Manager - PreVenture Program, Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario Provincial Office

at  Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Job Description
Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario (YWHO, www.youthhubs.ca) is a network of 32, integrated service hubs where young people ages 12 to 25 years have walk-in access to youth-centred, community based mental health and wellness services. This initiative engages youth, family members, service providers, and other partners through a co-creation process, ensuring services are designed and delivered according to their needs. The hubs are provincially-consistent in core features and locally led and adapted to offer and connect to a range of evidence-based services—mental health care, substance use, primary care, education, employment, housing, peer support, family support and care navigation—in youth-friendly spaces. Outcomes are rigorously evaluated within and across hubs, focusing on positive outcomes in areas of wellness important to youth and their families. The YWHO Provincial Office (YWHO PO) and its 32 Networks operate as a Learning Health System, where evidence, data, and care culture are used to generate new knowledge and continuously refine and deliver best practices for continuous improvement in mental health and substance use care.
School Mental Health Ontario (SMH-ON) works together with Ontario school districts to support student mental health. As a provincial implementation support team, SMH-ON provides leadership, resources, implementation coaching and a community of practice in order to promote the uptake, scaling, and sustainability of evidence-based, implementation-sensitive, culturally-responsive practices in school mental health. SMH-ON serves the 72 English and French school boards in Ontario, remote school authorities, and provincial demonstration schools. The team works alongside the Ministry of Education and has a role within the wider system of care, linking with partner ministries and organizations to advance child and youth mental health.
Together, the YWHO-PO and SMH-On co-lead the implementation of PreVenture in schools across the province. The YWHO-PO leads the implementation of PreVenture in YWHO hubs and community-based settings.

POSITION DESCRIPTION:

The YWHO Manager of PreVenture Program reports to the Director, YWHO Data Management and Evaluation, and works closely with the Manager, YWHO Site Implementation. The Manager will be responsible for building and maintaining partnerships across the province, project management, staff supervision, and strategic program planning to lead the provincial delivery and scale up of the PreVenture program. The Manager works closely with the YWHO Provincial Office Leadership team and staff, and the PreVenture team at SMH-ON.

Job Requirements

• The successful candidate will have a Master’s degree in health sciences/promotion, social work, or a related field from a recognized institution and with registration with an applicable clinical regulatory body is preferred.
• The candidate will require a minimum 3 years experience successfully managing public health or prevention projects in a clinical, school or community/social services setting, combined with 2 or more years of Management experience, preferably within youth centred projects/programs.
• Demonstrated strength in project management and program planning, bringing implementation of evidence-informed interventions to services for young people, is required.
• Demonstrated experience leading large scale, provincial initiatives, involving scale-up and working with diverse service delivery partners.
• The candidate must have excellent skills in building partnerships with diverse partners in community services, Indigenous communities, education, government and research and be able to exemplify YWHO values in their work and in particular, support YWHO’s commitment to meaningful youth and family member engagement.
• Thorough understanding of principles and practices of Indigenous engagement is required. Demonstrated knowledge of First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities, cultures, perspectives and health service providers.
• Demonstrated experience of advancing health equity in systems change work and operationalizing anti-racism, anti-oppression and anti-colonial principles in organizational practice is an asset.
• The candidate must have robust knowledge of Ontario’s mental health and substance use systems and services and principles of health promotion, prevention and early intervention, in particular for children and youth.
• The successful candidate will have demonstrated skills and commitment to data driven/evidence-informed decision making.
• Skills related to capacity building, training, and delivery are preferred.
• The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to facilitate and promote collaboration and change management, effective facilitation, persuasion and negotiation skills to achieve consensus, resolve conflict and achieve desired outcomes. .
• This position requires a high level of comfort with ambiguity.
• Expertise in budget development, knowledge of Implementation Science and Quality Improvement methods, as well as French language proficiency and Project Management Professional (PMP) designation is an asset

The Manager of PreVenture, will provide leadership and manage the PreVenture portfolio at YWHO. The manager will establish and oversee partnerships to expand and scale the program within YWHO Networks, schools, and in services that support young people throughout the province of Ontario. The Manager will lead a staff team and be responsible for recruiting and managing staff, in collaboration with necessary departments within the YWHO PO, to develop a team that centres equity, respect and inclusion. The Manager is responsible for strategic project management and planning to ensure the PreVenture program responds to the needs of diverse youth. The Manager will support education and training opportunities related PreVenture, develop quarterly and annual program reports for funders, work with the Manager of Evaluation to oversee evaluation activities within the portfolio, report on program spending and budgeting, and identify and communicate risks and mitigation plans to YWHO PO leadership. The Manager will ensure program development is informed by the perspectives of youth and families through engagement with provincial youth and family advisories, working in collaboration with YWHO engagement and equity staff.

Job Requirements

• The successful candidate will have a Master’s degree in health sciences/promotion, social work, or a related field from a recognized institution and with registration with an applicable clinical regulatory body is preferred.
• The candidate will require a minimum 3 years experience successfully managing public health or prevention projects in a clinical, school or community/social services setting, combined with 2 or more years of Management experience, preferably within youth centred projects/programs.
• Demonstrated strength in project management and program planning, bringing implementation of evidence-informed interventions to services for young people, is required.
• Demonstrated experience leading large scale, provincial initiatives, involving scale-up and working with diverse service delivery partners.
• The candidate must have excellent skills in building partnerships with diverse partners in community services, Indigenous communities, education, government and research and be able to exemplify YWHO values in their work and in particular, support YWHO’s commitment to meaningful youth and family member engagement.
• Thorough understanding of principles and practices of Indigenous engagement is required. Demonstrated knowledge of First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities, cultures, perspectives and health service providers.
• Demonstrated experience of advancing health equity in systems change work and operationalizing anti-racism, anti-oppression and anti-colonial principles in organizational practice is an asset.
• The candidate must have robust knowledge of Ontario’s mental health and substance use systems and services and principles of health promotion, prevention and early intervention, in particular for children and youth.
• The successful candidate will have demonstrated skills and commitment to data driven/evidence-informed decision making.
• Skills related to capacity building, training, and delivery are preferred.
• The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to facilitate and promote collaboration and change management, effective facilitation, persuasion and negotiation skills to achieve consensus, resolve conflict and achieve desired outcomes. .
• This position requires a high level of comfort with ambiguity.
• Expertise in budget development, knowledge of Implementation Science and Quality Improvement methods, as well as French language proficiency and Project Management Professional (PMP) designation is an asset.