Group Home Youth Counselor

Virginia Home for Boys and Girls; Virginia (MN); On-site; USD 37,440 - 45,760; Full time

Job summary

Virginia Home for Boys and Girls in Virginia is seeking a Group Home Youth Counselor to provide teaching, guidance, and supervision for up to 8 youth in a group home, under the direction of the Group Home Manager.

You will document daily activities, behaviors, and interventions, participate in bi-weekly treatment teams, help with transportation, and maintain a therapeutic, family-style environment aligned with VHBG standards.

Qualifications

• Ability to follow organization policies and procedures.
• Flexible with changes and scheduling as needed.
• Lead by example in a professional setting.
• Strong interpersonal skills to work with all levels.
• Excellent organizational, time management and analytical abilities.
• Social perceptiveness and active listening required.
• Learning strategies and instructing capability.
• Monitoring performance and providing feedback.
• Effective communication and coordination skills.
• Service orientation with a helping mindset.
• Ability to learn theory and apply it in practice.
• Positive energy, innovation and new ideas.
• Solution-focused mentality and resilience.

Responsibilities

• Supervise and engage youth on- and off-campus.
• Document daily activities, behaviors, contacts, and interventions.
• Provide a therapeutic, family-style environment per VHBG standards.
• Communicate professionally with teachers, parents, caseworkers, and probation offices.
• Attend bi-weekly treatment team meetings and other meetings as assigned.
• Assist with transportation for youth employment, events and appointments.
• Work a two week rotating schedule with alternating evenings and weekends.
• Follow approved Behavior Support Plans for each child.
• Promote open communication within the agency.

Skills

Adaptability to change

Lead by example

Interpersonal skills

Organizational skills

Time management

Social perceptiveness

Active listening

Learning strategies

Instructing

Monitoring

Communication

Coordination

Service orientation

Positive energy

Solution-focused mentality

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

VHBG is licensed by the Department of Social Services and aims to create the most natural environment for our youth that still provides them with the supports they need to overcome past trauma, build relationships, and work on transitioning to a more permanent environment. We work directly with the child’s agency that placed them with us (typically the city or county department of social services) to make decisions that are in their best interest. Youth are able to leave our campus to spend time with their families, attend summer camps, gain employment, and participate in other extracurricular activities. We have been able to give the youth who come here the opportunity to have a childhood and experience the joy in life.

About the Opportunity

Position summary:

The Group Home Youth Counselor is responsible for the treatment of up to 8 youth in a group home under the direction of the Group Home Manager. This position provides teaching, guidance and supervision to youth to include overseeing physical care, development of acceptable habits and attitudes, positive behavioral supports, crisis intervention, assistance with the upkeep of the physical environment, helping youth achieve mastery of identified goals and objectives and the timely thorough completion of required documentation.

Core duties and responsibilities:

• Responsible for the sight and sound supervision and engagement of youth on and off-campus
• Responsible for documenting daily activities, behaviors, contacts, and interventions.
• Responsible for providing a therapeutic, family-style treatment environment for youth according to the model and standards developed by VHBG
• Responsible for professional communication with teachers, parents, caseworkers, and probation offices, etc. for the youth.
• Responsible for attending bi-weekly treatment team meetings and other meetings as assigned.
• Responsible for assisting with transportation such as youth employment, athletic events, doctor’s appointments, youth home visits, etc.
• Required to work a two week rotating schedules with alternating evening and weekend hours.
• Follows approved Behavior Support Plans for each child.
• Embraces agency commitment to open communication in both giving and receiving information and feedback.

Job Specifications (KSA’S):

• Ability to perform job in accordance with the organization’s policies & procedures.
• Must be able to adapt to change and demonstrate flexibility in work schedules as the need arises (e.g. staffing crisis, inclement weather/natural disasters)
• Ability to “Lead” by example.
• Must possess strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work with all levels of individuals internally and externally.
• Must possess excellent organizational, time management, and strong analytical skills to organize and coordinate a varied workload and identify priorities. Must be able to adapt to change and demonstrate flexibility
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Ability to learn theory and implement it in appropriate practice
• Must bring positive energy, innovation and new ideas to the environment
• Must have a solution focused mentality

Physical/Mental Requirements:

• Must be able to stand for long periods of time.
• Must be able to lift, crouch, reach, handle, push and pull.
• Must be able to move objects weighing up to 50lbs.
• Must be able to remain calm and focused in a loud environment
• Must be able to perform restraint procedures.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Experience and Education:

High school diploma or equivalent required; Bachelor’s degree preferred. Minimum of 6 months working with children or adolescents required. One year of experience working with youth in a group home facility is preferred. Clinical experience working with youth is preferred.

In addition, the candidate must possess a valid Virginia Driver’s License with driving record in good standing, must be able to successfully clear background checks associated with job, and must successfully complete in-house training.

About the Culture at VHBG

VHBG's leadership team encourages employees to bring their authentic self to work, whatever that means for that employee. We do this through unbiased recruiting practices, advocating for employees to participate in our inclusion ambassador council, implementing employee feedback and offering training opportunities focused on diversity, inclusion and equity. VHBG nurtures belonging and retains a highly engaged workforce in order to achieve the best experience and outcomes for our clients.

VHBG is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, genetic information, age, gender (including pregnancy and childbirth), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, status as a protected veteran, disability, or other status protected under federal, state, or local law.