Residential Crisis Counselor

Abraxas Youth and Family Services is dedicated to improving lives through high-quality services and support. Our employees help individuals achieve greater independence, confidence, and success while promoting dignity, respect, inclusion, and personal choice.

About the role

The Residential Crisis Counselor is a dedicated clinical resource position for someone with direct experience in behavioral health, mental health, or psychiatric settings. This role focuses on de-escalation, prevention of harm, and connecting youth to appropriate mental health supports before situations require physical intervention or emergency hospitalization. Abraxas primarily serves court-adjudicated youth with untreated or inadequately treated mental health conditions, including trauma, PTSD, mood disorders, impulse control disorders, anxiety, co-occurring substance use, and other behavioral health issues. This position bridges the gap between juvenile justice and mental health perspectives, particularly during crises.

The Residential Crisis Counselor also serves as an internal liaison with Abraxas's Medical Department and coordinates with outside psychiatric resources when a resident's mental health needs require a higher level of care, including facilitating psychiatric hospitalization or identifying more suitable placements.

Responsibilities

• Apply working knowledge of adolescent mental health conditions: trauma, PTSD, mood disorders, impulse control disorders, ADHD, conduct disorder, anxiety, co-occurring substance use, suicidal ideation, and psychotic features.
• Recognize and respond to acute psychiatric symptoms requiring medical or psychiatric escalation.
• Demonstrate practiced proficiency in verbal de-escalation with individuals in active behavioral or emotional crisis.
• Understand the regional mental health and psychiatric system, including crisis stabilization, inpatient psychiatric, and residential treatment resources for adolescents.
• Communicate effectively with medical and psychiatric professionals in clinical terms regarding a resident's mental health presentation.
• Initiate and coordinate psychiatric evaluation, voluntary or involuntary psychiatric hospitalization, and higher-level-of-care placement.
• Build genuine therapeutic rapport with adolescents, including youth who are hostile, withdrawn, or deeply distrustful of adults.
• Apply trauma-informed care principles in a residential milieu.
• Remain calm, grounded, and clinically effective under high-pressure, high-stakes conditions.
• Quickly and accurately read a person's emotional state, triggers, and escalation pattern.
• Work collaboratively with residential staff, supervisors, and clinicians in a structured environment.
• Maintain competency in clear, accurate, timely written documentation using facility paper-based records.
• Demonstrate cultural competency in working with diverse youth populations.
• Prioritize restraint-free de-escalation; physical intervention is viewed as a last resort.

Requirements

• 4 years of direct crisis intervention work in a psychiatric residential setting, including de-escalation and experience with adolescent populations with trauma, PTSD, depression, bipolar disorder, impulse control disorders, ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, anxiety, dissociation, suicidal ideation, and co-occurring substance use.
• Experience facilitating psychiatric hospitalizations or higher-level-of-care placement and knowledge of navigating mental health placement systems.
• Comfortable operating in a structured, secure residential environment serving challenging adolescent males without personalizing aggression, hostility, or provocative behavior from youth in distress.
• Associate’s degree or 60+ college credits in Human Services, Psychology, Social Work, Counseling, Criminal Justice, or a related behavioral sciences field preferred OR high school diploma or GED plus relevant experience in behavioral health, mental health, crisis intervention, or psychiatric residential care.
• Ability to stand, walk, and remain active and engaged throughout an 8-hour residential shift.
• Physically able to perform Safe Crisis Management (SCM) protocols as trained and certified, including any required safety response procedures.
• Ability to work in a secure, controlled-access residential facility environment.
• Ability to respond quickly and appropriately to safety emergencies.
• At least twenty-one (21) years of age.
• Valid Driver’s License.
• Physical exam that includes TB and drug testing.
• Must pass both federal and state background checks, screening for crimes including but not limited to drug-related crimes, violent crimes, sexual abuse, domestic violence, child abuse, and repeated misdemeanors.
• Satisfactory completion of background screening and applicable pre-employment checks, including employment and/or personal reference and driving records.
• Ability to work with computers and necessary software typically used by the department.

Skills

• Compassionate
• Dependable
• Patient
• Team-Oriented
• Service-Focused
• Professional
• Positive
• Committed to Helping Others

Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• DailyPay – Access your earned wages before payday
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Paid Time Off
• Employee Assistance Program
• Wellness Programs
• Employee Referral Bonuses
• Company-Paid Training
• Paid Training Programs
• Professional Development Opportunities
• Certification Opportunities
• Leadership Development Programs
• Career Advancement Opportunities

Pay

$32.00/hourly

Schedule

• Full-Time
• 2nd Shift, 1:00 PM – 9:00 PM
• Tuesday–Saturday or Sunday–Thursday (schedule assigned at hire)

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand, walk, bend, and assist individuals as needed
• Ability to perform essential job functions with or without reasonable accommodation