Family Services Parent Aide

Family Services Parent Aide

Reports To: Family Services Counselor

Who We Are

Our mission is to break the cycle of addiction and trauma for women, children and families.

Seventy years ago, Wayside Recovery, formerly The Wayside House, Inc., began with a mission to improve the quality of women’s lives.

Since then, Wayside has become an expert in delivering gender-specific and trauma-informed substance use treatment and mental health services for women and their families.

Wayside Recovery provides a holistic array of substance use treatment for adult women, including outpatient and residential substance use treatment, recovery support services, adult and children’s mental health therapy, long-term supportive housing, and family support services.

Our vision is that all women, children, and families achieve healing and hope for their future free from the effects of addiction and trauma.

About the position: The Parent Aide provides hands-on parenting education, coaching, and support to mothers receiving substance use disorder treatment at Wayside Family Treatment. This position focuses on strengthening parent-child relationships, promoting healthy child development, and assisting mothers in applying parenting skills learned during treatment to everyday interactions with their children.

Working primarily during evening hours, the Parent Aide provides real-time guidance, encouragement, and positive reinforcement while collaborating with the Family Services team to promote parenting independence, child safety, and family reunification.

Parenting Education and Support

• Provide individualized, hands-on parenting coaching during daily interactions, reinforcing skills introduced through parenting education groups.
• Model positive parenting techniques, including age-appropriate discipline, communication, emotional regulation, and nurturing interactions.
• Assist mothers in establishing consistent routines related to meals, hygiene, bedtime, and other parenting responsibilities.
• Encourage and reinforce positive parenting behaviors while providing constructive, strengths-based feedback.
• Assist with implementing individualized parenting tools, including potty-training charts, reward systems, and behavioral strategies, under the direction of the Family Services Counselor.

Parent-Child Engagement and Development

• Plan and facilitate age-appropriate developmental activities that promote learning, attachment, and positive parent-child relationships.
• Facilitate scheduled Mother-Child Interaction groups in collaboration with the Family Services Counselor.
• Support mothers in understanding developmental milestones, age-appropriate expectations, and their children's individual needs.
• Encourage meaningful parent-child engagement through recreational, educational, and bonding activities.

Child Safety and Supervision

• Observe parent-child interactions, providing guidance and redirection to promote safe parenting practices.
• Reinforce expectations regarding child supervision, safe sleep, feeding safety, and developmentally appropriate care.
• Identify and promptly communicate parenting concerns or child safety issues to appropriate staff.
• Complete designated evening rounds to support adherence to children's curfew and supervision expectations.
• Follow agency policies and mandated reporting requirements related to suspected child abuse or neglect.

Family Services and Program Support

• Collaborate with the Family Services Counselor to reinforce individualized parenting goals and support family reunification efforts.
• Participate in supervised parent-child visits as assigned and provide objective feedback regarding observed interactions.
• Assist with communication involving Child Protection workers and visitation supervisors as directed, including after-hours scheduling updates.
• Provide transportation to and from partnering childcare providers as needed and authorized.
• Maintain consistent communication with the Family Services team and participate in staff meetings, supervision, and relevant trainings.

Documentation

• Complete timely, objective documentation of significant parenting observations, interventions, progress, and concerns.
• Provide accurate information to the Family Services Counselor that may support treatment planning, Child Protection communication, and court-related reporting.
• Maintain confidentiality and follow applicable documentation standards and agency policies.

Required Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Experience working with children, parents, or families
• Basic understanding of child development and age-appropriate parenting practices.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills.
• Ability to provide supportive, nonjudgmental coaching and maintain professional boundaries.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team.
• Ability to complete required background studies and agency trainings.
• Valid driver's license and ability to meet agency driving requirements when transportation is assigned.

Preferred Qualifications

• Currently pursuing or holding a degree in social work, child development, early childhood education, psychology, addiction studies, human services, or a related field.
• Experience working with families impacted by substance use disorders, trauma, mental health concerns, or Child Protection involvement.
• Experience providing parenting education, coaching, or family support services.
• Familiarity with trauma-informed care, family reunification, and residential treatment programming.

Schedule and Working Conditions

This position primarily provides parenting support outside traditional clinical programming hours, when mothers and children are together.

Anticipated weekday hours are approximately 1:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., with weekend availability based on program needs.

Scheduling will include overlap with the Family Services Counselor to support communication and continuity of services.

Holiday scheduling will be determined based on program needs and employee availability.

Work involves regular interaction with infants, toddlers, and children of varying ages and requires the ability to participate in developmentally appropriate activities and respond to safety concerns.

Additional Responsibilities

The Parent Aide performs other duties as assigned to support the Family Services department and overall program operations. All responsibilities must be performed in accordance with agency policies, confidentiality requirements, and applicable regulations.

Wayside is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing a respectful, inclusive, and supportive workplace.

Education & Experience

• · High School Diploma or GED
• · Experience with mental health preferred.
• · Experience working with families or pregnant and parenting women preferred.
• · Experience working in a 24-hour behavioral setting preferred.
• · Knowledge and experience with Outlook, Word, and Excel.

Physical Requirements

• · Must be able to lift 25 lbs.
• · Must be able to climb stairs.

A staff member with direct contact must be free from problematic substance use for at least 1 year immediately preceding employment as a condition of employment.

This is a legal requirement for employment in licensed substance abuse treatment programs in Minnesota.

Benefits

Retirement plan- Employees who are 18+ years old and work at least 20 hours per week are eligible to participate upon hire and eligible for the 4% match after 1 year of employment and must be 21+ years old and work 1000 hours in the calendar year

• · 403(b)
• · 403(b) matching- employer match (4% match eligible after 1 year of employment and 21+ years old and work at least 1000 hours in the calendar year)

Benefits- Full-time employees working 30 hours or more per week are eligible to enroll

• · Health insurance -a portion of the premium is paid by the employer
• · Dental insurance-paid 100% by the employee
• · Vision insurance-paid 100% by the employee
• · Life insurance 50K -Paid by Wayside for all full time employees
• · Disability insurance, STD and LTD -Paid by Wayside for all full time employees
• Voluntary Life, Hospital, Accident and Critical illness- paid 100% by the employee

PTO

• · Paid time off for full time employees starting at 120 hours accrued annually
• · Paid training
• · Student loan forgiveness through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program
• · CEU and License renewal fee reimbursement