Children and Families Behavioral Health Clinical Manager

Are you looking to utilize your skills and make a difference? Are you ready to take that next step in your career? If so, please read on to learn more about this exciting opportunity!  

The State of Connecticut, Department of Children and Families' (DCF) is seeking a talented and motivated Children and Families Behavioral Health Clinical Manager to join our team at the Albert J. Solnit Children’s Center.  

What We Can Offer You:

• To work for a Forbes top company: ‘Forbes’ State of Connecticut Ranked One of the Best Employers of 2023 - State of CT Receives National Recognition for Offering Job Growth, Competitive Benefits, and Flexible Schedule;
• Industry leading health benefits, including medical and dental coverage;
• Comprehensive pension plan and supplemental retirement offerings;
• Paid time off including 13 paid holidays per calendar year;
• A culture that encourages work/life balance;
• Professional growth and development opportunities.    

Position Highlights:

• Full time
• 40 hours per week
• Monday - Friday
• 8:30am – 5:00pm or 8:00am – 4:30pm
• Located at Albert J. Solnit Children's Center-PRTF
• The position has on-call coverage in rotation with members of the management team.  

The Role:

Job duties include, but are not limited to:  

• Directs staff and operations of multiple statewide clinical behavioral health programs and services.
• Coordinates, plans and manages functions for statewide programs and services. 
• Develops, implements and evaluates goals and objectives.
• Collaborates with administrative officials in development and implementation of policies and procedures. 
• Acts as liaison within and outside of facility with individuals and groups who impact on program activities.
• Accountable for agency compliance with standards established by outside monitoring agencies.        

About Us:

The Department of Children and Families' (DCF) mission is partnering with communities and empowering families to raise resilient children who thrive. We are proud of our diverse and dedicated workforce who strive every day to meet the needs of those we encounter.  

The Albert J. Solnit Children's Center – South Campus is a state-administered Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility for females between the ages of 13-17 who have complex psychiatric needs.  It is located on a 67-acre campus at 915 River Road, Middletown, CT.  

The center provides comprehensive care to children and adolescents with severe mental illness and related behavior and emotional problems who cannot be safely assessed or treated in a less restrictive setting.  The south campus consists of four co-ed hospital units and three female adolescent psychiatric residential treatment facility cottages (PRTF). The Solnit Center facilities support our dedication to helping youth improve their individual and social competencies.    

We hope you take this opportunity to join our team and make a difference!

These positions will be filled in accordance with contractual language, reemployment, SEBAC, transfer, promotion and merit employment rules.  

In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process.

Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening and must specify their qualifications on their application. The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified. 

Please note you will be unable to make revisions once you submit your application for this posting to the JobAps system. Interviews will be limited to candidates whose experience and training most closely meet the requirements of the position. 

The immediate vacancy is listed above, however, applications to this recruitment may be used for future vacancies in this job class.

Although applicants will receive correspondence via email, as a backup they are also encouraged to sign on to their Personal Status Board on a daily basis to monitor their status, view all emailed notices and complete tasks required in the recruitment process. 

Due to the large volume of applications received, we are unable to provide confirmation of receipt or status during the recruitment process. Updates will be available through your JobAps portal account.   

Note:  At any point during the recruitment process, applicants may be required to submit additional documentation which support their qualification(s) for this position.  These documents may include:  a cover letter, resume, transcripts, diplomas, performance reviews, attendance records, supervisory references, licensure, etc., at the discretion of the hiring agency.  Applicants must meet the minimum qualifications as indicated to apply for this position. 

This posting may require completion of additional referral questions (RQs). You can access these RQs via an email that will be sent to you after the posting's closing date or by visiting your JobAps Personal Status Board (Certification Questionnaires section). Your responses to these RQs must be submitted by the question's expiration date. Please regularly check your email and JobAps Personal Status Board for notifications. Please check your SPAM and/or Junk folders on a daily basis in the event an email provider places auto-notification emails in a user's spam.  

Should you have questions pertaining to this recruitment, please contact Julie Barker, at Julie.Barker@ct.gov.              

All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period.  It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception.  Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.

In the Department of Children and Families Bureau of Behavioral Health this class is accountable for directing multiple statewide clinical behavioral health services programs and services.

• Directs staff and operations of multiple statewide clinical behavioral health programs and services;
• Coordinates, plans and manages functions for statewide programs and services; 
• Develops, implements and evaluates goals and objectives;
• Collaborates with administrative officials in development and implementation of policies and procedures; 
• Interprets and administers pertinent laws;
• Monitors and evaluates work performed by subordinate staff;
• Acts as liaison within and outside of facility with individuals and groups who impact on program activities;
• Accountable for agency compliance with standards established by outside monitoring agencies;  
• Responsible for recruitment, selection and retention of department or discipline staff;  
• Assures compliance with quality assurance findings and recommendations;
• Promotes cultural diversity in workplace and assures client rights; 
• Identifies, plans, implements and evaluates training and development of staff in response to identified needs; 
• Independently analyzes complex problem situations and takes appropriate action; 
• Initiates workforce planning and monitors staff utilization to meet identified goals;
• Investigates and responds to critical incidents; 
• Prepares or oversees preparation of reports; 
• Leads the recruitment and hiring of staff, including outreach, interview and selection;
• May represent facility in grievances and/or other hearings; 
• May oversee grant, budget or contract preparation;
• Performs related duties as required.

• Considerable knowledge of
  • and ability to apply management principles and practices; 
  • and ability to interpret and apply relevant state and federal laws, statutes and regulations;
  • and ability to develop strategic plans; 
  • behavioral health policies and systems; 
  • principles, practices and issues of behavioral health care; 
  • recent developments in designated field and ability to translate knowledge into practice; 
  • behavioral challenges facing children, adolescents and families;
  • principles and practices of public and/or health care administration;
• Considerable
  • interpersonal skills; 
  • oral and written communication skills; 
  • analytic skills; 
• Considerable ability to
  • negotiate, mediate and resolve conflicts; 
  • collaborate within agency, department, state, community and constituents;
• Ability to
  • plan for collection, analysis and integration of data; 
  • interpret standards of monitoring agencies and contracts; 
  • lead and direct a multi-service and program operations.

Six (6) years professional experience in behavioral health care.

Three (3) years of the General Experience must have been at a managerial level directing clinical operations or the delivery of behavioral health care services for children and/or adolescents and families.

NOTE: Managerial experience is defined as formulating program goals and objectives, developing and implementing program procedures, initiating program policies and developing and/or monitoring a budget.

• Clinical supervisory experience in a youth serving agency.  
• Community-based clinical behavioral health experience working with children and families.

AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.

As defined by Sec. 5-196 of the Connecticut General Statutes, a job class is a position or group of positions that share general characteristics and are categorized under a single title for administrative purposes.  As such, a job class is not meant to be all-inclusive of every task and/or responsibility.