Assistant Residential Program Director - Student Homes

SailFuture•St. Petersburg, FL

1d•Onsite

About The Position

SailFuture is hiring an Assistant Residential Program Director to lead one family-style residential home in St. Petersburg, Florida, serving six teenage boys in foster care. The role runs the home day to day and leads the Change Agents (Houseparents), who serve as the young men’s primary adults. The position emphasizes consistent relationships, accountability, and an engaged home environment rather than rotating-shift group-home care. The Assistant Residential Program Director supervises residential staff, coordinates each young person’s goals and daily needs, maintains schedules and documentation, and helps ensure clinical, school, workforce, and residential teams follow a consistent plan. The role also involves shared weekend on-call coverage and participation in two sailing expeditions each year, with a schedule of two weeks on and one week off during the expeditions, totaling eight weeks. The position pays a $60,000 base salary with the opportunity to earn up to a $15,000 annual Impact Award. Housing and meals are provided year-round. Benefits include $250 per month toward health insurance, a 401(k) with up to a 6% match, and 15 days of PTO. Domestic and international sailing expedition travel is part of the role.

Requirements

Experience working with teens, ideally those impacted by foster care, trauma, juvenile justice, or behavioral health needs.
Experience supervising staff in residential care, education, behavioral health, or youth development.
Ability to balance empathy with accountability and clear boundaries.
Strong organization across people, schedules, documentation, and competing priorities.
Calm judgment, de-escalation skills, and practical problem-solving ability.
Ability to pass background screening and meet driving and regulatory requirements.
Comfort with travel and unconventional settings.

Responsibilities

Set clear expectations and coach Change Agents through regular one-on-one meetings.
Address staff performance issues early, document them, and follow through.
Build staff schedules, manage time off, and maintain adequate coverage.
Help recruit, interview, onboard, and retain residential staff.
Know each young person’s goals, risks, school status, and treatment needs.
Identify early warning signs such as disengagement, substance use, school refusal, or runaway risk, and act before they become a crisis.
Run intakes, transitions, and discharges to ensure all necessary steps are completed.
Ensure drug tests, appointments, medications, and case documentation are completed on time.
Attend treatment and case-plan meetings and translate goals into daily expectations.
Coordinate clinical, school, workforce, and residential teams around a consistent plan.
Manage the weekly schedule for school, work, fitness, appointments, family contact, and recreation.
Manage groceries, meals, supplies, allowances, vehicles, and house traditions.
Keep the home clean, safe, welcoming, and ready for inspections.
Support licensing visits, audits, and compliance reporting.
Prepare youth and staff for extended sailing trips.
Lead residential supervision while underway on expeditions.
Help young people translate their accomplishments at sea into confidence at home.