Director of Health Justice Network (HJN), Bureau of Health Promotion for Justice- Impacted Populations

The Bureau of Health Promotion for Justice-Impacted Populations (HPJIP) in the Division of Mental Hygiene aims to reduce the negative social and health consequences of criminal legal system involvement through innovative policy and practice change. By centering community, addressing inequities, lived experience, and elevating trauma-and-resilience-informed-approaches, we promote evidence-based best practices to address the needs of those disproportionately impacted by the criminal legal system.

The Health Justice Network (HJN) is an equity-centered peer-led public health program that aims to support connections to healthcare for court involved individuals and individuals navigating community reintegration. The program operates two tracks: Re-Entry and Court-Based through its community-based Reentry Track, HJN pairs individuals returning home from jail or prison with trained Community Health Workers (CHWs) who share personal lived experience. Its court-linked Court-Based Mental Health Navigators Track delivers person-centered care by helping individuals with current court cases navigate essential healthcare and social support services.

HJN is operational 5 days a week, Monday – Friday, 9:00am - 5:00pm. The Director of HJN’s schedule would be Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00pm. Please note there must be flexibility with schedule to meet program needs.

Position Summary: Reporting directly to the Senior Director of Programs in the Bureau of Health Promotion for Justice-Impacted Populations (HPJIP) the Director of Health Justice Network will: Job Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provide operational, administrative, and clinical oversight of HJN, developing and advancing strategic goals and implementation plans according to Bureau objectives.
• Manage staff coverage, productivity, service skills, and workload expectations for all embedded CHWs and program staff to enforce high performance and team accountability.
• Develop, implement, and audit evidence-based clinical policies, procedures, clinical trainings, and protocols to optimize program operations within the context of forensic mental health and public health networks.
• Develop and manage rigorous program evaluation and
• Implement quality-driven initiatives to enhance quantitative outcomes, clinical service delivery, and comprehensive case management.
• Work closely with the Senior Director of Programs to ensure all developed program strategies are well-documented and executed effectively.
• Manage and ensure timely, high-priority responses for program and data requests from senior leadership and external stakeholders.
• Establish standardized definitions, key metrics, and rigorous data analysis plans to anchor the program's evaluation baseline.
• Develop program performance evaluations and programmatic improvement strategies rooted in objective, data-informed findings.
• Deliver comprehensive presentations and data-driven progress reports directly to senior leadership on program milestones.
• Conduct regular field work to meet with existing partners, inspect operations, and optimize program partnerships.
• Execute additional programmatic, administrative, or operational tasks as assigned to meet the evolving needs of the program Preferred Skills:
• A Master's level degree in strongly preferred, in a related social service field.
• Bring 5+ years of experience in a senior leadership role specializing in evaluating, managing, developing, and implementing programs, specifically peer-led programs.
• Demonstrate a deep understanding of serving justice impacted individuals, peer and public health frameworks, healthcare delivery, the criminal justice system, and NYC social services.
• Possess extensive management experience with programs and populations that engage with Serious Mental Illness (SMI), substance use, or justice-impacted backgrounds.
• Possess proven experience leading or supervising hybrid teams, including peer specialists, community health workers, or professionals with lived experience.
• Demonstrate strong leadership, program management, and multi-agency coalition-building capabilities.
• Experience in trauma-and-resilience-informed care models and macro clinical practice.
• Proven track record of developing, implementing, and monitoring programs, organizing team activities through structured goal setting.
• Utilize strong knowledge of data collection systems, clinical documentation, case management platforms, and data-sharing practices.
• Demonstrate cultural competence and health equity advocacy across all program management practices.
• Ability to act independently, exercise exceptional management judgment, and escalate critical program issues accordingly.
• Ability to work flexibly and multi-task to develop and implement goals in a fast-paced environment.
• Possess excellent communication skills (both written and verbal) to convey program plans and metrics to program staff, senior executives.

“In addition to the resume, a cover letter is required”.

Why you should work for us:

• Loan Forgiveness: As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal/state loan forgiveness and repayment assistance programs that lessen your payments or even fully forgive your full balance. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website (https://studentaid.gov/pslf/)
• Benefits: City employees are entitled to unmatched benefits such as: o a premium-free health insurance plan that saves employees over $10K annually, per a 2024 assessment.

o additional health, fitness, and financial benefits may be available based on the position’s associated union/benefit fund.

o a public sector defined benefit pension plan with steady monthly payments in retirement. o a tax-deferred savings program and o a robust Worksite Wellness Program that offers resources and opportunities to keep you healthy while serving New Yorkers.

• Work From Home Policy: Depending on your position, you may be able to work up to two days during the week from home.
• Job Security - you could enjoy more job security compared to private sector employment and be able to contribute to making NYC a healthy place to live and work.

Established in 1805, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health Department) is the oldest and largest health department in the U.S., dedicated to protecting and improving the health of NYC. Our mission is to safeguard the health of every resident and cultivate a city where everyone, regardless of age, background, or location, can achieve their optimal health. We provide a wide array of programs and services focused on food and nutrition, anti-tobacco support, chronic disease prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, family and child health, environmental health, mental health, and social justice initiatives. As the primary population health strategist and policy authority for NYC, with a rich history of public health initiatives and scientific advancements, from addressing the 1822 yellow fever outbreak to the COVID-19 pandemic, we serve as a global leader in public health innovation and expertise.

Come join us and help to continue our efforts in making a difference in the lives of all New Yorkers! Commitment to Equity: The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.

The NYC Health Department is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation to all individuals. To request reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, contact Sye-Eun Ahn, Director of the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, at sahn1@health.nyc.gov or 347-396-6549.

Minimum Qualifications

• A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and five years of full-time professional satisfactory experience acquired within the last fifteen years, in a health services setting such as a laboratory, hospital, or other patient care facility, or in a public health, environmental health, or mental hygiene program, at least 18 months of which must have been in a managerial capacity, consisting of managerial experience clearly demonstrating the ability to perform difficult and responsible managerial work, requiring independent decision-making concerning program management, planning, allocation of resources, and the scheduling and assignment of work.
• Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" above. Education may be substituted for experience on the basis that each 30 graduate semester credits from an accredited college in hospital administration, public health, public administration, business administration, management or administration can be substituted for one year of non-managerial experience up to a maximum of 60 semester credits for two years. However, all candidates must have a minimum of a baccalaureate degree and 18 months of managerial experience as described in "1" above.

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.