Assistant Director of the Division of Hearings

The Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) is seeking qualified applicants for the position of Assistant Director for the Division of Hearings. The Assistant Director provides vital day-to-day management of all personnel in furtherance of the unit’s duty to provide timely, fair, and impartial adjudication to all concerned parties. The selected candidate will also be responsible for overseeing all office operations, Hearings Officers and Administrative Staff.

DTA attracts people passionate about public service, who love to work in a fast-paced environment, and who are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Duties and Responsibilities (these duties are a general summary and not all inclusive):

• Supervise/manage all Hearing Officers, Administrative Staff and associated tasks including: recruiting, training, staff development, and performance reviews with oversight from Director.
• Manage and evaluate Administrative Staff who are responsible for intake, processing, and scheduling approximately 6-8,000 appeals and Administrative Disqualification Hearings annually.
• Review appeal decisions rendered by Hearing Officers for legal accuracy, sufficiency, and clarity.
• Review regulatory changes; advise Hearing Officers on interpretation and application and discuss decision remands and Complaint for Judicial Review (CJR) outcomes. Ongoing assessment of all administrative business processes, IT systems and updating/upgrading processes and systems in consultation with the Director.
• Collaborate with the Director in planning, creating, revising, and implementing new procedures for both administrative processing of appeals and Hearing Officer hearings and decisions.
• Hear and decide appeals and write appeal decisions when necessary.      
• Act as a liaison with DTA’s Program Integrity Unit, Legal Division and External Legal Aid Agencies.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in dealing with administrative operations, with a basic understanding of Administrative Law and Policy. 
• Experience with recruitment, supervision, and professional development in a hybrid work environment.
• Experience with computer tracking systems, database maintenance and data reporting – with the ability to analyze data to predict trends, draw conclusions, and make appropriate recommendations.
• Ability to adjust to rapidly changing situations while maintaining accurate records/files, including monitoring appeal intake and adjusting scheduling to ensure timely processing of all appeals.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, mediate conflicts with tact and professionalism, coordinate competing interests and work under time constraints.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Demonstrated experience promoting diversity, equity and inclusion.
• Given the population served, bilingual or multilingual fluency.

Agency Mission:

The Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) is the state agency responsible for administering public assistance programs to low-income residents of the Commonwealth. DTA is committed to providing a high level of service to all those in need. The mission of the Department is to assist and empower low-income individuals and families to meet their basic needs, improve their quality of life, and achieve long term economic self-sufficiency. DTA serves one out of every seven people in Massachusetts – including working families, children, elders, and people with disabilities. Our services include food and nutritional assistance, economic