Career Opportunity

8446-Court Alternative Specialist I

Recruitment: RTF0148876-01091172

Published: July 16, 2024

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

About:

Specific Information Regarding this Recruitment Process

Classification: 8446 Court Alternative Specialist I

Status: Full-Time

Appointment Type: Permanent Civil Service (PCS)

Application Opening: July 8, 2024

Application Deadline: Apply by 11:59pm on July 29, 2024

Compensation: $81,250 - $98,722 / Annually

Recruitment ID: RTF0146253-01091172 / RTF0145400-01138567

This is a Position-Based Test (PBT) conducted in accordance with CSC Rule 111A.

IMPORTANT: In addition to your online application submission on SmartRecruiters, you MUST also complete the Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ) found HERE.

Note: Your application will not be reviewed without a completed MQSQ.

The Public Defender’s office provides legal representation to persons charged with a crime in San Francisco who do not have the financial means to retain their own counsel. Each year, the office serves approximately 20,000 people. The San Francisco Public Defender’s office is a nationally recognized model of public defense. The Public Defender provides legal staffing for each of the misdemeanor and felony preliminary hearing and trial courts, the Mental Health and Youth Defender Unit divisions, the Community Justice Center, Domestic Violence Court, Behavioral Health Court, Veterans’ Justice Court, Drug Court, Intensive Supervision court, Parole Court, Young Adult Court, and Extradition.

Note: Court Alternative Specialist I may specialize in one of the functional areas but not limited to described below or perform duties in multiple areas.

• Pre-trial Release Unit
• Youth Defender
• Re-Entry
• Immigration

Role description

Appointment Type:  Permanent Civil Service (PCS)

Under supervision, this position in the Public Defender’s Office is responsible for but not limited to:

Job Duties:

1. Interviews, assesses and evaluates the needs of individuals referred by the courts to an alternative sentencing program.

2. Coordinates placement of court assignees in appropriate community service and rehabilitation programs.

3. Acts as liaison to the courts relative to court alternative program activities; prepares and presents reports to the courts on court assignees.

4. Develops and maintains working relationships with a variety of public and private service agencies; disseminates program information to these agencies and the public.

5. Develops selection criteria and assists in the investigation, orientation and selection of community agencies for use as placement sites for program assignees.

6. Prepares and maintains case records and other related project reports and correspondence.

7. Assists in the supervision and in-service training of program employees.

How to qualify

 Applicants must fully meet the minimum qualifications by the final filing deadline unless otherwise stated:

Training and Experience:

• Requires completion of a four year college or university with a baccalaureate degree with major coursework in the behavioral or social sciences.
• Requires at least one year of experience in a court referral program or closely related public service work; or an equivalent combination of training and experience.

Verification of Experience and/or Education

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at http://sfdhr.org/index.aspx?page=456

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

What else should I know?

Selection Process:

1. Minimum Qualifications Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ) (Weight - Qualifying)
2. Scored Essay Questionnaire (Weight - 100%)

Selection Procedures

1. Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ) (Qualifying):

Applicants will be prompted to complete a Supplemental Questionnaire as part of the online employment application. This Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant's experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications for this position. Applicants must also complete the official application. It is essential that applicants provide complete information in identifying their education, experience and training. The Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications. Failure to complete the MQSQ, will not considered as an incomplete application.

1. Scored Essay Questionnaire (Weight: 100% of total score):

Applicants who are qualified to move onto the selection process will be eligible to complete a Scored Essay Questionnaire.

"PLEASE NOTE: The Scored Essay Questionnaire will be distributed via email and only to those candidates who are qualified by meeting the 8446 Court Alternative Specialist I minimum qualifications". The Scored Essay Questionnaire has been designed to measure knowledge, skills and/or abilities in job-related areas which may include but not be limited to:

Knowledge, Abilities and Skills: Requires a good knowledge of: the principles, techniques and trends in alternative sentencing programs; the criminal justice system, including organization, operation and procedures of the Courts and related agencies; interviewing techniques and dynamics of human behavior; community resources and the needs and services available to multi-ethnic groups and disadvantaged juveniles and adults.

Requires ability to: establish and maintain effective working relationships with community agencies, representatives of the courts, clients, other departmental personnel and the public; communicate effectively with individuals of divergent ethnic, social and cultural backgrounds; prepare and present clear and concise reports.

Applicants must possess a passing score on the Scored Essay Questionnaire in order to be ranked on the final Score Report.

Eligible List/Score Report:

A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created, and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be twelve (12) months, and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director. Certification: The certification rule for the eligible list resulting from this examination will be Rule of Ten Scores (RO10). Additional selection processes may be conducted by the hiring department prior to making final hiring decisions.

Working Conditions: Must be able to work full time within the regular office hours of 8:00am – 5:00pm, and to travel throughout San Francisco and the surrounding cities on a daily basis to conduct visits at varied times of the day.  

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About the Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview
• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams [required for Combined, Promotive, Entrance (CPE) Exams only]
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY

Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/ and begin the application process.

• Select the “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.