Senior Program Associate, Technical Compliance

About Acacia Center for Justice:

The Acacia Center for Justice (“Acacia”) provides legal support and representation to immigrants facing deportation through the development, coordination, and management of national networks of legal services providers serving immigrants across the country. Acacia’s goals are twofold: to support immigrant legal services and defense networks to provide exceptional legal services to immigrants; and to advocate for the expansion of these programs and the infrastructure critical to guaranteeing immigrants access to justice, fairness, and freedom. Acacia ensures accountable, independent, zealous, and person-centered legal services and representation to protect the rights of all immigrants.

Job Summary:

We are seeking a Senior Program Associate to join Acacia’s Technical Compliance Team, to support the technical compliance oversight of the Post Release Legal Services (PRLS) Program. This position is contingent upon contract award.

Technical Compliance Team

The Technical Compliance team plays a pivotal role in advancing Acacia’s mission to support and defend the rights of immigrants at risk of detention or deportation. Technical Compliance is dedicated to creating and maintaining systems that ensure all processes remain focused on the needs of immigrants in removal proceedings by serving as the liaison between contractual obligations and service implementation. Through effective communication, reporting, and auditing of adherence to contractual requirements, both within Acacia and across our extensive network of legal service provider (LSP) subcontractors, we ensure contract stability. Drawing on programmatic expertise, and experience in program management and direct services, the Technical Compliance team bridges the gap between stringent contractual and logistical demands and the human-centered implementation of these requirements. Our deep understanding of the challenging work our subcontractors face enables us to develop systems that are not only efficient and effective but also sensitive to the practical realities of service delivery under a large federal contract.

Post Release Legal Services Program

Each year, thousands of unaccompanied children, many fleeing unspeakable violence in their own countries, enter the United States. Upon apprehension and after enduring a harrowing journey, they are detained in federal custody in facilities contracted by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and placed in removal (deportation) proceedings. Unaccompanied children do not have a right to a government-appointed attorney and too often must face the immigration courts without the benefit of counsel. Through its network of more than 90 LSP subcontractors across the U.S., Acacia currently provides free legal services to tens of thousands migrant children.

To meet the growing demand for legal services for unaccompanied children, Acacia, in partnership with 27 LSP subcontractors, will expand its work to include on-the-ground presence in select Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) courthouses to provide additional legal services and representation to children released from ORR in conjunction with EOIR’s Juvenile Dockets. Under the new PRLS program,

LSP subcontractors will conduct Know Your Rights presentations aimed at increasing children’s understanding of immigration proceedings, host workshops to assist children with navigating different forms of immigration relief and provide direct representation. Acacia and its partners will also engage in community outreach to create awareness and provide information and resources to partners who have direct contact with unaccompanied children. Finally, building on Acacia efforts to expand representation, LSP subcontractors will develop innovative recruitment, and retention plans to build capacity in the field and provide continuity of service to unaccompanied children.

Senior Program Associate Position

The Senior Program Associate for the PRLS TC team will join a new and growing multi-disciplinary team at Acacia. The TC Senior Program Associate will assist in all aspects of the project not directly related to the provision of legal services to unaccompanied children, especially in routine technical work such as ensuring timely and accurate records collection, tracking, and reporting in assigned areas. The Senior Program Associate will also play an integral role in the oversight of legal service referrals, and in the recruitment of new LSP subcontractors. The Senior Program Associate will work collaboratively with other Acacia teams—including, but not limited to, Budgets & Resources Management (BRM), Operations & Quality Assurance (OPQA)--to facilitate LSP subcontractors’ contracting and onboarding

Primary Duties/Responsibilities:

Records and Data Collection, Tracking, and Reporting

• Collect and submit to the government forms required for each case of direct representation initiated by LSP subcontractors
• Collect and submit to the government information related to long-distance travel requests from LSP subcontractors
• Communicate with LSP subcontractors and with government stakeholders as needed to address questions and issues

