Bilingual Benefit Enrollment Specialist

About the Community Economic Defense Project (CEDP) & CED Law 

Our mission

We partner with low-income and working people to build economic and racial equity. We do this by confronting economic abuse and investing in community wealth. We use an ever-evolving set of legal, economic and advocacy tools to challenge and dismantle unjust systems, building quickly towards a world where all people have what they need to live and thrive. 

Our Organization

The Community Economic Defense Project (CEDP) is a Colorado-based nonprofit. Launched in 2020 as the COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project, our organization was formed to keep our neighbors housed during the pandemic. Working with clients, we built  a “one-stop-shop”  approach to eviction, foreclosure, and homelessness prevention that centers the legal and financial needs of housing-insecure families and uses a variety of tools to keep them housed. 

Our team now serves more than 1,000 people per month, bringing together housing lawyers, economists, data analysts, policy-experts, organizers, and technologists to serve our clients. In the previous two years, we have distributed more than $100 million in aid and served more than 40,000 Coloradans. We have also contributed to the passage of major legislation to prevent eviction, stop economic abuse, and make credit and life-saving medication cheaper.  CEDP’s model has been cited as a best practice by White House, HUD, the Urban Institute, and in the media.

Building on our work to stop evictions, CEDP has further expanded its integrated services model to include disaster response, predatory towing, debt collection, benefit access & navigation, long-term rental assistance, and homelessness response. Similar to CEDP’s work on rental housing, these efforts offer a continuum of care that includes navigation and advisory services, targeted payments, legal support, and the ability to participate in advocacy. 

More about the Benefit Enrollment Specialist Role:

CEDP is launching a new benefit enrollment program to assist eligible clients in accessing a broader range of public benefits, focused initially on federal disability income support, SNAP, and tax benefits. We understand the challenges individuals face in securing benefits and are committed to improving the success rate of applications and appeals. For example, only 29% of current SSI/SSDI applicants succeed in their first application, and just 39% of applicants ever receive benefits. Particularly among applicants experiencing homelessness who applied for SSI/SSDI between 2007-2017, more than 50% were denied. However, those with support through the application and appeals process are much more likely to obtain household-sustaining benefits. To address this issue, we are seeking a Benefit Enrollment Specialist who will work closely with our Benefits Attorney. 

In this role you will:

As a Benefit Enrollment Specialist at our organization, you will be at the forefront of assisting our clients in navigating the complex landscape of benefit enrollment, with a focus on SSI, SSDI, and SNAP. This specialized role is exclusively dedicated to guiding clients through the entire benefit enrollment process, providing essential support from initial application assistance to ongoing light case management as applications are reviewed. Your key responsibilities will encompass offering comprehensive application support, ensuring that clients have the best chance of securing the benefits they deserve. In cases where applications are denied, you will play a crucial role in connecting clients with our Benefits Attorney for legal assistance. Additionally, you will assess clients' needs and facilitate access to other available benefits when required, contributing to their overall financial well-being. Your work as a Benefit Enrollment Specialist will be instrumental in improving the lives of those we serve.

Position Requirements: 

• Bilingual (Spanish & English proficiency), required
• A minimum one year of experience in assisting clients in applying for public benefit programs, with a specific focus on SSI, SSDI, SNAP, and tax benefits.
• Expertise in the application and enrollment processes for these programs, including the required documentation and eligibility criteria, preferred.
• Social work background a plus
• Demonstrated dedication in providing exceptional client service, with a focus on assisting households in need of public benefits.
• Proven ability to test and learn from processes and develop new program procedures in a startup environment that requires rapid adaptation to change with minimal supervision.
• Proficiency in managing and organizing sensitive documentation, both medical and household-related, to support benefit applications.
• Knowledge and experience handling requests for additional information and communication with the Social Security Administration (SSA) preferred.
• Strong technical skills, including the ability to navigate an agile environment
• Willingness and availability to be on-site several days a week at Denver County Court, working closely with tenant advocates to ensure clients receive services where they need them most.
• A flexible work style that allows for rotation between the CEDP office and community clinics with partner organizations, offering accessibility and convenience to clients.
• Capacity to make referrals to other agencies and organizations to provide clients with supplementary services that may be required.
• Eagerness to collaborate with local partners and engage in CEDP's community engagement strategies, actively working to integrate enrollment services into community resource networks for maximum client benefit.
• Successful candidates for this role will demonstrate a strong commitment to empowering clients, a thorough knowledge of public benefit programs, and the ability to navigate complex application processes, all while fostering a sense of community engagement and support.
• Organizational skills and attention to detail to manage a caseload efficiently.

Additional Details: 

• Candidates must reside in Colorado, ideally within the greater Denver Metro area. The position includes competitive pay, flexible time off, benefits package (including medical, dental, vision), and 401k. 
• A competitive  salary of $60,000 a year, plus $1,000 hybrid pay differential 
• Employees who utilize two languages or more at work are eligible for a $2,000 per year differential, added to the salary grade listed above. Language assessment will be conducted by the organization as a requirement to receive the differential. 
• Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis but must be received by August 14, 2024
• The estimated time to complete the recruitment process will be by August 28, 2024
• As in-person work is sometimes required, all employees at CEDP & CED Law are expected to maintain current vaccination status in keeping with CDC recommendations.
• CEDP is an equal opportunity employer, committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Employment decisions are made without regard of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.