FEATURED JOB OPENING: Teaching Parents - Springdale, AR

Summary: Under the direction of the Program Consultant, the Teaching Parent married couple provides the day to day care and guidance of assigned youths in a residential care setting.

Responsibilities: Teaches youth a curriculum of skills in social, self help, independent living, maintenance, and academic areas and provides moral, spiritual, and physical training and guidance to the youths assigned to the couple's home. Provides or coordinates academic assistance to youths and works closely with the public school system. Operates the home and the program of care on a 24 hour per day, 365 days per year basis. Develops a normalized home environment that encourages the development of close family relationships among the youths. Provides a naturalized family living experience. Has primary responsibility for providing counseling, concern, direction, assistance, and support which would normally be received from a parent. Implements an individualized plan of care for each youth. Facilitates the process of observed self-medication administration for clients. Manages appropriate storage of medications. Works closely with the youths' parents, teachers, social workers, and significant others to ensure the definition and implementation of a proper and effective program of youth care to assist each youth in achieving to his/her maximum potential. Supervises Alternate Teaching Parent(s) who provides program continuity while working with the Teaching-Parents and during the Teaching-Parent's time off duty. Manages money and expend funds for youth home operation. Maintains fiscal records as directed and in accordance with sound business practice. Remains informed about and in compliance with local, state, and federal standards and regulations pertaining to the provision of services to children and their families.

The Teaching Parent may assist in providing the following functions: Admission of children to the home; Residential services for children and their families; discharge of children from the group home; and maintenance of case records. Establishes and maintains contact with program referral sources by making personal visits and other contacts to agencies and others within a designated service area. Communicates the Home's philosophy and programs to individuals and groups, agencies, and the "community at large" within a designated service area. Assists with preparation for home licensure. Is knowledgeable of and maintains compliance with all licensing standards. Takes advantage of professional growth opportunities and works to achieve or maintain Teaching Parent certification status. Works closely with the assigned supervisor/consultant to develop and implement all areas of care for the youths in the home. Seeks consultation and provides detailed information regarding all significant issues affecting youths in their care. Cooperates in scheduling consultation/supervision visits to the home. Seeks out, responds positively to, and implements suggestions and feedback from supervisors. Provides and maintains requested information and program records. Performs related duties as requested by the Director of Group Home and Emergency Shelter Programs.

Qualifications: A Bachelor's Degree from an accredited university, in the fields of human service or education, and/or experience working with children or other populations with special needs preferred. The ability to take advantage of extensive training and to apply that training to the implementation of a comprehensive program of care for children. Must be physically capable of restraining youth if said youth are a danger to themselves or others. Must be physically capable and willing to teach and assist youth in maintenance activities occurring in and around the youth home. Activities include but are not limited to: yard care, interior cleaning, vehicle cleaning and maintenance. Must Possess or a valid Arkansas Driver's License and must be insurable to operate company vehicles. Maintains mandatory employee requirements as needed. Must have good auditory, visual and olfactory ability Requires the ability to sit and stand for long periods of time and intermittently walk, stand, stoop, kneel, crouch and reach with hands and arms Lift and hold at least 50 pounds for one minute Use hands and fingers to handle or feel objects, tools or controls Must be able to maintain effective audio, visual discrimination and perception needed for making observations, communicating with others, reading and writing, and operating office equipment and other treatment equipment Must be able to use a telephone to communicate verbally and a computer to communicate through written means, to review information and enter/retrieve data, to see and read characters on a computer screen, chart or other treatment items Requires the strength and stamina to perform required duties Job descriptions are not intended, nor should be construed, to be all-inclusive lists of all responsibilities, skills, efforts or working conditions associated with a job. While this job description is intended to be an accurate reflection of the job requirements, management reserves the right to modify, add or remove duties from particular jobs and to assign other duties as necessary

Scheduling: MFH recognizes that the Teaching-Parent position and schedule can be very demanding and so has structured the compensation package to take this into consideration. When rates are calculated, they are based upon a schedule that presumes a normal week for Teaching-Parents will encompass more hours than a traditional work week and such rates encompass additional compensation for hours worked over the traditional 40 hour work week. This also takes into consideration the personal time available to the Teaching-Parents, sleep time and other time when the Teaching-Parents are not involved in working with the youth who are assigned to their residence. Program coverage is provided by relief staff who work a 40 hour week for the purpose of allowing the Teaching-Parents time off where they are free to be away from the Group Home, including some overnight coverage. Time not covered by the relief staff is worked by the Teaching-Parents. Since there is no way of predicting the exact hours worked by Teaching-Parents from week to week, the compensation has been increased over a base rate in consideration of the additional coverage that is provided by the Teaching-Parents as part of the live-in position. In the event of unusual circumstances where relief staff is not available for an extended period or another emergency arises which causes Teaching-Parents to work substantially more hours than typically anticipated, other arrangements for additional compensation to Teaching-Parents for lack of time off will be made.