Legal Service Provider Recruitment (as needed)

• Conduct a preliminary review of proposals (including budgets) submitted in response to solicitations for new PRLS subcontractors
• Provide informed proposal summaries and winning-proposal recommendations for the TC Program Manager’s consideration
• Provide other support to TC Program Manager as needed

Referrals Coordination

• Serve as the main point of contact for subcontractors providing referral services under the contract, maintaining a close relationship to ensure contract compliance, identify challenges and best practices, and strategically brainstorm solutions to issues that arise
• Support TC Associate Director in the oversight of referrals and coordination of legal services
• Collaborate with the OPQA team to ensure that referrals to pro bono legal representation are in keeping with program requirements

Contracting and Onboarding

• Support TC Program Manager in ensuring timely completion and submission of all required contracting documents (e.g., subcontractor budget; subcontractor Program Operation Plan; subcontractor staffing plan)
• Onboarding new LSP subcontractors by providing timely access to all relevant portals, databases, and technical assistance resources related to work under the PRLS contract
• In close partnership with other PRLS teams, coordinate onboarding trainings for all subcontractors, including, but not limited to, reporting, invoicing, referrals, technical assistance, and program management
• Support Program Manager in monitoring LSP subcontractors' use of language access resources to ensure they follow guidelines and maintain accurate records for billing purposes

Additional Responsibilities

• Develop written protocols for the above-described tasks as needed
• Support Program Manager and Associate Director as needed
• Additional tasks as needed to support shifting priorities based on work distribution and team structure shifts

Required Skills, Knowledge, Abilities:

• Demonstrated knowledge of immigration law, child welfare, criminal and juvenile justice, or other justice areas
• Ability to utilize available data and online resources (for example: social media, listservs, internet) to support tasks as needed
• Comfort with and interest in reviewing budgets and proposals and assessing them for alignment with organizational goals and priorities
• Strong writing, facilitation, and organizational skills
• Ability to distill complex information from multiple sources and communicate it verbally and in writing to a wide variety of audiences
• Comfort with public speaking and giving presentations
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a team, and to manage multiple projects effectively and efficiently
• Flexibility and the ability to quickly pivot when facing challenges and changes attendant to developing programming and project management
• Interest in effectuating change in partnership with the government
• An uncompromising commitment to immigrants’ rights and race equity
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite

Preferred Skills, Knowledge, Abilities:

• Demonstrated knowledge of or experience in project management and contractual compliance best practices
• Knowledge of the ORR system for unaccompanied children
• Experience providing legal services to immigrants and/or children
• Knowledge of or experience with large federal contracts
• Experience preparing or reviewing budgets and proposals
• Experience building partnerships with LSPs to meet the needs of people in jails, prisons, and/or immigration detention or removal proceedings
• Lived experience and/or demonstrated commitment to challenging inequities and racism in the immigration legal system

Education and Experience:

• Advanced degree in law, public administration, social work, project management, immigration removal defense, or contractual compliance
• At least four years of relevant experience

People of color and those who have been impacted by the criminal system and immigration system are strongly urged to apply. Acacia is deeply committed to race equality, inclusion and belonging and strives to create a work culture that recognizes everyone's unique lived experience.

Equal Opportunity Employment:

Acacia is an equal opportunity employer and seeks to recruit persons of diverse backgrounds and support their retention and advancement within the organization. We are committed to fostering a workplace culture inclusive of people with respect to their race, ethnicity, national origin, gender/gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, marital status, age, disabilities, political affiliation, religious beliefs, or any other characteristic. Our commitment to justice and diversity also means providing a work environment that is welcoming, respectful, and engaging.

This job description is not meant to be an all-inclusive list of duties, responsibilities and requirements but constitutes a general definition of the position's scope and function within our organization.

Acacia Center for Justice is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, citizenship status, current employment status, or caregiver status.

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