Position Summary
Mixteca is seeking a compassionate, grounded, and community-centered Mental Health Advocate to support Spanish-speaking immigrant participants, including survivors of trauma and gender-based violence. This role is ideal for someone who believes healing happens not only through one-on-one support, but also through culture, community, connection, and collective care.
The Mental Health Advocate provides trauma-informed emotional support, facilitates healing-centered spaces, connects participants to services, and helps strengthen Mixteca’s mental health programming. We are especially interested in candidates who bring experience working with immigrant communities and who value traditional, ancestral, body-based, expressive arts, or other culturally rooted healing practices.
Key responsibilities
- Direct Support & Crisis Response
- Provide trauma-informed, culturally responsive support to Spanish-speaking immigrant participants experiencing trauma, stress, anxiety, depression, family separation, and gender-based violence.
- Conduct intakes, needs assessments, and individualized support plans.
- Provide one-on-one counseling, emotional support, crisis intervention, safety planning, and ongoing follow up.
- Program & Community Healing
- Facilitate healing spaces, support groups, workshops, and wellness activities that promote safety, connection, and community healing.
- Help design and implement healing-centered programming that reflects the lived experiences, cultures, and strengths of immigrant communities.
- Conduct outreach and help develop culturally relevant mental health education materials.
- Resource Coordination & Referrals
- Provide referrals and connections to legal, healthcare, housing, public benefits, and other community-based services.
- Support participants in navigating systems and accessing resources through a holistic, participant-centered approach.
- Collaborate with colleagues across programs to ensure strong, coordinated participant support.
- Administrative & Team Support
- Maintain accurate case notes, records, and program data in compliance with agency and funder requirements.
- Represent Mixteca in community meetings, events, and partner spaces as needed.
- Perform other related duties as needed to support program and organizational goals.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, Psychology, Counseling, Human Services, Art Therapy, or a related field, or equivalent community-based experience in nonprofit, mental health, advocacy, or healing-centered settings.
- Fluency in Spanish and English, with strong verbal and written communication skills in both languages.
- Experience working with immigrant communities, particularly Spanish-speaking communities impacted by trauma, migration, family separation, or violence.
- Experience supporting survivors of gender-based violence, LGBTQIA+ community members, youth, and working-class communities strongly preferred.
- Ability to build trust and create safe, welcoming, and culturally affirming spaces.
- Strong outreach, facilitation, relationship-building, and interpersonal skills.
- Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to manage documentation and follow-up.
- Proactive, collaborative, and solution-oriented approach to work.
- Commitment to social justice, anti-racism, and the dignity, resilience, and leadership of immigrant communities.
- Familiarity with traditional, ancestral, body-based, expressive arts, or other community-rooted healing practices is strongly preferred.
We strongly encourage applicants with community-rooted, ancestral, Indigenous, or non-Western healing knowledge and practices to apply.
Important role notes
Equal Opportunity
Mixteca Organization Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other status protected under applicable federal, New York State, and New York City law. Reasonable accommodations are available upon request.
Mandated Reporter Status
This is a direct-service role. As a condition of employment, staff in this position are considered mandated reporters under New York State law and are required to report suspected child abuse or maltreatment in accordance with Mixteca policy and applicable law. Training will be provided.
Scope of Practice
This role provides community-based, trauma-informed emotional support and is not a clinical, diagnostic, or licensed-therapy position. The Mental Health Advocate works under the supervision of the Mental Health Coordinator and refers participants to licensed clinical providers as clinically indicated.
Overtime Eligibility
This is a non-exempt position. Hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek are compensated in accordance with Mixteca's overtime policy and applicable wage-and-hour law.
Why join mixteca
This is an opportunity to help build healing-centered mental health support for immigrant communities in Brooklyn. You will join a mission-driven team committed to culturally grounded care, community power, and the wellbeing of Spanish-speaking immigrants and their families.
