Resident Care Specialist

Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs•McLoud, OK

12d•$19 - $22•Onsite

About The Position

The Office of Juvenile Affairs is hiring a Resident Care Specialist to provide care, custody, supervision, and security for adjudicated youth at Central Oklahoma Juvenile Center in Tecumseh, Oklahoma. This role involves direct care, transportation, role modeling, paraprofessional guidance and counseling, behavior monitoring, and documentation. Staff support residents’ treatment and education plans while promoting resilience and future-oriented goals. The facility operates 24 hours a day. The position is subject to shift work, and staff must be willing to work any shift needed to provide coverage. Overtime may be required to maintain facility operations. The role also requires job-related travel, a valid Oklahoma driver’s license at appointment, and availability for on-call duties 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This is a safety-sensitive position requiring successful background, fingerprint, and drug screenings, and a 12-month trial period.

Requirements

Direct-care staff must be at least 21 years of age.
RCS I requires a high school diploma or equivalent.
RCS II requires the RCS I qualifications and either 30 semester hours from an accredited college or university or one year of security experience.
Be willing and able to perform job-related travel.
Possess a valid Oklahoma driver’s license at the time of appointment.
Be willing to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Pass a background check, fingerprinting, and drug screening; applicants who test positive for marijuana will not be hired, including those with a valid medical marijuana license.
Be willing to work any shift as needed; overtime may be required.
Demonstrate knowledge of security methods, basic human physical and psychological needs, first aid, crisis intervention, health and safety precautions, behavioral problems among delinquent residents, household management, youth-related environments and events, and applicable state statutes and agency policies.
Be able to interact with juveniles, establish effective working relationships, follow written and oral instructions, gather facts and communicate them in reports, interact positively with people of varied backgrounds, respond appropriately to emergencies, physically handle escapees and violent or unruly residents, and use good judgment.

Nice To Haves

Previous security experience working with juveniles in a residential care and treatment facility.

Responsibilities

Provide security and supervision to adjudicated residents in a variety of situations and activities.
Perform routine care, custody, education, and treatment duties; observe, record, and report residents’ health symptoms, behavior, and activities.
Manage aggressive and non-aggressive behavior using approved verbal and physical intervention techniques, and respond to assaults, riots, and other emergencies.
Conduct resident counts, enforce institutional rules, and monitor resident and staff activities using surveillance screens.
Provide paraprofessional counseling and instruction, direct daily activities, maintain order, support residents’ personal goals, and participate in treatment teams and group leadership.
Inspect living areas and work locations for health and safety; search for unauthorized items and contraband; maintain security and control resident movement.
Maintain order and discipline during programs, meals, and recreation using empathic verbal communication.
Patrol facility grounds, living quarters, and work areas; check authorized persons in and out and deny access to unauthorized persons.
Check the physical security of doors, windows, and lighting.
Prepare written or typed incident and behavior reports, maintain a daily activity log, use a hand-held radio, and communicate with emergency responders by telephone during crises.
Transport youth in OJA custody to and from placements, detention centers, court hearings, and medical, dental, mental health, and other appointments.
Perform GPS monitoring, tracking, inventory, and documentation in assigned areas.
Perform other high-risk transportation duties as assigned through the Performance Management Process.
Assist other OJA employees and perform other duties as assigned.

Benefits

A $5,000 sign-on bonus is available.
A $6,000 continuous service bonus is available.
Shift differential of $2.50 per hour for eligible hours worked on second or third shift Monday through Friday, or any shift on Saturday or Sunday.
Generous state-paid benefit allowance to help cover insurance premiums.
Choice of insurance plans with no pre-existing condition exclusions or limitations.
Flexible spending accounts for health care and/or dependent care expenses.
Retirement Savings Plan with a generous match.
For full-time employees, 15 days of vacation and 15 days of sick leave in the first year.
11 paid holidays per year.
Student loan repayment options.
Employee discounts with a variety of companies and vendors.
Longevity bonus for years of service.