Current Openings

Director of Participant Engagement

Reports to: Executive Director

Status: Full-time

Schedule: Monday – Friday. Occasional evenings and rare weekend events.

Pay: $39-42,000 annual salary based on experience. Compensation includes a generous PTO package, holidays, and mental health days. This position is part of a one-year pilot program with the potential to extend pending funding.

Location: Gainesville, FL. In-office position. 

About Released: Released is a nonprofit organization focused on providing reentry support pre and post-incarceration founded in 2023. We work inside Alachua County jail and the community, providing navigation and humanity to those returning from carceral systems.

Job Purpose:

Released seeks a Director of Participant Engagement to join our team. The director is responsible for the participant experience of Released. This includes, but is not limited to providing intakes for new program participants pre and post release from incarceration, creating reintegration plans with participants, and providing follow-up care. This staff member assists program staff, and program participants to meet the goal of reducing recidivism in Alachua County using trauma-informed approaches.

The ideal candidate:

• Is organized, optimistic, diplomatic, values empathy, has strong interpersonal skills, and is a thoughtful communicator.
• Multi-culturally curious and humble; Ability to work successfully in a multi-cultural workplace and values diversity.
• Understands carceral systems and are committed to changing the narrative at the local and state levels. 
•  Cares about community and are invested in building relationships.
• Will model trauma-informed leadership with staff and program participants.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

• Complete intakes and evaluations for new participants pre and post release from incarceration.
• Serve as an advocate for our participants within the community; with other agencies, individual community gatekeepers, and with staff.
• Collect and input participant data into our HIPPA compliant database.
• Assist with group facilitation of our evidence-based and trauma-informed groups.
• Other assigned and related duties by the Executive Director.

Leadership and Life of the Organization:

• Serve as a leadership team member with a collaborative approach to problem-solving.
• Fully participate in organizational activities, including staff and board meetings and training.
• Commitment to advancing Released mission and vision for our served communities.

Knowledge, Skills, and  Abilities:

• Knowledge and experience of case management and client advocacy.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including an ability to navigate and resolve conflict in a manner that values and respects relationships and diversity.
• Experience working with those who have substance use and mental health aspects of their identity.
• Ability to work with a trauma-informed framework that values the systematic and personal influences that can challenge our participants livelihood.
• Able to exercise sound judgment in maintaining confidentiality of all agency information.
• Experience with writing and maintaining case notes on participant interactions.

Desired Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work or Human Services preferred, however; equivalent professional or personal experiences are also encouraged to apply.
•  Willingness to embrace a trauma-informed culture.
• Experience in working in direct human services with marginalized populations.
• Experience or willingness to learn and research about reentry programming and carceral systems.

How to Apply

Please email a cover letter, resume, 2-3 professional or academic references, to Emily Westerholm at emily@releasedreentry.org  

Released is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to a policy of non-discrimination and equal opportunity for all employees and qualified applicants. People with lived-carceral experience, disabilities, people of color, indigenous people, and LGBTQ+ candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

These duties, wages, percentages, dates, and descriptions are subject to change.

Released is proud to be an inclusive organization. Released does not discriminate in hiring practices, services or policy with regard to criminal history, sex, race, color, age, national origin, religion, disability, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship, pregnancy or maternity, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable national, federal, state or local law.

Notice of Employment at Will

This document does not create an employment contract, and employment with Released is "at will." Nor is this document an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, skills, duties, requirements, or working conditions associated with the job. While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, management reserves the right to revise the essential and non-essential functions of the job at any time or require that other or different tasks be performed when circumstances change (i.e. emergencies, changes in personnel, workload, rush jobs or technical developments). Management will attempt to give reasonable notice prior to revising a job function or requiring performance outside of this description.

Released Mission, Values, Participant Orientation and Continuous Quality Improvement Focus

It is the responsibility of all employees to learn and utilize continuous quality improvement principles in their daily work.

Consistent with Released’s Code of Conduct, all employees are responsible for extending the mission and values of Released by understanding each participant or client, treating participants/clients/staff member, and community in a dignified manner with respect, kindness, and understanding and subscribing to the organization's commitment to quality and service.

Please direct any questions or inquires to emily@releasedreentry.org