JUVENILE JUS YOUTH & FAM SPEC I (Lincoln) (UMP)

Position Overview:

The Department of Juvenile Justice is seeking a motivated and skilled candidate to serve as the Juvenile Justice Youth and Family Specialist I at IYC Lincoln Monarch. The ideal candidate for this position will possess previous counseling experience and will be comfortable implementing treatment interventions to both individuals and groups.  The incumbent in this position will make case management decisions related to youth behaviors and needs consistent with public safety.  The incumbent will also utilize community-based service providers and after care services to establish placement resources and support services for the youth and the family for re-integration into the community.  If this sounds like an opportunity that would fit into your career path, then click the apply button to get started.  We encourage all interested and qualified individuals to apply!

Minimum Qualifications:

• Requires a bachelor's degree in counseling or a closely related social sciences degree and two years of professional experience working with youth in juvenile services. OR  Requires a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university and three years of professional experience in counseling or casework.
• All candidates must be over the age of 21.

Qualifying state employees in the employee Upward Mobility Program may complete combinations of specific proficiency tests and training programs leading to a certificate of proficiency in lieu of the stated requirements for this classification.

Essential Functions:

• Provides counseling services to incoming youth during their initial orientation and adjustment to the facility.
• Prepares, implements and monitors transition and parole release plans consistent with agency case management requirements.
• Performs professional assessments of individual youth's criminogenic risks, personal strengths, and individual needs.
• Implements the Department of Juvenile Justice Case Management Model for youth assigned to case load.
• Provides crisis intervention and response to incidents and situations which require behavioral controls and sanctions.
• Participates in continuing education programs, training and staff development to build skills and acquire knowledge which can be shared with others.
• Recommends housing unit assignment and changes thereafter.
• Performs other duties as required or assigned which are reasonably within the scope of the duties enumerated above.

Preferred Qualifications: (In Order of Significance)

• Prefers two (2) years of experience utilizing counseling and guidance principles and techniques.
• Prefers two (2) years of experience utilizing your knowledge of theories of personality and deviant behavior, delinquency, and criminology.
• Prefers two (2) years of experience utilizing your working knowledge of the principles of cognitive behavioral treatment.
• Prefers two (2) years of experience utilizing your working knowledge of sociology of the family and of racial and cultural minorities, urban sociology and social problems.
• Prefers one (1) year of experience utilizing your working knowledge of casework techniques and the writing of professional reports.

Conditions of Employment:

• Requires the ability to pass an IDOC/IDJJ background check.
• Requires ability to pass a drug screen. The use of unauthorized drugs by an employee, regardless of position held, is prohibited.
• Requires possession of a valid and appropriate driver’s license and the ability to travel.
• Certain provisions of the revolving door restrictions contained in 5 ILCS 430/5-45 apply to this position. As a result, the employee should be aware that if offered non-State employment during state employment or within one year immediately after ending State employment, the employee shall, prior to accepting any such non-State employment offer, notify the Office of the Executive Inspector General for the Agencies of the Illinois Governor (OEIG) or may be subject to a fine.

The conditions of employment listed here are incorporated and related to any of the job duties as listed in the job description.

About the Agency:

The mission of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ) is to build youth skills and strengthen families by promoting community safety and positive youth outcomes. Over 900 staff members from across various departments—security, programming, education, mental health, and more—collaborate with the understanding that youth are physically, emotionally, and cognitively different from adults. The department provides extensive services to young people through a developmental, treatment-focused model of care that builds youth resiliency, engages families, and promotes community safety at the five youth facilities it operates across the state. IDJJ serves and houses approximately 150 youth and is responsible for approximately 500 youth on Aftercare in various Illinois’ communities.