Mental Health Counselor – Juvenile – J2906 - 28200

Nueces County • Hillsboro, OR

34d • Onsite

About The Position

Mental Health Counselor at the Robert N. Barnes Juvenile Justice facility to address the multiple and complex needs of the youth committed to the facility as well as their families through a multidisciplinary integrated approach that includes implementation of a general rehabilitation strategy and a Mental Health Treatment Program (MHTP). The MHTP provides psychiatric and counseling assistance to youth who have been diagnosed with moderate to severe mental health problems and/or illnesses, chemical dependency issues, or complex trauma which allows the general rehabilitation case managers to focus on risk reduction and protective factor enhancement strategies in order to reduce the risk of reoffending. This collaboration allows for holistic and individualized treatment of youth in need of MHTP services.

Requirements

• Must be 21 years of age.
• Any employee who drives a vehicle on official business must have a driving record which meets standards set by the County and the County’s insurance carrier.
• Knowledge of counseling theories, strategies and skills including treatment techniques used for behavior modification.
• Knowledge of diagnostic criteria outlined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM V), and the Texas Education Association for the evaluation of serious emotional disturbance.
• Knowledge of psychological tests and measurements related to working with juvenile offenders.
• Knowledge of juvenile risk assessment, treatment practices and principles, family interventions, and regulatory standards.
• Knowledge of or ability to acquire knowledge of Robert N. Barnes Juvenile Justice Facility and its programs.
• Skill in facilitating individual and group counseling sessions with juvenile offenders including trauma-based approaches.
• Skill in conducting family counseling and family reintegration sessions.
• Skill in interviewing, evaluation, and assessment, and in making appropriate decisions and recommendations regarding treatment options.
• Skill in training and/or teaching others.
• Skill in maintaining accurate records and files.
• Ability to organize and prioritize workloads to carry out assigned tasks in a timely manner.
• Ability to maintain confidential information.
• Ability to function as a member of a multidisciplinary treatment team.
• Ability to provide services to youth in a correctional setting with a wide variety of temperaments (volatile, suicidal, serious mental health needs) and specialized needs (chemically dependent, emotionally unstable, trauma history, etc).
• Ability to work under stressful conditions, with possible occurrences of extreme heightened stress.
• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively to direct the activities of youth.
• Ability to apply the agency’s doctrine to youth which includes the ability to treat youth with respect in all situations.
• Ability to intervene and correct behavior and facilitate group discussions and activities.
• Ability to recognize when decisions need to be made, process information logically, make decisions, and demonstrate the soundness of those decisions.
• Ability to read, write, and use a computer on a regular basis.
• Ability to participate in ongoing didactic training as scheduled by the agency.
• Ability to travel.
• Ability to work in excess of 40 hours per week and work a schedule other than 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
• Ability to write reports, business correspondence and procedure manuals.
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.
• Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.
• Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and draw and to interpret bar graphs.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.
• Valid Texas Operator's Driver's License.
• Must obtain and provide proof of Professional Liability Insurance and keep current.
• Knowledge of modern principles of sociology, criminology, child and adolescent psychology, social casework techniques, methods and techniques of counseling and of laws and regulations relating to the function of the juvenile justice system and family law matters.
• Ability to make investigations and report the results clearly, accurately and impartially.
• Ability to gather, analyze and evaluate facts from which to develop individual program plans and appropriate case dispositions.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with other county employees and officials, clients, representatives of other agencies and the general public.
• Ability to deal effectively with mentally disturbed, hostile and aggressive individuals.

Nice To Haves

• Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC) or LCDC-I attending a Master's degree program in counseling, social work, psychology or a related field with one year of graduation; or attending a Master's degree program in counseling, social work, psychology or a related field and be within six months (last semester of course work) or graduating.
• Must be licensed in Texas within one year as one of the following: Licensed Psychological Associate (LPA), or Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), or Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPC - Associate) or Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist-Associate (LMFT-A).

Responsibilities

• Provides a range of direct counseling services to youth who have been adjudicated and committed to the Robert N. Barnes Juvenile Justice facility by the Nueces County Juvenile Court or other Juvenile Courts throughout the region.
• Conducts group, individual, family, trauma, crisis counseling, administering and interpreting evaluations of youth at risk and youth in need of suicide assessments.
• Assists in monitoring the agency’s multifaceted treatment program and reviews and monitors specialized treatment programs.
• Assists with related in-service training for facility staff and trains group leaders.
• Collaborates with facility administrators, specialized treatment case management or program specialist staff, probation officers, and contracted staff.
• Assists in the supervision of intake, assessment and treatment, while collaborating with case managers, educational staff, juvenile correctional officers, and probation officers.
• Provide services in the juvenile detention center and probation department under the direction of the Mental Health Services Supervisor.
• Maintains and tracks all the data as it relates to the mental health treatment program and the juvenile probation department for the generating of statistical reports as needed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level