At-Will Residential Counselors - City of Alexandria VA

At-Will Residential Counselors

The City of Alexandria is located in northern Virginia and is bordered by the District of Columbia (Potomac River), Arlington and Fairfax counties. With a population of approximately 150,000 and a land area of 15.75 square miles, Alexandria is the seventh largest city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Alexandria has a charming waterfront and is a unique and historic place to live and work. If you are interested in working for the vibrant City of Alexandria, we invite qualified candidates to apply for our At-WillResidential Counselor positions.

An Overview 

The At-Will Residential Counselor provides direct support services to individuals with intellectual disabilities in a residential program, completes assessments, and writes daily progress notes and incident reports. The Direct Support Professional (DSP) supervises the daily living activities of individuals in a group home setting and guides residents in the development and implementation of their person-centered plans. The Residential Counselor will perform job duties within the framework of Departmental Policy, City of Alexandria Administrative Regulations, State of Virginia Human Rights guidelines, applicable State Policies/Guidelines and accepted best practices guidelines.  

What You Should Bring 

The Residential Counselor will have good knowledge of large household coordination and maintenance; Good knowledge of the nature of mental illness, intellectual disabilities, or developmental delay and the role of residential support services; Empathy with the problems of people with mental illness, intellectual disabilities, or developmental delay; Ability to identify behavior which indicates movement toward a crisis situation; Ability to plan and supervise the work of clients; Ability to instruct clients in basic living skills and to identify progress and learning requirements; Ability to obtain the cooperation of clients in difficult situations; ability to understand the needs and abilities of mentally ill or intellectual disabled citizens; and the ability to communicate clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing.

The Opportunity 

• Completes all applicable assessments documents to develop individualized service plans.
• Writes progress notes on computer system.
• Maintains clinical records following all applicable licensing and Medicaid regulations.
• Instructs and guides residents in the completion of tasks to ensure the development of skills and confidence, and monitors, evaluates and records resident’s performance through written progress notes.
• Monitors medication management of residents by observation and reporting medication concerns to treatment team and/or supervisor.
• Assist residents in planning recreational and educational activities.
• Identifies and responds to personal emergencies and crisis with referral to appropriate community resources and treatment team.
• Participates in treatment team meetings.
• Reports all maintenance issues of the facility.
• Assists residents in preparing meals, house cleaning and laundry.
• Completes grocery shopping.
• Transportation of residents in City vehicles.
• Complete other duties as assigned by supervisor.
• Performs related work as required.

About the Department 

The Center for Adult Services (CAS) provides programs and services in Aging; Adult Protective Services; Clinical & Emergency Services; and Community & Residential Support Services for seniors and for persons with mental illness, intellectual disabilities and substance use disorders. CAS provides compassionate and effective person-centered services based on best practices.  Our teams support self-determination, safety and recovery for Alexandria residents affected by abuse, neglect, mental illness, intellectual disabilities and substance abuse disorders.