Fair Housing Manager (Senior Human Rights Consultant)

Manages the Fair Housing program in the Office of Human Rights and Equity Programs; supervises a team of professional and other staff investigating human rights complaints, and performs related duties as required.

Duties include:

Management:

• Supervises Human Rights Specialists (HRS) to ensure enforcement of Article III of the Human Rights Ordinance.
• Reviews written determinations, requests for information, requests for withdrawal, with or without justification, legal memoranda, administrative closures and settlement agreements of the HRS, checking for accuracy, completeness, and compliance with established agency guidelines.
• Monitors status of all active housing intakes and complaints to ensure that new charges are prepared in accordance with the Fairfax County Fair Housing Act's ("Act") statute of limitations and within agency guidelines.
• Provides input on annual performance evaluations for HRS per county policy.
• Oversees all entry of information in United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s database, HUD Enforcement Management System (HEMS), and maintains user access as needed.
• Submits completed cases for payment to HUD and ensures acceptance of payment requests.
• Attends Human Rights Commission meetings and handles any preparation needed beforehand.
• Assists in the preparation of grant funding applications and reviews all requests for proposals prepared by the fair housing specialist, and monitors compliance with funding agreements.
• Identifies and arranges ongoing fair housing related training opportunities for the human rights specialists.

• Coordinates and supervises all outreach efforts of the office, including being the liaison with other county departments and the Office of Public Affairs.
• Assists with the county's Student Human Rights Commission (SHRC), which is comprised of students from Fairfax County Public High Schools (FCPS).
• Assists with developing, implementing, and coordinating with FCPS officials, the various activities of the SHRC.
• May be required to drive to different locations to coordinate outreach events.

• Report out and consult with HUD officials on case status, outreach, staff training, and Office of Human Rights and Equity Programs (OHREP) performance assessment, as well as develop spending plans/budgets, and other reports, as required.
• Oversee status of HUD grants and submits requests for drawdowns as needed.
• Supervises coordination with the Fairfax County Department of Housing and Community Development regarding grant funding and contract approval for testing vendor. Oversees the evaluation and monitoring of contractor compliance. Reviews and analyzes reports prepared to determine whether testing outcomes warrant the filing of complaints. Supervises the drafting and arrangement of Request for Proposals (RFP) regarding Analyses of Impediments (AI) and the Regional Analysis of Impediments (RAI). Oversees recruiting and chair selection committee for the AI. Monitors the work on the AI/RAI and ensures that appropriate public hearings on the AI/RAI are coordinated for acceptance by the Board of Supervisors.

• Prepares investigative plans, requests for information and schedules fact finding conferences, when needed, so as to direct an investigation into an alleged violation of the Act.
• Presides at the fact-finding conference, gathers all relevant evidence pertinent to the merits of the alleged violation of the ordinance.
• Handles any post-disposition conciliation conferences and assists the parties in reaching acceptable terms.
• Negotiates relief in the public interest provisions as needed.
• Supervises intakes, conducts telephone and face-to-face intake interviews.
• Evaluates the nature of the alleged claims, collects all available relevant evidence from the individual, and refers the individual to the appropriate county, state, federal or private organizations to assist with the individual's problem.
• Counsels individuals about their rights pursuant to the Act and explains the agency's complaint processing procedures.
• Prepares and conducts intake training for HRS to enable the HRS to evaluate and intake and properly determine the agency's probable legal jurisdiction to the matter pursuant to the Act.
• Prepares and conducts HRS mediation, investigation and conciliation training and conducts HRS staff development training.
• Analyzes the allegations and merits of the complaint and determines the applicable legal remedies, voluntary pre- disposition post- disposition negotiations, and prepares settlement agreements for signature by the parties.
• Conducts conciliation conferences to obtain voluntary compliance with a cited violation of the Act and writes conciliation agreements.
• Confers with staff of the County Attorney's Office (OCA) regarding the final analysis and legal sufficiency of any housing matters referred to OCA and coordinates OHREP's assistance with post-cause litigation.
• Leads the agency's racial equity efforts pursuant to Fairfax County's One Fairfax policy including overseeing the agency's Equity Impact Plan as well as other equity initiatives.

(The illustrative duties listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all-inclusive list. A complete list of position duties and unique physical requirements can be found in the position description.)

May plan, assign tasks and oversee daily activities and work product of Human Rights Specialists;

May provide guidance to lower level specialists in all aspects of investigation and conciliation process;

Serves as liaison to various state and federal agencies;

Prepares and conducts training sessions for Human Rights staff, other County employees, and the public on Human Rights issues, laws, etc.

(The knowledge, skills and abilities listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all inclusive list.)

Thorough knowledge of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, the Fairfax County Fair Housing Act as well as other laws relating to Human Rights, Equal Opportunity, Civil Rights, legal precedents and applicable case law;

Knowledge of investigative techniques and procedures;

Ability to handle complex negotiations with tact, resourcefulness and good judgement;

Ability to oversee multiple investigations;

Ability to supervise investigations conducted by subordinates;

Ability to provide guidance, counsel and professional support to the Fair Housing Task Force;

Ability to supervise, train and mentor assigned staff;

Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing;

Ability to interface with various racial, ethnic and socioeconomic groups.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Any combination of education, experience, and training equivalent to the following:(Click on the aforementioned link to learn how Fairfax County interprets equivalencies for "Any combination, experience, and training equivalent to")

Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelor's degree in personnel administration, public administration, human resources, management, sociology, ethnic studies or a related field, plus five years of experience in civil rights, human rights, or fair housing compliance, investigation, or administration.

• Five or more years of experience in conducting complex civil rights investigations, including conducting fair housing investigations.
• Demonstrated experience in interpreting federal, state or local laws and regulations.
• Experience with applicable case law as it relates to human rights.
• Experience delivering presentations or providing training.
• At least 3 years supervisory experience.
• Experience with HUD systems and programs.