Social Worker, Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network
The Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN) is a nonprofit organization
dedicated to providing free immigration legal services and social services to adults in
immigration detention and to children and their families across Colorado. RMIAN promotes
knowledge of legal rights, provides effective representation to ensure due process, works to
improve detention conditions, and promotes a more humane immigration system, including
alternatives to detention. RMIAN believes that justice for immigrants means justice for all. We
respect the needs and celebrate the contributions of the individuals and communities we serve.
We believe our clients are equal partners in accessing justice. And we value respect for all
human beings, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or legal status.
Through the Social Service Project, RMIAN is one of few immigration legal services
organizations in the United States to offer integrated social service support. Founded and staffed
by masters-level social workers, the Social Service Project assists particularly vulnerable
detained adult immigrants, including ones determined by the Immigration Court to be mentally
incompetent to represent themselves and appointed counsel under the National Qualified
Representative Program (NQRP); certain unaccompanied immigrant youth in the custody of the
Office of Refugee and Resettlement; and other youth and families represented by RMIAN’s
Children’s Program. Social Service Project social workers assist detained adults by providing
wrap-around support, including help dealing with the stress of detention, healthcare advocacy,
support with aspects of legal case preparation, and planning for needed services upon clients’
release from detention. For non-detained youth and their family members, social workers provide
connection to mental health treatment, medical care, public benefits, and other assistance, as well
as ongoing support throughout clients’ legal cases. Through generous funding from the Caring
for Denver Foundation, the Social Service Project is now able to expand through a new grant
focused on the behavioral health needs of young (up to age 26) Denver city and county residents.
RMIAN’s Social Service Project has an opening for a full-time social worker to work with
clients provided legal assistance by the Detention and Children’s Program. The position
would begin as soon as possible. This social worker will work with detained adult clients in
immigration detention, including some served under the NQRP described above, as well as non-
detained youth and parents served by RMIAN’s Children’s Program. Currently, RMIAN’s operations are primarily remote during the COVID-19 pandemic, but subject to change.
Responsibilities:
- Maintain caseload of detained adult, some non-detained adult, and some non-detained
- child/youth and family clients
- Through interdisciplinary model, collaborate closely with attorneys throughout clients’
- immigration cases
- Work in trauma-informed and strengths-based ways with clients to complete
- biopsychosocial assessments, engage in therapeutic conversations, conduct needs
- assessments, set goals, and implement ways to deal with current life stressors and
- symptoms of behavioral health conditions
- As appropriate, administer screening tools to track clients’ behavioral health symptoms
- As appropriate, support clients’ legal cases by helping to draft personal declarations,
- arranging forensic health evaluations, communicating with family and other support
- networks, gathering health records, and attending court hearings
- Advocate for improved detention conditions and access to appropriate healthcare for
- clients
- For detained clients, create written plans for post-release services for submission to the
- Immigration Court and/or Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- As needed, meet clients upon release from detention and coordinate their access to
- transportation, accommodations, and other immediate needs
- Connect released and non-detained clients to desired and appropriate behavioral health
- treatment, medical care, housing, public benefits, and other supportive services in
- Denver, other parts of Colorado, other states, or clients’ countries of origin
- With client consent, communicate with mental health treatment providers to coordinate
- support
Qualifications:
- Master of Social Work degree from accredited program
- English and Spanish fluency required, both oral and written
- Ability to pass required background checks
- Access to reliable personal transportation
How to Apply:
To apply, please send all the following items to hr@rmian.org:
(1) a tailored, authentic cover letter that explains (a) why RMIAN’s mission excites you and (b)
why you are an ideal fit for this particular role; (2) resume; and (3) a list of three professional
references.
The start date for this position is as soon as possible. Please apply promptly.