Developmental Specialist I

South Side Acute Partial and IOP is hiring for a Developmental Specialist I! This employee will join a team focused on supporting adolescents experiencing acute symptoms of depression and anxiety, with the goal in stabling their mental health before stepping down to a lower level of care, such as outpatient. A main goal of our program is to assist adolescents in maintaining safety without the need for psychiatric hospitalization.

Our programs are empirically based and focus on teaching adolescent’s skills Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and also offers expressive therapies in the form of our Mindfulness Garden and Matt’s Maker Space which is utilized by our therapists to engage patients in art therapy. 

Our treatment team is made up of:

• Mental Health Workers who facilitate group therapy and support our patients on the milieu
• Behavioral Health Therapists who facilitate family therapy sessions, individual therapy sessions, and coordinate follow up care
• The Developmental Specialist who assists patients in completion of schoolwork and coordinates care with the patients home school district
• Psychiatric nurses who support day to day medication and health concerns
• Psychiatrists who provide psychiatric evaluations and medication management while the patients are in the program.

The ideal candidate for this position must have a completed a bachelor’s degree in either Early Childhood Education, Child Development, Elementary Education or Early Childhood Special Education. Prior experience working in a childcare setting strongly preferred. Must have the desire to work with young children and be able to respond to any needs with patience and sensitivity.

This is a Monday through Friday daylight position, 8a-430p. The dress code is business casual. Street parking is available.

Responsibilities:

• Complete all other duties as assigned.
• Communicate with families on a regular basis and provide necessary support. Communicate any identified family needs with the treatment team.
• Report pertinent clinical and non-clinical needs or concerns to appropriate classroom, clinical and administrative leadership.
• Actively participate in assigned unit meetings, staff meetings, treatment team, educational enrollment meetings, and supervisory sessions as needed or assigned.
• Consistently adhere to licensing, accreditation, regulatory, and partnership expectations. Actively engage in quality improvement projects and help to ensure inspection and audit readiness at all times.
• Accurately complete all required documentation within assigned timelines. Maintain current and accurate client and program records that meet accreditation, licensing, regulatory, partnership standards.
• Regularly assess, record, and communicate the developmental progress of clients. Utilize assessment information to inform care and to inform guardians of client progress during parent conferences.
• Actively support the Development Specialist by assisting with lesson planning and preparation and curriculum implementation.