Counseling Manager

United Against Human Trafficking; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 68,000 - 73,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid holidays

Paid time off

Sick/personal days

Retirement plans

Medical insurance

Job summary

Daya is seeking a Counseling Manager to provide clinical leadership and direct trauma-informed counseling to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. The role includes maintaining a full caseload while supervising Counselors, ensuring ethical, evidence-informed, survivor-centered services aligned with agency policies and funder requirements.

Working with Directors and other leaders, the manager will support coordinated care across counseling, advocacy, and legal services, develop

Qualifications

• Master's level counseling degree and licensure requirements.
• Experience leading trauma-focused counseling teams and programs.
• Strong supervision and mentoring skills for clinicians.
• Proficiency in risk assessment, safety planning, and client confidentiality.
• Ability to manage caseloads with high-risk and complex cases.

Responsibilities

• Provide clinical leadership and supervision to Counselor(s).
• Conduct high-risk case consultations, including lethality and suicidality concerns.
• Assign caseloads based on acuity, language needs, and capacity.
• Review treatment plans, risk assessments, and documentation for quality and compliance.
• Lead regular supervision meetings and cross-team case consultations.
• Onboard and train staff in trauma-informed care and documentation standards.
• Ensure continuity of care and coordination with advocates, legal staff, and healthcare providers.
• Maintain confidential records and ensure compliance with licensing and funder requirements.

Skills

Leadership

Trauma-informed care

Crisis intervention

Clinical supervision

Documentation

Education

Master's degree in Social Work or Counseling

Job description

Job Classification: Full Time/Exempt

Reports to: Director of Programs

Supervises: Counselor(s)

Daya empowers survivors of domestic and sexual violence with culturally specific services and educates the community to end the cycle of abuse.

Core Job Description: The Counseling Manager provides clinical leadership and direct trauma-informed counseling to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. The Manager maintains a full counseling caseload, including clients with high-risk, complex, or acute clinical needs, while supervising, mentoring, and supporting Daya's Counselor(s). The position ensures that counseling services are ethical, evidence-informed, culturally responsive, survivor-centered, accessible, and consistent with professional standards, agency policies, and funder requirements.

Working closely with the Director of Programs and other Client Services leaders, the Counseling Manager supports coordinated care across counseling, advocacy, and legal services; strengthens clinical protocols and documentation practices; monitors service quality, caseload capacity, and client outcomes; and helps develop counseling groups, workshops, and other therapeutic programming. The Manager provides administrative and clinical supervision within the scope permitted by the Manager’s credentials and applicable licensing requirements.

The Counseling Manager serves as an experienced clinical resource to staff, provides consultation on high-risk and complex cases, supports crisis response and safety planning, and promotes a sustainable team culture that recognizes the effects of secondary trauma.

Duties include:

CLINICAL LEADERSHIP & SUPERVISION:

• Provide regular supervision, coaching, mentorship, and performance feedback to Counselor(s), with particular support for clinicians who are newer to trauma counseling or victim-services work
• Provide clinical consultation on high-risk, complex, or acute cases, including lethality concerns, suicidality, severe trauma symptoms, child-safety concerns, and other situations requiring elevated clinical judgment or coordinated response
• Assign and monitor counseling caseloads based on client acuity, clinician experience, language needs, capacity, continuity of care, and equitable workload distribution
• Review clinical documentation, treatment plans, risk assessments, safety plans, and case closure practices to support quality, consistency, confidentiality, and compliance
• Lead regular counseling supervision and case-consultation meetings and participate in multidisciplinary Client Services meetings while protecting client confidentiality and professional privilege
• Support onboarding and ongoing training of Counselor(s) on Daya’s clinical model, trauma-informed care, cultural responsiveness, documentation, crisis response, referrals, confidentiality, and agency procedures
• Identify professional-development needs and support growth in clinical judgment, therapeutic modalities, case conceptualization, boundaries, documentation, and ethical decision-making
• Provide licensure supervision only when appropriately credentialed and formally designated to do so; otherwise coordinate with approved external supervisors as applicable
• Promote sustainable workloads, reflective practice, healthy professional boundaries, and strategies that address secondary trauma and burnout
• Address counseling staff concerns, performance issues, and clinical-quality concerns promptly and in collaboration with the Director of Programs and HR Manager, as appropriate

DIRECT COUNSELING SERVICES:

