Holistic Defense Technical Assistance Coordinator

Job Opportunity At Allegan County

Allegan County has much to offer, with 24 townships, 9 cities, and 2 villages across nearly 900 square miles. The landscapes range from the lakeshore to beautifully wooded lands, our county's natural resources are a gift to be treasured. Allegan County businesses, citizens, and employees are world-class, and we remain a welcoming, closely-knit community. We are one of the fastest-growing counties in Michigan. Allegan County Government places high importance on our core values: respect, integrity, commitment, and honesty. A common thread among our leadership, employees, and volunteers is a strong desire to serve and be part of something meaningful. We were recently identified as "Best in Class Winner" among mid-size companies for our excellence in optimizing employee and organizational well-being. We have also received the Impact Award for excellence in educating our employees about their retirement plans and overall financial wellness. We are looking for dedicated, caring, energetic people to join our team!

Job Summary

This position establishes and upholds uniform training and technical assistance within the Michigan Indigent Holistic Defense system, to create more impactful holistic indigent representation of all Michigan defendants. This position also implements holistic defense services in small, or isolated, or Michigan Assigned Counsel ("MAC") funding units that otherwise would not receive significant exposure to holistic defense practice and benefits. In cooperation with the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission ("MIDC") this position will create, manage, and provide training for an ongoing and consistent statewide holistic defense knowledge base.

Starting Wage

$32.83 per hour, full-time

Excellent Benefits Plan

Health benefits begin on the first of the month after your hire date - medical, dental & vision (3 medical plans to choose from, 2 of which have a $0 premium) - county-funded health savings account with our two high-deductible medical plans - county-paid employee life insurance coverage - county-paid short-term disability coverage, up to 52 weeks - generous retirement plan, including a county contribution of 7% of your annual earnings - tuition reimbursement program for college degree courses - generous PTO plan, including front-loaded hours into PTO bank at hire, and annually on January 1. - 13 paid holidays, in addition to PTO - free use of Allegan County government's two fitness centers

Responsibilities and Duties

Provide technical and substantive holistic defense assistance to public defense offices throughout Michigan to develop, implement, and evaluate collaborative and uniform holistic defense best practices. Collaborate with MIDC, MIDC regional managers, MACs, public defenders, and other stakeholders to adopt holistic indigent defense practices with a multidisciplinary team approach including social workers, mitigation specialists, and case advocates on the defense team. Develop best practices to ensure sustainable staffing levels and outline appropriate holistic defense job responsibilities for systems in need of holistic defense support throughout Michigan. Create standards of work and standard operating procedures for holistic defense processes to standardize the multidisciplinary team approach among Michigan defender offices. Develop best practice program policies related to addressing common challenges within the holistic indigent defense system. Develop and implement and review referral procedures and processes; develop, implement, and review document procedures and processes, including but not limited to: intake forms, referral forms, mitigation report templates, etc. Develop, implement, and review holistic defense data collection processes to build collaborative state-wide holistic defense data collection systems and provide communications, messaging, and marketing related to this data analysis. Assist public defense offices in identifying, collecting, and evaluating data related to holistic defense outcomes to support continuous improvement and effective communication of program impact. Maintain shared drive of resources available to holistic defense practitioners throughout Michigan. Maintain collaborative relationships and serve as a statewide liaison to national public defense organizations to connect Michigan-based practitioners with available resources and elevate Michigan's success and progress to national partners. Facilitate monthly meetings for holistic defense practitioners to connect, seek feedback from peers, and engage in shared learning; regularly survey holistic defense practitioners to identify learning topics; engage with outside speakers to address identified training needs. Research and draft grant requests that meet MIDC requirements, and also help provide creative funding possibilities for innovative Michigan holistic defense services. Develop and provide improved systemic understanding of holistic defense to state and local lawmakers, executive branch authorities, and policy developers through legislative advocacy and policy education initiatives at the state and local levels.

Education and Experience

Master's degree in law, social work, psychology, criminal justice, probation/parole, therapy/counseling, or other closely related field. Two (2) years of experience in law, mitigation, social work, or a combination. Knowledge and skill in legal holistic defense practice, program development, project management, legal work, social work, grant writing, data strategy and outcome evaluation, public policy education, and training development. Knowledge of MIDC and MIDC standards.