Senior Administrative Assistant - CAFL Transition Age Youth Office

Overview:

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS), the public defender agency for Massachusetts, is excited to announce the opening of a Transition Age Youth Office, a new initiative in the Children and Family Law Division “conflicts office,” the Family Justice Advocates. The administrative assistant will be part of a multidisciplinary team, committed to improving representation and advocacy for the specific issues young adults and transition age youth face when caught up in the family regulation system. This is a full\-time (35 hours/week) position.

The Transition Age Youth Office will open as a fully remote office until office space is procured. The final office location is expected to be in Framingham but may be located in other Metro West or Greater Boston area locations.

We fight for equal justice and human dignity by supporting our clients in achieving their legal and life goals. We zealously advocate for the rights of individuals and promote just public policy to protect the rights of all.

Our Values Courage • Accountability • Respect • Excellence

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MISSION STATEMENT

CPCS is committed to protecting the fundamental constitutional and human rights of our assigned clients through zealous advocacy, community\-oriented defense, and the fullness of excellent legal representation. We are dedicated to building and maintaining strong professional relationships, while striving to accept, listen to and respect the diverse circumstances of each client, as we dedicate ourselves to meeting their individual needs. It is our CPCS mission to achieve these goals, and in furtherance thereof, we embrace and endorse diversity, equity and inclusion as our core values as we maintain a steadfast commitment to: (1\) Ensure that CPCS management and staff members represent a broad range of human differences and experience; (2\) Provide a work climate that is respectful and supports success; and (3\) Promote the dignity and well\-being of all staff members. CPCS leadership is responsible for ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion. The ability to achieve these goals with any level of certainty is ultimately the responsibility of each member of the CPCS community.

AGENCY OVERVIEW

CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one. The agency provides representation in criminal, delinquency, youthful offender, family regulation, guardianship, mental health, sexually dangerous person, and sex offender registry cases, as well as in appeals and post\-conviction and post\-judgment proceedings related to those matters.

The clients we represent are diverse across every context imaginable and bring many unique cultural dimensions to the matters we address. This reality creates a critical need for CPCS staff to be culturally competent and able to work well with people of different races, ethnicities, genders and/or sexual orientation identities, abilities, and limited English proficiency, among other protected characteristics.

OFFICE OVERVIEW

The Transition Age Youth (TAY) Office is a new advocacy unit that provides multidisciplinary support in matters involving transition age youth across the state. We aim to address the varied and complex needs of a vulnerable population. In addition to case support and training, the defense teams provide limited direct client representation.

The TAY Office promotes and supports attorneys to provide holistic and high\-quality representation of transition age youth throughout the Commonwealth. Attorneys in the TAY Office focus their advocacy on Care and Protection cases for children ages 14\-22 and their siblings, Children Requiring Assistance, and Permanency for Young Adult (PYA) cases where youth are in DCF’s continued responsibility pursuant to G.L. c. 119, § 23(f). This new office will be comprised of an Attorney in Charge, trial attorneys, a social worker, an administrative assistant, and a peer support specialist.

The Transition Age Youth office is part of Family Justice Advocates (FJA), CAFL’s “conflicts trial office.” FJA provides legal representation to children and indigent parents and guardians in family regulation cases in which (a) a CAFL staff attorney in a non\-conflict office has been appointed to another party to the case or (b) a conflict of interest prevents CAFL staff attorneys in non\-conflict offices from representing any party in the case.

The Transition Age Youth Office will open as a fully remote office until office space is procured. The final office location is expected to be in Framingham but may be located in other Metro West or Greater Boston area locations.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The TAY office of CPCS is seeking an Administrative Assistant to join our team. The TAY office provides direct representation to transition age youth and their siblings involved with the juvenile court, legal training and support to attorneys and social workers, and free advice and consultation to attorneys across the state. The office is comprised of an Attorney in Charge, trial attorneys, a staff Social Worker, a peer support specialist, and an Administrative Assistant.

The Administrative Assistant is a key member of the Transition Age Youth Office staff, supporting the Attorney in Charge in running the day\-to\-day duties of a fast\-paced legal office. The Administrative Assistant must be able to provide excellent support for the staff in the office as well as coordinate communications with other CAFL and FJA offices, as well as other CPCS units such as HR, Facilities, and IT.

This is a full\-time (35 hours/week) position.

The Administrative Assistant will report to the Attorney in Charge of the Transition Age Youth office.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS

The ideal candidate will be a person who is both highly organized and detail\-oriented and enjoys interacting with people in a friendly work environment and will take satisfaction from working in an agency which is committed to protecting the fundamental legal rights of indigent persons.

The successful applicant must have:

• Associate’s degree in related area and at least two years of experience as an administrative assistant or office manager; executive level secretarial skills; or an equivalent combination of education, training, experience, and skills are required; and,
• Access to home internet access sufficient to work remotely.

Substitutions:

• A bachelor’s or higher degree in a related area may be substituted for one year of the required experience. Education toward such a degree will be prorated on the basis of the proportion of the requirements actually completed.

QUALIFICATIONS/SKILLS

• Strong communication, organizational and detail skills;
• Proficiency in MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint);
• Ability to establish effective working relationships and to work as a team member;
• Flexibility, and strict adherence to confidentiality;
• Typing skill of 50 to 60 wpm preferred;
• Familiarity with advanced Word formatting and editing, and Microsoft Excel;
• Strong cultural competency and diplomacy skills;
• Legal office experience a plus; and
• Foreign language skills are strongly preferred.

Interested candidates should submit a written statement of interest and a resume.

Responsibilities:

RESPONSIBILITIES

The duties of the Administrative Assistant include, but are not limited to:

• Supporting the Attorney in Charge on day\-to\-day duties of running the office as well as special projects and coordinating communication, support, and resources with HR, Facilities, and IT;
• Opening and closing case files, maintaining open case files, and filing, scanning and shredding of closed cases;
• Providing administrative support, including word and data processing, filing, copying, scanning, and handling correspondence;
• Coordinating and assisting with projects relating to personnel management, program evaluation, and other areas;
• Creating statistical reports regarding attorney caseloads and disposition of cases and maintaining data collected;
• Planning, coordinating, and calendaring meetings and events;
• Assisting with other projects to improve the quality of legal representation and to enhance client services;
• Ensuring effective use of office systems and compliance with agency procedures and practices;
• Communicating effectively with internal and external contacts at all levels;
• Assisting with front desk coverage including all receptionist responsibilities as needed;
• Maintaining and updating office websites; and,
• Other duties as assigned.

EEO Statement

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran or military status, genetic information, gender identity, or sexual orientation as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other applicable federal and state statutes and organizational policies. Applicants who have questions about equal employment opportunity or who need reasonable accommodations can contact the Chief Human Resources Officer, Sandra DeBow\-Huang, at sdebow@publiccounsel.net.