Assistant Youth Worker (53109)

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Assistant Youth Worker serves as an emerging member of RiseBoro's youth development team, helping create safe, welcoming, and engaging environments where young people can learn, connect, and thrive. Working alongside program staff, Assistant Youth Workers actively participate in program experiences while building the skills, confidence, and experience needed to grow within the field of youth development. This role offers an opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of young people while developing as a professional through hands-on experience, mentorship, reflection, and ongoing learning. Specific duties and responsibilities include:

Participant Supervision & Safety
• In collaboration with Group Leaders, supervise program participants at all times during program operation, in all locations where the program operates, including off-site trips.
• Supports arrival, dismissal, and transition procedures to promote safe, organized, and positive experiences for participants and families.
• Identify and communicate safety concerns, participant needs, and incidents to program leadership in a timely manner.
• Reinforce program expectations and contribute to a culture of accountability, belonging, and mutual respect.

Program Support & Engagement
• Assist in preparing materials, setting up activities, and maintaining organized program spaces.
• Support the facilitation of enrichment activities and learning experiences that promote participants' academic, social-emotional, creative, leadership, and recreational development.
• Actively engage alongside participants during activities and encourage positive participation and inclusion throughout program experiences.
• Provide homework help and other skill-building support, as applicable.

Youth Development & Mentorship
• Alongside program staff, apply positive youth development and behavior support practices that foster social-emotional growth, responsibility, belonging, and self-confidence among participants.
• Promote inclusive environments where every participant feels respected, valued, connected, and capable of success.
• Build positive and supportive relationships with and among participants while acting as a role model.

Growth & Professional Development:
• Participate actively in supervision, staff meetings, required trainings, and professional development opportunities, including a minimum of 15 hours of annual training and completion of required coursework in mental health awareness, youth engagement and de-escalation techniques, crisis response protocols, and available mental health resources, as assigned by the Program Director and/or Content Specialist.
• Demonstrate openness to feedback, reflection, and learning to strengthen professional practice.
• Seek opportunities to build facilitation, communication, and leadership skills through training, observation, and hands-on experience.
• Contribute positively to team culture through collaboration, flexibility, and shared responsibility.
• Demonstrate initiative, curiosity, and increasing independence over time.

Professional Responsibility & Program Operations
• Adhere to site-specific memoranda and program staff manual which includes staff and program specific requirements as prescribed by the NYS Child School Aged Child Care (SACC) Programs regulation in a proactive manner, making the provision of quality services and the safety and care of all children the primary focus.
• Demonstrate professionalism through consistent attendance, punctuality, preparedness, and follow-through.
• Complete assigned attendance records, checklists, activity logs, and other required documentation accurately and on time.
• Adhere to agency policies, program procedures, reporting protocols, and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Communicate participant concerns, operational needs, and questions to program leadership in a timely manner.
• Recognize that personal reliability contributes to participant safety, staffing stability, and overall program quality, and take responsibility for minimizing disruptions to program operations.
COMPETENCIES
• Must be at least 16 years of age
• Positive Youth Development & Relationship Building
• Communication, Collaboration & Teamwork
• Adaptability, Initiative & Willingness to Learn
• Professionalism & Dependability
• Emerging Facilitation & Leadership Skills

EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE
High School Diploma or equivalent or one year of experience working with children under the age of 13 years old.