Melissa D. Kelly
Newman
Summary
Dedicated and self-motivated Child Support Specialist with over five years of experience delivering essential services to families while ensuring compliance with child support regulations. Recognized for exceptional communication skills and the ability to cultivate strong relationships, fostering a collaborative environment. Passionate about public service and committed to ongoing professional development, with interest in leveraging leadership potential in a supervisory role. Eager to contribute to team and organizational success through innovative solutions and dedicated support.
Overview
22
22
years of professional experience
Work History
Child Support Specialist II
Stanislaus County, Child Support Services
10.2019 - Current
- Communicate effectively with general public, staff, attorneys, and governmental agencies.
- Deliver exceptional customer service on calls and maintained calm and professional demeanor.
- Establish and enforce child support orders.
- Gather, assemble, analyze correct course of actions taken on each case.
- Locate absent parents.
- Perform case management tasks to enforce court-ordered child support obligations.
- Interpret and explain legal documents and regulations.
- Interview Non–Custodial Parents to investigate the ability to pay support.
- Assessed client needs and coordinated services to improve child support payment outcomes.
- Maintained strict confidentiality while managing sensitive information related to clients'' personal lives and finances.
- Interview involved parties to confirm facts, verify data and locate financial assets.
- Developed and implemented training programs related to the Debt Reduction Program, Collectability Review Process and Caseload Management.
- Apply Federal and State guidelines and regulations to each case as appropriate.
- Participated in the child support debt reduction pilot program.
- Performed role as debt reduction program lead on a monthly rotation.
- Facilitate trainings and onboarding in a classroom setting for new hires.
- Implement new processes and procedures into existing training materials.
- Update lesson plans and power point presentations.
- Supervise and motivate new hires during procedural and hands-on training.
- Complete Quality Assurance reviews for each trainee after trainings are facilitated.
- Monitor cases for compliance.
- Coordinate trainings with other internal trainers.
- Review Attorney Work Products for accuracy making recommendations for updates as appropriate.
- Develop training materials for new staff on child support systems and best practices.
- Maintain effective written and oral communication with peers, supervisor and manager.
- Engaged in community outreach efforts to raise awareness of child support services available to families.
Legal Process Server
MK Legal Services
12.2018 - 10.2019
- Served legal documents, ensuring compliance with local and state regulations.
- Received papers to be served from attorneys, court clerks , or others and printed out papers.
- Filed court documents with the appropriate court
- Researched defendants’ schedules, social media and analyzed personal records to locate defendants.
- Skip trace defendants to serve paperwork while ensuring to oblige all laws.
- Maintained accurate records of service attempts and outcomes for client reporting.
- Implemented process improvements that enhanced operational workflows and reduced turnaround times.
- Developed strategies to increase success rates in difficult service situations.
- Coordinated communications between legal professionals and clients to ensure timely updates, clarification of service requirements, and facilitated prompt resolution of inquiries.
- Tracked delivery attempts and served status updates in a centralized system, ensuring accurate documentation and compliance with legal requirements for each case.
- Upheld ethical standards by maintaining confidentiality of sensitive client information at all times.
- Achieved high success rate in locating hard-to-find individuals through diligent research efforts using public records databases and other resources.
- Optimized route planning to maximize productivity while minimizing travel time between service locations.
Paralegal Intern
1st Class Le Gals, Support
02.2019 - 09.2019
- Draft correspondences, pleading, stipulations,discovery, requests, petitions, and responses.
- Conducted legal research to support case preparation and document drafting.
- Communicated pertinent information to clients via phone, email, and mail.
- Conduct interview with clients to obtain information for pleadings and depositions.
- Researched statutes, decisions, legal articles, and codes.
- Schedule and coordinate meetings, interviews, and appointments.
- Coordinated trial exhibits by organizing materials, writing documentation, and preparing digital materials and displays.
- Answered client calls to respond to inquiries, using open-ended questioning skills to attain applicable information .
- Compiled and organized case documentation for review, ensuring timely delivery of materials for court filings and hearings.
Collection Agent II
Merced County Human Services Agency
07.2017 - 06.2018
- Collections agent with focus on Welfare accounts receivables.
- Investigation into fraudulent and suspicious account activity.
- Conducted and coordinated both phone and in-person interviews with offenders to explain their debt and determine their ability to pay.
- Managed collections processes for overdue accounts, ensuring compliance with agency policies and regulations.
- Performed skip trace search to locate debtors using various skip tracing services i.e., LexisNexis, TLO etc.
- Delivered exceptional customer service on collection calls and maintained calm and professional demeanor.
- Generated and distributed monthly customer statements.
- Developed and documented collection procedures and policies to comply with government regulations.
- Responded to customer inquiries and provided detailed account information.
- Revamped account recovery workflows to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, streamlining communications between departments and facilitating more efficient case resolutions.
- Consolidated account data from multiple databases to reconcile discrepancies and ensure accuracy in welfare receivables reporting, supporting compliance with agency standards.
