State of Maryland

A PSCS Social Worker I, Criminal Justice is the intermediate level of professional social work providing clinical and therapeutic or forensic social work services in a criminal justice environment in the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (PSCS).   Employees in this classification provide clinical and therapeutic services to clients who have demonstrated a need for rehabilitative intervention because of behavioral factors or personality disorders and co-existing mental health, health, substance abuse or other social adjustment factors.  Employees in this classification do not supervise other PSCS Social Workers, Criminal Justice.

Employees in this classification receive moderate supervision from a PSCS Social Work Supervisor, Criminal Justice or other designated administrator.  Employees generally work in correctional or detention facilities, or other criminal justice  environments.  Employees are frequently exposed to hazardous situations and must exercise vigilance and sound judgment when working with clients.  Employees in this class may be required to work evenings and weekends.

Positions in this classification are evaluated using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

The PSCS Social Worker I, Criminal Justice is differentiated from the Casework Specialist, Criminal Justice in that PSCS Social Worker I is licensed and performs the duties under close supervision at times and under general supervision at other times depending upon the complexity of the specific duty being performed while the Casework Specialist, Criminal Justice has not yet been licensed in the State of Maryland and performs the duties under close supervision.  The PSCS Social Worker I, Criminal Justice is differentiated from the PSCS Social Worker II in that PSCS Social Worker II, Criminal Justice is licensed and performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.

Applies social work values, principles and techniques to assist clients to confront their personality disorders including anti-social behaviors and any co-existing health, mental health, substance abuse or other social adjustment factors;

Provides individual therapeutic social work counseling, crisis intervention and on-going treatment to clients with chronic health or mental health conditions and other presenting social adjustment factors, such as substance abuse, physical or developmental disability or communicable disease;

Provides psycho-social assessments and remediation plans and makes treatment recommendations;

Completes required institutional or court reports and recommendations;

May conduct therapeutic group sessions with a cognitive behavioral theory base to remediate clients’ personality disorders, including anti-social behaviors;

May participate in multidisciplinary treatment teams;

May participate on special work groups to develop proposals for treatment interventions and new treatment protocols or recommendations for agency social work policies and procedures;

May conduct support groups to address social and emotional issues of special concern to clients, such as grief, pregnancy, parenting skills and domestic violence;

May maintain special files related to confidential social work interactions with clients in a correctional facility;

May provide case management services and act as liaison to community organizations to develop and coordinate after-care plans for special needs clients scheduled for release from a correctional facility;

May act as a mentor to social work interns by providing guidance in specialized areas of group and individual counseling and may provide guidance in case management;

May provide forensic social work services;

May provide expert testimony in court proceedings;

Performs other related duties.  

Knowledge of principles, practices and ethics of professional social work;

Knowledge of diagnostic criteria and language used in medical and mental health records, reports and planning;

Knowledge of procedures and practices used in criminal justice environments to insure the safety and security of the public and the institution;

Knowledge of individual and group behavior;

Knowledge of community resources addressing the after care needs of special clients or scheduled for release from a correctional or detention facility;

Ability to provide group and individual therapeutic counseling to clients in a confidential setting;

Ability to identify and manage manipulative behavior;

Ability to work effectively with high-risk clients, such as clients on institutional segregation or defendants charged with a variety of offenses or crimes;

Ability to assist clients to develop a plan of service which allows for follow through;

Ability to prepare accurate, cogent reports;

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with staff of criminal justice institutions, such as correctional or detention facilities, court personnel and representatives of other agencies and institutions, community organizations and public interest groups;

Ability to testify in court proceedings.  

Education:   Determined by the State Board of Social Work Examiners under the licensing requirements for Social Workers.

Experience: None.

1. Employees are required to be licensed as a Graduate Social Worker (on or before June 30, 2018), Master Social Worker (on or after July 1, 2018), Certified Social Worker or Certified Social Worker-Clinical by the Maryland State Board of Social Work Examiners prior to appointment to a position in State service.   Applicants who do not have a license may also apply pending receipt of the required license.  When the license is obtained, submit a copy to the hiring department.

2. Employees in this classification may be assigned duties which require the operation of a motor vehicle.  Employees assigned such duties will be required to possess a motor vehicle operator’s license valid in the State of Maryland.

1. Employees are required to meet mandatory standards for continuing education as determined by the hiring department.  Employees who fail to obtain the required continuing education credits shall be subject to disciplinary action including demotion, suspension and dismissal.

2. Employees must complete an approved training program in group counseling techniques.

3. Employees may be required to complete the Level I Counseling course certified by the Maryland AIDS Professional Education Center.

4. Employees required to qualify for and successfully complete the Entry Level Training Academy operated by the Maryland Police and Correctional Training Commissions.    

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies.  Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.  

This is a Professional Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Professional Service positions.  Some positions in Professional Service classifications may be designated as Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.  

This classification is assigned to bargaining unit F, Social and Human Service Professionals.  As provided by the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.  

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series.  NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance level in a classification series.  In order to be non-competitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series, an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class, as defined by the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of  supervision defined in the class specification and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification