must demonstrate:

· Administrative and leadership experience in human services or a related field.

· Experience with quality assurance and continuous quality improvement.

· A solid understanding of and experience managing diverse staff with humility.

· Knowledge of family-centered, strength-based service delivery.

· Proven ability to develop effective relationships with community and governmental partners.

· Strong organizational, analytical, written, and verbal communication skills.

· Ability to interpret program requirements and translate them into effective operational practices.

· Ability to use data to monitor program performance and guide decision-making.

· Willingness and ability to engage in and promote reflective practice.

Preferred:

· Previous leadership experience with Healthy Families America, Healthy Families Indiana, evidence-based home visiting, early childhood prevention, or a comparable family-support program.

· Knowledge of infant and early childhood development, parent-child attachment, maternal and infant health, protective factors, and prevention of child abuse and neglect.

· Experience working with families and communities representing diverse backgrounds and experiences.

· Experience managing government-funded human-service contracts.

· Experience with HFA accreditation or fidelity monitoring.

· Infant Mental Health Endorsement®, when available and applicable.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

The position requires the ability to:

· Lead and develop multidisciplinary teams.

· Provide effective, supportive, and accountable supervision.

· Understand and support reflective supervision and reflective practice.

· Establish collaborative relationships across organizational and community systems.

· Balance program fidelity, family needs, staff capacity, contractual requirements, and financial sustainability.

· Analyze program and financial data and identify trends requiring intervention.

· Manage competing priorities and deadlines.

· Communicate effectively with staff, families, community partners, funders, and organizational leadership.

· Maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality.

· Exercise sound judgment in complex or sensitive situations.

· Demonstrate respect for individual differences and work effectively with culturally diverse staff, families, and communities.

Training Requirements

The Program Director must successfully complete all training required by Healthy Families America, Healthy Families Indiana, Indiana DCS, Cornerstone Community Services, and applicable contractual or regulatory requirements within established timeframes.

The Program Director is responsible for maintaining required competencies and participating in ongoing professional development appropriate to the position.

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements

· Work is performed in office, community, and virtual environments.

· Regular travel throughout the program service area is required.

· Occasional statewide travel may be required for meetings, training, monitoring, or other program activities.

· Must be able to operate standard office and electronic equipment and maintain required electronic documentation and communication.

· Must be able to work a flexible schedule when program needs require meetings or activities outside normal business hours.

Additional Requirements

· Must meet all Cornerstone Community Services employment and background-screening requirements applicable to the position.

· Must maintain a valid driver's license, reliable transportation, and automobile insurance when driving is required for job duties.

· Must maintain confidentiality in accordance with applicable federal and state laws, contractual requirements, and Cornerstone policies.

· Must comply with mandatory reporting requirements and all applicable health, safety, ethical, and professional standards.

Equal Employment Opportunity / Reasonable Accommodation

Cornerstone Community Services provides equal employment opportunities in accordance with applicable law. Reasonable accommodation will be provided to qualified individuals with disabilities to enable performance of the essential functions of the position, unless doing so would impose an undue hardship.