Friends of Ruby

Friends of Ruby is dedicated to the journey and well-being of 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, aged 16-29 through mental health services, social services, and housing. Friends of Ruby offers Youth Mental Health services, a Youth Drop-In Centre, and a Transitional Home. The Centre provides access to barrier-free counselling and therapeutic groups, case management and a drop-in space with hot meals, community, and comprehensive programming. The Home provides transitional and emergency housing, as well as mental health and life-skills to support youth moving towards independent living.

Friends of Ruby recognize that a diverse work force is critical to accomplishing our mission. Our goal is to attract, develop, and retain highly talented employees from diverse backgrounds, allowing us to benefit from a wide variety of experiences and perspectives.

We strongly encourage applications from the 2SLGBTQIA+ and BIPOC communities, and diverse backgrounds that meet the requirements of the job posting. We suggest applicants introduce themselves, their stories and lived experiences in their cover letter to the degree they are comfortable with.

Position Summary 

The Program Specialist reports to the Manager, Knowledge and Design and works closely with the Research and Evaluation Coordinator, frontline staff, and youth service managers to collaboratively design, implement, evaluate, and improve programs for 2SLGBTQIA+ youth at the Friends of Ruby Transitional Home and Youth Drop-In. The Program Specialist will ensure programs are informed by the needs of 2SLGBTQIA+ youth and adhere to best practices in terms of equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.

The position is primarily responsible for translating needs of youth accessing the Drop-In and residents of the Friends of Ruby Home into program curricula, facilitating and training staff to facilitate programming, and making ongoing improvements to new and existing programs.

Responsibilities 

• Design high-quality programming, including, group programming, workshops, coordinating with and booking guest speakers, working with the clinical staff to create therapeutic groups, creative activities and events to address the needs of 2SLGBTQIA+ youth such as social connection, education and employment support, and health and wellness.
• Facilitate, develop, and train staff in the delivery of high-quality, engaging programing. Including content, resources, and tools for facilitation.
• Create lesson plans, curricula, facilitator guides and other documents required for programming and support knowledge translation and content creation of resources for youth.
• Liaise with internal and external stakeholders including staff, youth, volunteers, speakers, community members, and partners.
• Collaborate with the Manager of Knowledge and Design and the Housing Manager, to incorporate evaluation components into all programming.
• Support the implementation of evaluation tools from data collection to reporting.
• Lead continuous quality improvement initiatives based on qualitative and quantitative data
• Other duties as assigned

 Qualifications 

• Master’s or Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, education, or gender and sexuality, or a combination of relevant experience and education.
• Strong facilitation skills with 3-5 years’ experience developing and delivering educational, recreational, social and/or wellness programming to teenagers and young adults.
• Demonstrated familiarity with youth engagement, experiential education, positive youth development, and anti-oppressive approaches to programming.
• Identifies as a member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community with a strong background in working with or relating to 2SLGBTQIA+ youth. Experience working specifically with BIPOC youth, or homeless or precariously housed youth is an asset.
• Experience training and coaching others to deliver programming and ability to provide constructive feedback.
• Ability to work across multi-disciplinary teams including case workers, counsellors, drop-in staff and residential housing workers as well as collaborating with management and evaluation teams.
• Demonstrated understanding of program evaluation and outcomes measurement.
• Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Proficient in the use of digital/virtual communications technology, and ability to create engaging, interactive programming.
• Ability to adjust and adapt to ever‐changing needs and work efficiently with a high degree of personal initiative.

What’s in it for you?

• A comprehensive benefits package, including $1,000 annual coverage for mental health services
• Three weeks of vacation, plus a spring and winter office closure
• A chance to work with a great team of people in a dog-friendly office

COVID-19 Protocol

Friends of Ruby believes that immunization against COVID-19 is an individual and societal responsibility and that we must do everything possible to protect our clients, families, employees, students, volunteers, and contractors against the spread of COVID-19. As a condition of employment, proof of full vaccination or exemption under the Ontario Human Rights Code must be submitted to Human Resources seven (7) calendar days prior to start date. 

Hiring Policy / Statement on Employment Equity and Diversity

Friends of Ruby recognizes that a diverse work force is critical to accomplishing our mission. Our goal is to attract, develop, and retain highly talented employees from diverse backgrounds allowing us to benefit from a wide variety of experiences and perspectives.

We are committed to ensuring that members of traditionally marginalized groups, from a broad range of communities, feel empowered to apply for positions within the organization. We strongly encourage applications from the 2SLGBTQIA+ and BIPOC communities, and diverse backgrounds that meet the requirements of the job posting. We suggest applicants introduce themselves, their stories and lived experiences in their cover letter to their level of comfort.