Mental Health Counselor (LCSW or LPC) – Job Posting

YouthZone currently serves over 1,500 youth and their families every year by offering a wide variety of evidence-based programming through which our clients find safety, compassion, and education as they work to overcome the personal struggles they face. Our programs include youth assessment, parental guidance and support, individual and family counseling, restorative justice, court programs and monitoring, educational workshops, and much more. Founded in 1976, YouthZone has been, and continues to be a family-first nonprofit dedicated to fostering positive youth development for teens throughout the Western Slope of Colorado.

We are looking for a Mental Health Counselor who will counsel individuals and groups to promote optimum mental health. The successful candidate will possess at least a basic knowledge of youth assessment, diagnosis of mental health concerns, designing treatment plans, and experience providing services directly to youth for their mental health concerns.

Working with youth often demands a strong ability to monitor and track many different parts of their treatment and current functioning. Mental Health Counselors at YouthZone must be able to handle several tasks at once in a calm, organized fashion. They also must be patient, flexible, and adapt well to fluctuating needs. It is also helpful to be able to collaborate with parents and other providers. Mental Health Counselor documents all counseling sessions, groups, and other client interactions on YouthZone’s charting database. Consults, coordinates, and collaborates with Program Director, Youth Advocates, administrative staff and Program Coordinators. Works with a diverse client population in a variety of treatment approaches and settings.

Essential Functions, Responsibilities and Abilities of the Mental Health Counselor at YouthZone

• Conduct intakes and initial needs assessments.
• Identify clients who could benefit from Behavioral Health services and coordinate with Direct Service Team to provide those services.
• Connect with referred clients skillfully and effectively.
• Employ principles of trauma-informed care with all clients.
• Provide Individual, family or group therapy.
• Provide psychoeducation in all areas of behavioral health.
• Accurately chart and enter data in the YouthZone database (Salesforce).
• Review case management documentation as requested to be utilized for billing sources such as Medicaid.
• Effectively and efficiently consult with all Direct Service providers at YouthZone. This includes team-based behavioral health care, and coordination of care principles.
• Provide excellent customer service to partner agencies, co-workers, community and clients.
• Refer clients to appropriate community agencies, as warranted.
• Abide by confidentiality guidelines and HIPAA compliance standards.
• Active involvement in clinical supervision meetings and Direct Service staffing to ensure continuity of care and ongoing program improvement.
• Responsible for community outreach, networking, and resource development.
• Conduct staff training as requested by the Program or Clinical Director.
• Employ interpersonal and communication skills to develop and maintain effective working relationships with all internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to organize and prioritize workload in an often-hectic environment with frequent interruptions.
• Ability to work in a cooperative and collaborative manner within a clinical team setting.
• Ability to follow and implement direction as provided by the Program Director and Leadership Team.
• A working knowledge of individual, group, family, and crisis treatment approaches and their application to
clients experiencing emotional and behavioral difficulties.
• Knowledge of mental illness, and psychopathology and associated treatment modalities.
• Working knowledge of Colorado Revised Statutes 27-10 (Mental Health Code).
• Knowledge of local community health and mental health resources.
• Support and consult with staff regarding critical incidents and reporting.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
• Passion for our vision and mission
• Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills
• Persistence and assertiveness in advocating for youth
• Ability to type for purposes of crafting reports and correspondence, and for data entry
• Willingness to share in office maintenance and upkeep, as directed
• Commitment to the success of the organization and its programs
• Reliability, friendliness, and conscientiousness
• Self-starter with the ability to work independently
• Ability to quickly grasp issues and formulate approaches to problem resolution
• Detail-oriented with strong organization skills
• Ability to adhere to deadlines
• Strong work ethic

Qualifications & Competencies

• Master's degree in counseling, Social Work, Psychology, or another human services field.
• Licensed in the State of Colorado, or willingness to acquire Colorado Licensure in reasonable timeframe. (Will consider licensure from another state if it can qualify for a Colorado state license.)
      o We will consider providing support for qualified applicants who need supervision hours and/or CE credits relating to Colorado Licensure.
• Excellent typing and word processing skills.
• High proficiency with MS Office programs: Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Preferred Qualifications & Competences

• Two or more years of experience in the behavioral health field.
• Bilingual in Spanish and English; Strong verbal and written communication skills in English, and ability to understand and to make oneself understood in Spanish.
• Knowledge of Trauma Informed Care and Motivational Interviewing principles.

Physical Demands & Working Environment

• Working conditions are generally indoors in environmentally controlled conditions. Travel will be required.
• Sitting- up to 85%
• Walking- up to 20%
• Standing- up to 20%
• Reaching- up to 10%
• Lifting and/or bending- up to 10%
• Able to lift up 20 pounds

Employment Classification & Wage Range

• Full-time hourly non-exempt. $65,000-80,000 DOE

Benefits of Working at YouthZone

• YouthZone is a great place to work!
• We offer a healthy, supportive work culture; three hours of weekly exercise time; employee retirement plan; health insurance/wellness stipend; All-in-One mental health sessions; life insurance a positive working environment, and; the opportunity to be part of a wonderful team consisting of committed and passionate professional optimists.
• We also employ a hybrid work policy that allows for 1/3 remote work, 1/3 flex space work (we work in three counties and do our best to reduce barriers for our clients by meeting them in their communities), and 1/3 office.

How to Apply:

YouthZone

Mental Health Counselor

• If you’re interested in applying, please submit a resume and cover letter to careers@youthzone.com

YouthZone is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. YouthZone is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at YouthZone are based on organizational needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability, religion or belief, family or parental status, or any other status protected by Federal and State law. YouthZone does not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics.