Clinical Fellow - Illinois

To be considered for this position, please upload your resume and cover letter at the prompt.

Founded in 1955, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is the largest membership organization of professional social workers in the world, with more than 120,000 members. NASW works to enhance the professional growth and development of its members, to create and maintain professional standards, and to advance sound social policies.

Position Summary:

The LCSW Clinical Fellow serves as the principal architect of the Supervision Access for Equity (SAE) workforce development pilot, ensuring excellence in implementation while helping transform a successful demonstration project into a scalable workforce strategy for Illinois and beyond. The Fellow will provide clinical leadership for the SAE pilot, an innovative workforce development initiative designed to remove financial barriers to clinical licensure for early-career social workers. Working closely with the Executive Director and Community Engagement Manager, the Fellow will oversee implementation of the pilot, ensure the quality and consistency of clinical supervision, support participant success, and help generate the evidence needed to inform statewide policy and future investment. Additionally, the Fellow will provide supervision to 5 cohorts.

Unlike a traditional program management role, the Clinical Fellow will serve as both an implementation leader and thought partner, helping refine the supervision model, identify best practices, and translate pilot findings into recommendations for broader workforce innovation.  

This is an 18-month, grant-funded fellowship at 18.00 hours per week.

Primary Responsibilities:

Clinical Leadership 

• Support SAE Clinical Supervisor. 
• Ensure supervision activities comply with Illinois licensure requirements and professional standards. 
• Monitor supervision quality and participant progress throughout the pilot. 
• Serve as a clinical resource for participants and SAE clinical supervisor. 

Program Implementation 

• Coordinate launch and implementation of supervisory cohorts. 
• Conduct participant orientation and ongoing engagement activities. 
• Monitor participant attendance, supervision completion, and licensure milestones. 
• Coordinate licensure preparation activities, including the NASW-IL exam preparation course and post-licensure Fundamentals of Clinical Supervision training. 
• Identify implementation challenges and recommend continuous improvements. 

Evaluation & Learning 

• Together with NASW-IL staff, develop systems to track participant progress and program outcomes. 
• Administer participant surveys throughout the pilot. 
• Document lessons learned, promising practices, and opportunities for refinement. 
• Contribute to reports for funders, stakeholders, and policymakers. 

Workforce & Leadership Development 

• Help strengthen relationships with employers, schools of social work, and community partners. 
• Participate in conversations regarding employer co-investment models and workforce partnerships. 
• Help position SAE for replication and long-term sustainability. 
• Promote culturally responsive, equity-centered supervision practices. 
• Foster a collaborative learning community among participants and supervisors. 

Qualifications:

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Illinois in good standing. 
• Minimum five years of LCSW supervisory experience. 
• Demonstrated experience providing clinical supervision. 
• Strong understanding of Illinois licensure requirements. 
• Commitment to advancing diversity, equity, and workforce inclusion. 
• Experience in behavioral health workforce development, program implementation, quality improvement, or evaluation preferred. 
• Excellent facilitation, communication, and relationship-building skills. 

Desired Characteristics:

• A respected clinician and mentor. 
• An innovative thinker interested in improving the behavioral health workforce. 
• Comfortable working across clinical practice, workforce development, and public policy. 
• Highly organized and able to manage multiple stakeholder relationships. 
• Passionate about expanding equitable access to licensure and leadership within the profession. 

Expected Deliverables:

• By the conclusion of the fellowship, the Clinical Fellow will have: 
• Successfully launched and managed supervision cohorts serving forty participants. 
• Developed a replicable supervision model and implementation framework. 
• Produced program outcome data and recommendations for future scale. 
• Contributed to sustainability planning, including employer partnerships, legislative strategy, and future funding opportunities. 

This position is eligible to enroll in our 401(k)-retirement plan, with pre and post tax options available.

NASW is an equal opportunity employer.  As such, NASW is committed to promoting and providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees.  The selection of personnel, including new hires and promotions, will be on the basis of qualifications designed to ensure appointments of persons able to effectively discharge the duties and responsibilities of their position.  The Association will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression (including transgender status), marital status, veteran status, physical or mental disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.  The Association will also abide by applicable Affirmative Action requirements mandated by any federal contracts.