Executive Personal Assistant, Real Estate Agent
Douglas J. Lucas Real Estate
08.2012 - 07.2017
- Managed real estate office.
- Adhered to monthly budgets in regards to office supplies etc
- Managed owners personal and business finances
- Managed executive calendars, coordinating complex schedules and prioritizing appointments.
- Responsible for setting up Open House Showings, including ensuring property is in above-par standards, ensuring we have all supplies needed at each listing.
- Handled confidential and sensitive information with discretion and tact.
- Coordinate real estate transactions, taking responsibility for familiarity with all current laws
- Coordinated and scheduled meetings and property showings
- Managed remodels on all investment properties
- Handled all communications and contracts with vendors and contractors
- Established timelines and ensured dates were met
- Managed all accounts payable, accounts receivable transactions
- Prepared documents such as representation contracts, purchase agreements, closing statements, leases, and deeds
- Cultivated and maintained professional relationships with clients, real estate agents, lenders and escrow personnel.
- Negotiated contracts to optimize successful closing of real estate transactions.
- Processed applications and paperwork in accordance with estate and federal laws.
- Streamlined daily office operations by integrating digital tools and automated scheduling systems, enhancing overall workflow efficiency for the team and clients.
Resident Property Manager/ Coordinator
The CBM Group Inc
09.2003 - 10.2012
- Resident manager at multiple sites (Hollister, Gilroy, Gustine, Los Banos and Dos Palos)
- Managed property operations, ensuring compliance with regulations and company policies.
- Communicated effectively with owners, residents, and on-site associates.
- Oversaw tenant relations, addressing concerns and fostering positive community interactions.
- Followed up on delinquent tenants and coordinated collection procedures.
- Verified income, assets, and expenses, and completed file tracking sheet for each applicant.
- Introduced prospective tenants to types of units available and performed tours of premises.
- Monitored progress of construction and maintenance projects and notified appropriate individuals of project updates, delays, and schedule changes.
- Collaborated with vendors to negotiate contracts, achieving cost-effective service delivery for property needs.
- Served 3 day notices to pay rent or quit, processed files and requests for evictions to be delivered to attorneys.
- Testified in court as needed in these cases
- Lease vacancies taking full responsibility and accountability for determining eligibility of applicants based on income guidelines, ensuring to comply with laws to receive funding from both TaxCredit and Rural Development programs
- Supervised staff, including internal and external members
- Fully responsible for all Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable functions and financial reconciliations
- Conducted annual income recertification's by investigating into all income and assets received by household members to ensure tenants remained eligible to receive funding from state and federal programs such as Social Security, AFDC, EDD etc.
- Performed annual apartment inspections and semiannual water intrusion inspection on multiple units and common areas
- Coordinated and supervised rehab projects for company at all apartment complex in my assigned area
- Responsible for all financial reconciliations and reported to ownership group weekly, monthly, and annually
- Coordinated with legal counsel to resolve tenant disputes.
- Ensured compliance with all federal, state, and local laws related to housing discrimination or fair housing practices by staying current on regulations updates.
- Streamlined vendor management processes, negotiated service contracts, and ensured compliance with property standards to uphold operational efficiency and budget constraints across multiple residential sites.
Legal Process Server
Sayler Legal Services
10.2006 - 12.2009
- Served legal documents, ensuring compliance with local and state regulations.
- Skip traced defendants using various skip tracing services to locate individuals attempting to avoid service
- File documents with the Courthouse
- Generate reports on tasks and experiences
- Conducted private surveillance for clients and produced reports with detailed documentation and photographs when requested
- Served and verified court-ordered summons and subpoenas to individuals
- Performed filed chases and site inspections
- Interviewed neighbors and family members when defendants were unable to be located.
- Documented service attempts and outcomes using digital reporting tools, ensuring precise records for attorneys and court filings.
Education
Paralegal Certificate -
Abrams College
Modesto, CA09.2019
Criminal Justice - undefined
Gavilan Community College
Gilroy, CA06.1999
Skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Rapid learner
- Strong and dedicated work ethic
- Critical thinking
- Positive attitude
- Attention to detail
- Proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel
- Effective Communication
- Team Building
- Problem Solving
Timeline
Child Support Specialist II
Stanislaus County, Child Support Services
10.2019 - Current
Paralegal Intern
1st Class Le Gals, Support
02.2019 - 09.2019
Legal Process Server
MK Legal Services
12.2018 - 10.2019
Collection Agent II
Merced County Human Services Agency
07.2017 - 06.2018
Executive Personal Assistant, Real Estate Agent
Douglas J. Lucas Real Estate
08.2012 - 07.2017
Legal Process Server
Sayler Legal Services
10.2006 - 12.2009
Resident Property Manager/ Coordinator
The CBM Group Inc
09.2003 - 10.2012
Criminal Justice - undefined
Gavilan Community College
Paralegal Certificate -
Abrams College
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