• Maintain a caseload including clients with high-risk, complex, or acute clinical needs
• Conduct comprehensive clinical assessments, develop individualized treatment plans, and provide individual counseling and psychotherapy using appropriate evidence-informed and trauma-focused approaches
• Assess lethality, suicide risk, mental-health crises, and other safety concerns; provide crisis intervention, stabilization, safety planning, and appropriate referrals
• Apply culturally responsive clinical judgment to address trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, identity, family and relationship dynamics, immigration-related stressors, and other concerns affecting survivors
• Use therapeutic approaches appropriate to client needs and clinician training, which may include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, EMDR, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and other evidence-informed modalities
• Complete intakes, answer helpline calls, and provide crisis counseling or clinical consultation when coverage or elevated clinical support is needed
• Provide supportive case management as needed and coordinate referrals related to mental health, housing, legal advocacy, employment, public benefits, healthcare, and other unmet needs while maintaining appropriate clinical boundaries
• Coordinate care with advocates, legal staff, healthcare providers, and external mental-health professionals, with appropriate client consent and attention to confidentiality
• Maintain timely, accurate, complete, and confidential records, including assessments, treatment plans, progress notes, risk documentation, and referrals
• Ensure continuity of care through appropriate follow-up, transition planning, referrals, and case closure

COUNSELING PROGRAM QUALITY & DEVELOPMENT:

• Oversee the quality, accessibility, consistency, and responsiveness of Daya’s counseling services in collaboration with the Director of Programs
• Monitor counseling capacity, waitlists, client acuity, caseload distribution, attendance, engagement, treatment progress, and service gaps and recommend practical improvements
• Develop, maintain, and implement counseling protocols, clinical workflows, documentation standards, risk‑assessment tools, referral procedures, and escalation processes
• Plan, facilitate, or oversee therapeutic support groups, psychoeducational workshops, and other counseling programs, including curriculum development, staffing, accessibility, evaluation, and continuous improvement
• Strengthen client feedback mechanisms and incorporate survivor input, outcome data, and clinical learning into program improvement
• Identify emerging clinical needs, evidence-informed practices, training opportunities, and partnerships that strengthen services for survivors
• Collaborate with the Advocacy Manager and Senior Director of Legal Advocacy to support coordinated, multidisciplinary services while maintaining appropriate professional boundaries

REPORTING, DATA & COMPLIANCE:

• Track counseling outputs, outcomes, client demographics, service trends, and quality indicators in collaboration with the Director of Programs and Director of Grants & Compliance
• Prepare accurate and timely counseling program information for grants, monitoring visits, audits, Board reports, and internal planning
• Ensure counseling records and data are entered accurately and maintained in accordance with licensing standards, confidentiality requirements, agency policies, and funder expectations
• Participate in quality reviews, chart audits, corrective‑action planning, and other efforts to improve documentation and service quality
• Ensure compliance with applicable laws, ethical codes, professional standards, mandated‑reporting requirements, contracts, grant conditions, and Daya policies
• Immediately elevate significant safety, ethical, confidentiality, clinical, or compliance concerns to the Director of Programs and other appropriate leadership
• Contribute to the development and review of counseling‑related policies, procedures, forms, consent documents, and training materials

COMMUNITY & PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS:

• Build and maintain relationships with culturally responsive mental‑health providers, hospitals, crisis programs, community organizations, and other referral partners
• Represent Daya in relevant coalitions, professional networks, case‑coordination meetings, and collaborative initiatives as assigned
• Serve as a speaker, trainer, or subject‑matter representative for Daya in community education, professional training, panels, and outreach events as needed
• Support partnerships that expand access to psychiatric care, specialized treatment, emergency mental‑health services, and other clinical resources

MISSION & VISION PROMOTION:

• Promote teamwork, accountability, cultural humility, sound clinical judgment, and respect for survivor autonomy and dignity
• Participate in required meetings, organizational activities, and professional development
• Perform other duties consistent with the position, as assigned

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in Social Work, Counseling or a related field required
• Independent clinical license such as LPC, LCSW, LMHC, or LMFT required; LCSW‑S or LPC‑S strongly preferred
• At least three years of post-licensure counseling experience, including trauma-focused therapy required
• At least two years of leadership or management experience required; experience supervising or mentoring behavioral-health professionals preferred
• Case‑management experience and experience serving survivors of gender‑based violence preferred.
• Bilingual proficiency in English and a South Asian language, with experience working with South Asian and other culturally specific communities, required
• Demonstrated experience with complex trauma, high‑risk clients, clinical assessment, diagnosis, treatment planning, crisis intervention, safety planning, documentation, and continuity of care
• Knowledge of trauma‑informed, survivor‑centered, culturally responsive, and evidence‑informed counseling practices
• Training in CBT, EMDR, SFBT, Motivational Interviewing, or similar modalities strongly preferred. If not already EMDR‑certified, certification must be completed within two years of hire (Daya will cover cost).
• Ability to maintain a caseload while providing supervision, clinical consultation, and program leadership
• Strong clinical judgment, ethics, discretion, emotional intelligence, supervision, conflict‑resolution, documentation, and communication skills
• Proficiency with electronic client records, databases, Microsoft Office, telehealth platforms, and related technology
• Ability to work flexible hours, including some evenings and weekends, and respond to urgent consultation needs during scheduled work hours

COMPENSATION:

• Salary: $68,000 to $73,000 annually, based on experience.
• Daya offers a generous benefits package including paid federal and floating holidays, paid time off, sick/personal days, retirement plans, and medical insurance.