Pillsbury United Communities - Oak Park
POSITION DESCRIPTION
Employment Counselor Assistant
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Position: AmeriCorps Member (Employment Counselor Assistant)
Program: Community Technology Empowerment Project
Partner Agency: Pillsbury United Communities, Oak Park Center
Location(s): 1701 Oak Park Avenue N, Minneapolis, MN 55411
Name of Site Supervisor and Title: Mary Pargo, Operations Manager
CTEP Program Description:
The AmeriCorps Community Technology Empowerment Project (CTEP) bridges the “digital divide” for new Immigrants and low-income communities in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Join AmeriCorps CTEP and help make the information age accessible to all. CTEP is a project of Saint Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN).
Site History and Mission
Oak Park Neighborhood Center is a neighborhood center of Pillsbury United Communities (PUC). PUC is a century old social service provider, established to address the root causes of poverty in Minneapolis. PUC’s mission is creating change, choice and connection. Oak Park is located in the Near North Side of Minneapolis. Near North is one of the most economically challenged communities in the state of Minnesota, with a large African American population.
Oak Park has developed a Community Technology Center (CTC), used by the community for job search purposes, homework and access to the Internet. Activity in these CTCs is often linked with other PUC programs, such as an educational tool for our youth program, employment searches and housing assistance. Oak Park plans to better use this facility to teach participants 21st century technical skills and assist the community in closing the digital divide gap, especially for families in North Minneapolis. Information about PUC and its neighborhood centers can be found on puc-mn.org.
Preferred Site Schedule for Member
Mondays thru Fridays, 10 - 4, occasional evenings or weekend hours may be required. Hours are semi-flexible, with arrangement of CTEP site supervisor.
In addition, members attend professional development days with their fellow CTEP members to enhance service-readiness skills, personal attributes at the service site, and citizenship skills. These Corps days take place twice a month on the 1st and 3rd Fridays from 9 AM to 4 PM, and these trainings are mandatory. Members also attend statewide AmeriCorps events, such as the Martin Luther King Day celebration, and/or serve on the statewide InterCorps Council.
Essential Functions:
- Assist users in Community Tech Resource Center.
- Assist in maintenance and upgrade of this facility.
- Assist job search participants in learning skills such as resume development, internet job search, etc.
- Teach small groups and workshops as defined.
- Outreach to neighborhood groups and community action groups to engage these groups in Digital Divide issues.
- Assist in developing technical literacy component for new Seniors Program.
- Teach computer skills to youth group.
Minimal Functions:
- Assist users in Community Tech Resource Center.
- Assist job search participants in learning skills such as resume development, internet job search, etc.
- Assist in developing technical literacy component for our new Seniors Program.
- Teach computer skills to youth group.
Required Qualifications:
- At least 17 years old
- U.S. citizenship, naturalization, or permanent residency
- Ability to travel within the Twin Cities
- High school diploma or GED (or progress toward while serving for special circumstances)
- Basic personal computer skills (word processing, internet, email, etc.)
- Experience working with low-income and/or recent immigrant populations, especially in education or mentoring
- Proficiency in lab supervision
- Ability to help lab users create resumes, job searches and school projects
- Ability to communicate with people across racial, ethnic and cultural barriers
- Capacity to spend long periods of time at a computer
- Ability to move up to 25 pounds
Preferred Qualifications:
(One or more of the following are desired but not required):
- Post-Secondary Education
- Bilingual in Hmong, Somali, Spanish or other
- Experience in volunteer management
- Advanced technology skills, especially in web design, video production, or computer applications
- Experience in staff training, especially technology
Site Environment:
The employment counselor assistant (AmeriCorps member) has a work station at Oak Park Neighborhood Center. The building is smoke-free and air-conditioned; the basement level is handicapped accessible. The member will have their own desk, telephone, computer and voice mail.
Service Term:
Full-time: 1700 hours. Start Sept 7, 2010; complete by Aug 31, 2011.
Members Receive:
Full-time: A living allowance (approximately $450 bi-weekly), an educational award of $5,350.00 (upon successful completion), health and dental insurance plan including reimbursement of deductible charge, child care (d.o.q) and ongoing training.
How to Apply:
Apply online at https://recruit.cns.gov/ (be sure to enter 06ACHMN0010008-0 as the “Program Listing ID,” or search for the Community Technology Empowerment Project). Contact: Joel Krogstad, joel@technologypower.org, 651.556.1384
We are committed to recruiting and engaging individuals without regard to disability, gender, race, religion or sexual orientation. Reasonable accommodations will be made upon request. Alternative formats of this document are also available.