Description
POSITION ID: 250203-01
POSITION TITLE: Team Lead – Survivors of Suicide: Community Care Sessions
PROGRAM: Community Care and Peer Support Initiatives
POSITION TYPE: Full-Time; fixed term contract until December 31, 2026
HOURS OF WORK: 35 hours per week; daytime, evening, and/or weekend work will be required.
POSITION SUMMARY: The Team Lead will oversee the successful design, delivery, and evaluation of CMHA Calgary’s
Survivors of Suicide: Community Care Sessions, a peer-led initiative aimed at bringing together individuals who have struggled with suicide personally or have experienced suicide loss. This role is responsible for coordinating program design and delivery, while ensuring a trauma-informed, healing-centered environment for all participants. The role provides leadership to a peer facilitation team, contributes to in-person session delivery, and will steer the planning and delivery of a key Celebration of Life event for the community.
REPORTS TO: Program Manager, Community Care and Peer Support Initiatives
LOCATION: Calgary, Alberta – Onsite in CMHA Calgary’s Welcome Centre; may also include external community sites and virtual delivery/hybrid work.
Key Service Responsibilities And Specific Accountabilities
Program Leadership, Administration & Reporting
- Lead day-to-day operations of the Survivors of Suicide: Community Care Sessions pilot, ensuring alignment with project goals, timelines, and outcomes.
- Oversee program design and delivery, integrating trauma-informed and healing-centered suicide support.
- Coordinate session delivery, scheduling facilitators, guest speakers and volunteers.
- Participate as a key collaborator in the development of partnerships to support external promotion and/or programmatic deliveries, and actively identify and support with the development of engagement strategies for hard to reach and underserved demographics.
- Engage in networking with various service providers, community partners, and individuals, to address common needs and issues, present on programmatic offerings, and further promote CMHA Calgary’s suicide loss supports locally and provincially.
- Monitor overall program effectiveness, attendance, and outcomes, and maintain database efforts in a manner that is timely and meets established agency requirements, by ensuring accurate data entry is achieved by staff.
- Recognize and implement quality improvement initiatives through data, observation, and feedback received from staff, participants, and community partners to ensure the Survivors of Suicide: Community Care Sessions pilot meets community need and remains relevant.
- Develop and maintain program work plans, and prepare interim and final reports for funders, highlighting impact, challenges, and learnings.
Participant Support
- Attend and contribute to peer-led group sessions for individuals impacted by suicide
- Build supportive, trusting relationships with participants based on shared experience and mutual respect.
- Foster a healing-centered environment that prioritizes psychological safety, trauma-informed practices and inclusion.
Supervision & Team Management
- Provide leadership and supervision to peer facilitators and volunteers.
- Facilitate reflective practice and supervision for peer facilitators, while ensuring that staff performance management processes occur, which involve the individual, are focused on growth, and are goal oriented.
- Support professional development and capacity building within the program team.
Qualifications
Education & Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, community development, or a related field; equivalent education and/or lived/living experience will be considered.
- Experience in program coordination, peer support, group facilitation, community development, or related mental health roles is required. Supervisory or team leadership experience is preferred.
- Experience supporting individuals impacted by suicide loss, suicide attempts, or grief and loss is required; lived experience of suicide loss, suicidal ideation, or surviving a suicide attempt is considered a strong asset.
- Knowledge of Indigenous cultures, traditions, and protocols.
- Demonstrated knowledge of peer support principles, recovery-oriented practice, and trauma-informed and healing-centered approaches.
- Competence with computer-based systems and platforms, including Microsoft Office and virtual delivery tools (e.g., Zoom).
Personal & Team Attributes
- Strong project coordination, organizational, and time management skills.
- Comfortable working collaboratively with diverse stakeholders including peer facilitators, Elders, and partner organizations.
- Excellent interpersonal, facilitation, conflict resolution, and relationship-building skills.
- Solid written and verbal communication skills, including report writing and documentation.
- Demonstrated ability to create inclusive, safe, and empowering group environments.
- Commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation.
- Approachable, compassionate, and grounded, with strong boundaries and emotional intelligence.
- Reflective, collaborative, and open to feedback and continuous learning.
- Flexible, adaptable, and comfortable navigating complex and emotionally sensitive environments.
- Able to work effectively both independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team.
Additional Requirements
- Ability to work various shifts including daytime, evenings, and weekends.
- Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Suicide Prevention, Risk Assessment and Management (SPRAM) or an equivalent is considered an asset.
- Involvement in supporting individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts is considered an asset.
- Non-Violent Crisis Intervention (NVCI), CPR, and First Aid training are considered assets.
Working Conditions
- This role involves a balance of facilitation, supervision, administrative, and computer-based work. In-person session participation and supervision will primarily take place at CMHA Calgary’s Welcome Centre, with potential for community-based and virtual/hybrid delivery.
- This role requires balancing multiple priorities and maintaining emotional resilience when working in trauma-impacted spaces.
Disclaimer
- The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, knowledge, skills, or abilities required.
APPLICATION INFORMATION
Application closing date: The posting will remain active on the website until the position is filled.
Candidates meeting the above criteria who wish to apply for this exciting opportunity should email their cover letter and resume to Human Resources at careers@cmha.calgary.ab.ca.
Please include the reference
#250203-01 in your email subject line of your application.
We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those considered for an interview will be contacted.
