Community Outreach and Help & Recovery (COHR) Director

Statement of Duties

The Community Outreach and Help & Recovery (COHR) Director leads the COHR unit within SPD. The employee in this role manages and trains staff; identifies and advances collaborations with sworn officers, City agencies, emergency services, service providers, community groups and academic partners; identifies best practices in police-led intervention and data collection around issues of behavioral health, which encompasses mental illness, substance misuse, trauma, neurodiversity and personal crisis

COHR’s mission is to divert individuals from the criminal justice system, through assessment, intervention and coordination across systems to connect and redirect individuals impacted by behavioral health to services better able to meet their needs. . Utilizing a social determinants of health lens to further understand systemic barriers and to provide advocacy and supportive presence related to these issues to improve outcomes and quality of life for populations served.

The COHR Director sets strategic goals for the unit, manages its staff and day to day operations, identifies and advances collaborations and process improvements, and shares best practices with high-level decision makers and influential community groups. Provides clinical supervision to COHR staff including, graduate level interns and fellows.

Employee is required to perform all similar or related duties.

Essential Functions:

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various type of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position.

• Manage employees within the COHR unit, as well as multiple Research Fellows and interns.
• Administrative tasks include hiring, staff supervision and management; budge/grants management; policy development and management of academic partnerships.
• Project management for COHR’s 3 primary grants, MB CIT TTAC; State Overdose Response; Jail Diversion Program. This includes budget management, ensuring that deliverables are met and continually ensuring that work reflects current best practice strategies. Identify and advance collaborations with local and state government agencies, service providers and community groups to improve prevention and intervention efforts for target populations.
• Develop data collection and data sharing best practices for sworn officers, emergency services personnel and service providers regularly dealing with target populations.
• Identify evidence-based best practices for prevention and harm reduction related to issues behavioral health, including mental illness, addiction, trauma, developmental conditions and personal crisis.
• Organize meetings with high-level decision makers to communicate crisis intervention and prevention best practices for target populations. Collaborate with City, State and non-profit service providers to identify trends and provide forums to inform community.
• Identify academic partners and selects COHR Research Fellows to generate data on intervention leverage points through in-depth case studies.
• Identify or provide training to COHR staff, sworn officers, emergency personnel and service providers as necessary to further COHR’s mission.
• Organize quarterly COHR Stakeholder meetings. Develop and present self-evaluation benchmarks for COHR.
• Identify and secure funding streams for prevention and harm reduction for at-risk populations.

Recommended Minimum Qualifications

Education and Experience: Master’s degree in Clinical Social Work, Psychology or other Licensed Mental Health certification (LICSW preferred) and five (5) years’ experience in clinical role, with a minimum of 3 years working with partners in the criminal justice system; or any equivalent combination of education, training and experience providing the required knowledge, abilities and skills to perform the essential functions of the position.

Prior experience of meaningful collaboration with sworn officers, City agencies, emergency services, service providers, community groups and academics is ideal.

Knowledge, Abilities and Skill

Knowledge: Knowledge and experience in intervention strategies, research evaluation, presentation, and instruction. Clinical assessment, diagnositic skills and familiarity with trauma informed treatment intervention strategies.

Abilities: Ability to travel to off-site locations; ability to walk, stand and drive for excessive periods of time; ability to multi-task; ability to meet and deal with the public effectively and appropriately; ability to handle problems and emergencies effectively; ability to communicate clearly, both orally and in writing; ability to operate a computer; ability to maintain, manage, and organize records; ability to deal appropriately with city employees, city officials and the general public.

Skill: Excellent organizational skills and communication skills; excellent data processing skills in the use of personal computers and office software including word processing, data base, internet and spreadsheet applications.

Work Environment

The work environment involves everyday discomforts typical of offices, with occasional exposure to outside elements. Noise or physical surroundings may be distracting, but conditions are generally not unpleasant. Employee may be required to work beyond normal business hours in response to attend evening meetings or complete work assignments.

Physical and Mental Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the position’s essential functions.

Physical Skills

Few physical demands are required to perform the work. Work effort principally involves sitting to perform work tasks, with intermittent periods of stooping, walking, and standing. May also be some occasional lifting of objects such as office equipment and computer paper (up to 30 lbs.)

Motor Skills

Duties are largely mental rather than physical, but the job may occasionally require minimal motor skills for activities such as moving objects, operating a telephone, personal computer and/or most other office equipment including word processing, filing and sorting of papers.

Visual Skills

Visual demands require constantly reading documents for general understanding and analytical purposes.

Hours: Full-Time 
Salary: $99,367.27 annualized, plus benefits 
Union: Non-Union
FLSA: Exempt
Date Posted: December 9th, 2024

City of Somerville residents are especially encouraged to apply.

The City of Somerville is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, disability or any other protected category. Women, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Auxiliary aids and services, written materials in alternative formats, and reasonable modifications in policies and procedures will be provided to qualified individuals with disabilities free of charge, upon request. Persons with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication (i.e., CART, ASL), written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures in order to access the programs, activities, and meetings of the City of Somerville should please contact Adrienne Pomeroy at 617-625-6600 x 2059 or [email protected].

Please Note: The below details do not apply to any Mayor Student Jobs programs OR youth workers with the city.

Pre-Employment Requirements for All Employees:

• MA Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) clearance


• Completion of Conflict-of-Interest Law Education training for municipal employees

Overview of Total Rewards:

• 4 weeks annual vacation (for non-union positions) union positions vary by contract


• Medical insurance through the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) - 80% of premium costs paid by City


• Dental coverage low and high plans through Cigna


• Vision care through Vision Service Plan (VSP)


• Long term disability through Sun Life


• Group and voluntary life insurance through Boston Mutual


• Health Care and Dependent Care flexible spending through Benefit Strategies


• Deferred compensation plans through a choice of three vendors


• Free, confidential services through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provided by E4Health


• Annual cancer screening & wellness release


• Somerville Retirement Pension System


• Tuition reimbursement


• MBTA pass program


• FREE Blue Bikes membership


• Eligible employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF)

Benefits listed are for benefits-eligible positions and the above information is meant to be a general overview of the benefit programs offered by the City of Somerville and not a binding contract.