Vista Haven Lead YDC

Vista Del Mar•Los Angeles, CA

About The Position

The Direct Care Staff (YDC) Lead – Vista Haven (ORR) assists the YDC Supervisor in overseeing assigned Direct Care Staff (YDCs) in the unit and reports to the YDC Supervisor. The Lead constantly supervises youth and supports staff, maintaining a 1:6 staff-to-youth ratio and respecting youth personal rights while promoting safety within a trauma-informed framework. The Lead helps ensure that procedures follow Vista Del Mar (VDM) and Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) standards and coordinates youth services, appointments, outings, and transportation. In coordination with the YDC Supervisor, the Lead helps ensure services are provided as needed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The role provides operational oversight and staff support, including monitoring attendance and coverage, giving staff feedback and supervision, delegating tasks, and helping ensure resident services align with the ORR/VDM treatment philosophy and policies. The Lead works with the treatment team to plan activities that support youth’s social, vocational, educational, hygiene, and daily living skills. The position also documents youth progress and incidents, identifies and communicates service needs, advocates for children, responds to medical and safety needs, and contributes to preventing and managing challenging behaviors using behavior-management and therapeutic crisis-intervention techniques. Additional responsibilities include supporting youth arrivals and discharges, leading cottage meetings and groups, maintaining required health, safety, licensing, and ORR records, coordinating cottage cleanliness, assisting with new-hire orientation, covering shifts as needed, and completing annual job-related training. Supervisory duties include assigning work, setting schedules and objectives, appraising staff performance, and handling complaints.

Requirements

High school diploma required; a BA or BS degree is preferred.
At least one year of experience in a similar environment is preferred.
At least one year of supervisory experience is preferred.
Must be able to interrupt physical and verbal altercations using CPIN Nonviolent Crisis Intervention and de-escalation skills.
Must be able to provide trauma-informed support and care using training acquired through TSI-Risking Connections.
Must be able to administer CPR and First Aid.
Must be able to perform basic lifting and housekeeping duties and operate a motor vehicle.
Thorough understanding of residential treatment protocols, demonstrated leadership abilities, and strong understanding of working with unaccompanied children and related clinical implications.
Must be at least 21 years old.
Good social skills and ability to work with different and sometimes difficult people.
Ability to simplify and clarify instructions to staff and youth, facilitate communication and mediate disagreements between youth, set firm limits with staff, remain calm in difficult situations, and maintain counseling skills.
Ability to drive youth to various destinations in agency vehicles as needed.

Nice To Haves

BA or BS degree.
At least one year of experience in a similar environment.
At least one year of supervisory experience.
Bilingual in any language.

Responsibilities

Constantly supervise youth and support staff while maintaining a 1:6 staff-to-youth ratio, respecting personal rights, and promoting safety within a trauma-informed framework.
Coordinate youth services, appointments, outings, and transportation, and delegate operational tasks to YDCs to meet health and safety standards.
Monitor YDC attendance when needed, coordinate floor coverage, and communicate staff performance and attendance to the YDC Supervisor.
Provide individual and group feedback and supervision to YDCs at least weekly, documenting supervision in weekly notes.
Plan activities with the treatment team to develop youth’s social, vocational, educational, hygiene, and daily living skills.
Coordinate required services and appointments through program and agency departments and off-site providers, including medical and dental appointments.
Lead cottage meetings, daily living groups, outings, and other activities in collaboration with the YDC Supervisor.
Oversee and support YDC staff to ensure resident services follow ORR/VDM treatment philosophy, mission, practices, and policies.
Document resident progress, identify needs for professional services, and communicate findings to professional staff.
Advocate for children in placement and report suspected abuse or mistreatment, including physical or verbal abuse.
Ensure residents receive medical treatment when injured and follow protocols for involving Health Center personnel.
Manage delegated administrative tasks and ensure YDC role responsibilities are completed as requested by the YDC Supervisor.
Inspect and complete health and safety, Community Care Licensing (CCL), and ORR reports, including room checks, religious, recreation and telephone logs, clothing inventories, and case notes.
Document shift incidents and update exchange notes, significant incident/child-level event reports, and other required reporting tools.
Inspect and coordinate cottage cleanliness, including resident rooms and communal spaces, and log oven, washer, and dryer cleanliness and refrigerator temperatures.
Spend time in the milieu, including groups, transitions, and mealtimes, modeling relationship-based and trauma-informed support for YDC staff.
Help prevent and manage challenging behaviors using behavior-management and therapeutic crisis-intervention techniques.
Provide and coordinate youth’s basic needs upon program arrival, including medical care, meals, clothing, hygiene products, showers, and bedroom assignment, and prepare youth for discharge.
Use relationship-based, strength-based, DBT-influenced, trauma-informed, and culturally and LGBTQ-sensitive approaches when working with children.
Follow regulatory requirements, including those of Community Care Licensing, DCFS, and ORR.
Assist with new-hire orientation as delegated by the Program Director and/or Senior Direct Care Staff (YDC).
Understand and communicate policies and practices related to patient rights.
Complete special incident and unusual occurrence reports as required by licensing.
Receive, transmit, store, and retrieve information through written and verbal communication.
Cover shifts when short-staffed or otherwise needed.
Conduct job-related training yearly.
Assign work, establish schedules and objectives, appraise staff performance, and handle complaints.
Allocate money for youth clothing needs as needed; clarify instructions, facilitate communication and mediate disagreements, set firm limits, remain calm in difficult situations, and maintain counseling skills.
Drive youth to destinations in agency vehicles as needed.