Juvenile Justice Youth Development Specialist II, Shift Supervisor, Suffolk Detention Unit

About the role

The Department of Youth Services (DYS) is seeking dynamic, positive, and service-minded individuals to fill the role of Juvenile Justice Youth Development Specialist II (JJYDS II). The selected candidate will work with juvenile justice involved young people ages 12 – 20 years old (most of the youth served are 14–18 years old) in DYS residential facilities. The incumbent will support the Juvenile Justice Youth Development Specialist I located at Mariposa, 425 Harvard Street, Dorchester, MA 02124, performing care and security activities for youth in DYS custody, maintaining communication with staff, law enforcement, and stakeholders, and providing guidance to JJYDS I staff.

Responsibilities

• Observe youth conduct and behavior to prevent disturbances/escape, ensure policy compliance, and maintain safety of staff and youth; perform one-to-one youth watch including suicide, elevated, and medical watch.
• Maintain custodial care and control of youth to uphold order and security; conduct periodic rounds, head counts, security checks, and searches of youth and visitors to account for all youth and prevent weapons/contraband on premises.
• Supervise and monitor up to six JJYDS I staff by checking duty stations and ensuring task completion to safeguard staff, youth, and visitors.
• Assume shift responsibilities in the absence of the Juvenile Justice Youth Development Specialist III and assist as needed.
• Conduct intake of youth, complete documentation, document behavioral issues to identify patterns and changes, and complete incident reports, transportation logs, medical logs, visitor logs, and daily operations logs.
• Maintain resident, program, department, and related documentation; complete shift documentation and improve systems and procedures for efficiency.
• Provide crisis and behavior management to prevent or intervene in crisis situations; facilitate group meetings to help youth develop coping skills, pro-social and life skills; establish rapport and advocate for youth needs; guide and support youth through daily interaction and role modeling to facilitate re-entry into the community.
• Deliver leadership through role modeling, reinforcement of positive practices, participation in staff meetings, and training sessions as needed.
• Facilitate orientation of new staff and train/coach staff in techniques, group interactions, and emergency responses including physically subduing/restraining practices to ensure a safe and secure environment.

Required Qualifications

• Ability to understand, explain, and apply laws, rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and guidelines governing assigned unit activities.
• Knowledge of factors, trends, and challenges in providing secure residential and rehabilitative care to youth, including Positive Youth Development (PYD) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT).
• Demonstrated ability to supervise, including planning and assigning work based on job requirements, subordinate capabilities, and available resources; controlling work through periodic reviews/evaluations.
• Proficient at gathering information by examining records and documents and through questioning and observation.
• Capacity to interact with people under physical and/or emotional stress and maintain a calm manner in stressful and emergency situations.
• Effective communication including the ability to give oral and written instructions in a precise, understandable manner.
• Experience in establishing rapport with persons from different ethnic, cultural, and/or socio-economic backgrounds and ability to deal tactfully with others.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with youth including residential care, treatment, counseling, and/or rehabilitation of juveniles and/or adult offenders.
• Proven ability to interact with youth in a supportive, safe, and encouraging way.
• Demonstrated program measurement, reporting, and evaluation skills.
• Proficient usage of Microsoft Office products including Word, Outlook, and Excel.

Special Requirements

• Minimum Age Requirement: 21 years.
• Must be able to perform physical requirements of the job, including proper restraint or subduing of youth through appropriate use of handcuffs or other restraint techniques if necessary.
• Able to talk and/or hear, stand, walk, run, kneel, and climb stairs, as well as lift, carry, push, or pull up to 55 pounds with or without assistance and devices.
• Based on assignment, may be required to possess a current and valid motor vehicle driver’s license at a class level specific to assignment.
• Upon hire, must complete and maintain valid certification in crisis intervention, suicide prevention, CPR, AED, and first aid.

Working Conditions

• Exposure to verbal and/or physical confrontations and potentially dangerous environments.
• May be required to physically restrain youth.
• Typically works a standard work week (five 8-hour shifts); may be required to work extended hours, nights, holidays, or weekends.
• May be required to travel in-state; based on assignment, may travel out of state.

Schedule

Shift: 1:00 PM – 11:00 PM with Thursday, Friday, and Saturday off. Employees may be required to perform mandatory overtime.