Milieu Counselor (Youth Care Worker)
Description
Job Title: Milieu Counselor - Long Term Group Home
FLSA: Non Exempt
Location: Portland, Oregon
Department: ORR Long Term Group Home
Reports To: Milieu Supervisor
Salary: $20.28/hr. - $22.35/hr. (non-bilingual), $22.10/hr. - $24.36/hr. (Bilingual - Spanish)
Shifts:
- Wednesday-Saturday or part time Thursday-Saturday (7am-5:30pm)
Morrison Child and Family Services: We are a Joint Commission and Sanctuary accredited non-profit organization that provides a comprehensive array of services to children, adolescents, and their families. As an agency, Morrison, its team members, and clients commit to the following values of trauma-informed care:
- Nonviolence - being safe and doing the right thing
- Emotional Intelligence - managing our feelings so we don’t hurt ourselves or others
- Social Learning - respecting and sharing ideas of our teams
- Democracy - shared decision making whenever possible
- Open Communication - saying what we mean and not being mean when we say it
- Social Responsibility - everyone makes a contribution to the organizational culture
- Growth and Change - creating hope for our clients and ourselves
Job Summary:
The Milieu Counselor is responsible for providing direct care supervision and maintaining a safe and supportive environment for Unaccompanied Children (UC) in accordance to Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) licensing standards, Agency and program policies and standards, and other federal, state, and local regulatory requirements. The program is a 24-hour shelter for male and female minors between the ages of 14-17. The program works with adolescents in a residential facility.
The Youth Care Worker/Milieu Counselor (MC) provides direct supervision of youth in care and always maintains effective line-of-sight supervision. MC assists with vocational and daily living skills and is involved in working one-on-one, in groups and school settings, provides transportation and guidance for safety during resident outings and participates in serving daily meals, depending on program requirements.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Provide effective supervision of milieu and youth activities according to the program’s daily schedule.
- Complete documentation of services in a timely manner, including internal incident reports and shift summaries.
- Transport and/or accompany youth to local appointments and other client outings.
- De-escalate youth using behavior management techniques and perform appropriate follow ups
- As a last resort, perform physical restraints of clients as needed following approved crisis intervention model methods.
- Administer medication to youth, including required documentation and disposal.
- Demonstrate a commitment to learning and implementing the Sanctuary Model and other organizational policies and practices.
- Participate in staff development, in-services, and training related to workplace effectiveness; model professional behaviors and implement improvements to business practices with awareness of their impact in a trauma-informed behavioral healthcare organization.
Competencies: (Competencies are the abilities and qualities a person needs to be successful in this job)
- Ability to lead a group of staff and clients.
- Ability to maintain composure and professional boundaries in chaotic situations; ability to effectively diffuse or de-escalate potentially volatile situations with clients and/or visitors.
- Ability to keep accurate records and maintain confidentiality;
- Ability to follow oral and written directives;
- Availability to work on any of the seven days of the week; availability to work any shift of the day, including, but not limited to, Swing, or Early Morning, or both;
- Ability to communicate effectively, verbally, and in writing,
- Base knowledge of program policy and procedure, including the importance of safety and security in a residential setting.
Required Position Qualifications:
- At least 21 years of age
- Driver License
- High School Diploma
- Minimum of 1 year employment experience in the child welfare field working with children and/or adolescents in a social service setting.
- Basic computer skills using Microsoft Word, Excel, databases and Outlook
Preferred Position Qualifications: (Additional skills, experience, or education that are not required but would make a candidate especially well-suited for the job).
- Bi-lingual in Spanish and English, written, read and verbal strongly preferred. Must clear a language proficiency test for Spanish.
- Residential experience
- Knowledge of adolescent developmental issues, trauma, abuse and neglect, substance abuse and dependence, delinquency, peer influence, and related group and individual interventions.
Other Requirements:
- Pass a criminal history background check though Morrison and a suitability determination investigation through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. For further information review: https://www.opm.gov/suitability/suitability-and-credentialing-faqs/
- Proof of Vaccination (MMR, Varicella, DTap & Influenza annually)
- Meet agency driving requirements: a valid driver’s license for OR or WA and a driving record permitting coverage under corporate auto liability policy. Personal auto liability insurance ($100,000/$100,000 required), if position requires use of own vehicle for work purposes.
- Bloodborne pathogen training
- Ability to travel between programs locations
- CPR/First Aid certification within 30 days of hire and kept current
- All other applicable trainings as required with necessary updates and reoccurrences
- Must have and maintain a valid driver’s license and personal auto liability insurance
Working Conditions:
Environment: Work is done in clinical offices, community settings, including Morrison Residential, administration buildings, public locations, and social service sites. Breaks and meals are subject to interruption. Universal Precautions and remaining alert to the environment are critical to address the potential for violent behavior, exposure to disease, biohazards, noise, and contaminants.
Mental demands: Work assigned is diverse and may involve addressing new and unique circumstances. The work might be unpredictable and disrupts planned tasks, requiring flexible time management.
Physical demands: Ability to remain calm and emotionally available serving youth, adults and or families who have experienced trauma. Proficient with office equipment and physical movement. Ability to perform physical interventions if needed in accordance with program and training. Physical dexterity for reaching, stooping, and repetitive wrist and hand motions.
All Morrison programs and services are accredited by The Joint Commission, a nationally recognized standard-setting and accreditation body for health care. Morrison is also certified as a trauma-informed organization by the Sanctuary Institute. Certification recognizes our dedication to providing a trauma-informed culture and environment for children, families and staff through implementing Sanctuary values, commitments, and tools.
We are an Affirmative Action Plan Employer. Our policy is to provide equal employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other protected characteristic. In compliance with our Affirmative Action Plan, Morrison uses E-Verify to determine employment eligibility after an offer is accepted.
Applications will be reviewed as received. Morrison reserves the right to make a hiring decision at any point during the posting period.
Morrison employees are offered a variety of benefits including Medical, Vision, Dental, Flexible Spending Accounts, Employer-Paid Life, Accidental Death and Dismemberment and Long-Term Disability, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).