Career Opportunities Available in Oklahoma’s Juvenile Residential Care and Treatment Centers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Persons interested in a career promoting improved outcomes for justice-involved youth in a secure residential care and treatment center should contact the Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA).
Entry-level Resident Care Specialist (RCS) positions are now available at the Central Oklahoma Juvenile Center (COJC) in Tecumseh and the Southwest Oklahoma Juvenile Center (SWOJC) in Manitou. Other key positions, such as psychological clinicians, are available throughout the agency.
OJA is focused on assisting youth with educational advancement, vocational readiness, and life skills to build a foundation of independence and self-worth.
RCS positions deal with providing direct care, supervision and security, and role modeling to justice-involved youth. This includes providing paraprofessional guidance and counseling to residents, interventions to control aggressive behaviors, documentation of behaviors and activities, and maintaining a presence at the facility in order to monitor and moderate resident behavior and activity.
Duties involve the care, education, and treatment of residents. This includes observing, recording and reporting the health symptoms, behavior and activities of residents. Other responsibilities deal with providing security and supervision to residents in a variety of situations and activities. Both full- and part-time opportunities are available.
Starting compensation for these critical front-line positions is $26,632 (or $12.80 per hour) for full-time employees, with a 75 cents per hour increase upon completion of a probationary period. Benefits include 10 paid holidays; health, dental, vision, and life insurance plans; a retirement plan; and a benefit allowance to assist in health insurance coverage.
“This is an excellent opportunity for people wanting to embark on a career helping our justice-involved youth,” said OJA Executive Director Steven Buck. “Our agency’s staff works with the juveniles in our care to create positive outcomes for them. We want to empower the youth in our residential care and treatment facilities to pursue productive futures using holistic, innovative and data-informed strategies. We’re looking for people who are compassionate about youth and can respond to their needs with fairness and dignity.”
More information about OJA job opportunities is available here or by calling (405) 530-2974 or by emailing humanresources@oja.ok.gov
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