Youth Detention Superintendent #JR-00799

About the role

Lead with Purpose. Shape Futures. Build a Safer Community. Every day presents an opportunity to change the trajectory of a young person's life. The City of Virginia Beach is seeking an experienced, compassionate, and visionary leader to serve as our Youth Detention Superintendent, overseeing the City's Juvenile Detention Center and leading a dedicated team committed to rehabilitation, safety, accountability, and positive youth development.

The Virginia Beach Juvenile Detention Center is a secure facility that operates 24 hours a day and provides housing, meals, education, recreation and medical and mental health services to youth up to age 21. The facility is staffed by 72 full-time and 15 part-time employees who work in direct care, medical, food service, program management, mental health and administrative roles. The detention center houses residents in pre-dispositional and post-dispositional status, as well as in the State’s Community Placement Program.

This position reports directly to the Deputy Director of Community Justice and plays a critical role in advancing innovative programming while ensuring the highest standards of care, security, and regulatory compliance. If you're passionate about leading people, improving systems, and making a lasting impact on the lives of youth and families, we'd love to hear from you.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for all operations of the Juvenile Detention Center.
• Ensure property security and foster a safe, therapeutic, and supportive environment for children and youth.
• Oversee the development, implementation and evaluation of programs and services that improve outcomes for youth in care.
• Monitor programs for effectiveness, quality, and compliance with all applicable Department of Juvenile Justice and Interdepartmental Licensure standards of regulations; maintain program services in compliance with all federal and state laws and local government administrative regulations, policies, and ordinances.
• Manage facility operations, budgeting, purchasing, staffing, scheduling, overtime, employee training, and organizational performance.
• Develop, review, update, implement and enforce policies and procedures.
• Build and maintain partnerships with courts, law enforcement, community organizations, schools, and behavioral health providers.
• Champion continuous improvement, data-driven decision making, and innovative practices that strengthen services for youth and families.
• Create a workplace culture focused on accountability, collaboration, leadership development, and exceptional public service.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in psychology, sociology, criminal justice, public administration, human behavior, or a closely related field.
• Significant leadership experience within juvenile justice, corrections, law enforcement, secure residential treatment, or a similar human services environment.
• Experience supervising managers and leading multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience with juvenile justice laws, detention standards, licensing requirements, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience managing large operational budgets and strategic planning initiatives.
• Experience using data to improve organizational performance and outcomes.
• Experience developing and implementing policy and procedures.

Minimum Requirements

• Any combination of education and/or experience equivalent to twelve (12) years, four (4) of which must have been in a supervisory capacity, in fields related to psychology, sociology, criminal justice, or public administration which provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities.
• Must have a current and valid driver’s license.
• Requires a current tuberculin screening.

As a City Manager appointee, this position serves at the pleasure of the City Manager and is not considered part of the merit service as defined in City Code, section 2-75.

All employees may be expected to work hours in excess of their normally scheduled hours in response to short-term department needs and/or City-wide emergencies. Positions within this class have been designated as Alpha I positions requiring employees to work during inclement weather, regardless of the City’s operational status.