Correctional Counselor

Overview

Under general supervision, performs correctional counseling work of considerable difficulty. This is the first supervisory class in the Correctional Counselor sub-series. An employee in this class is responsible for supervising subordinates in counseling adult and juvenile offenders. Certain assignments with no supervision may be included in this class when the work assignment requires program oversight. This class differs from the Correctional Counselor 2
* in that an incumbent of the latter is not responsible for supervisory or lead work. This class differs from the Chief Correctional Counselor in that an incumbent of the latter is responsible for program management and oversight of the entire counseling program at a facility.

A Motor Vehicle Records screening will be conducted prior to employment. This position requires a criminal background check. Therefore, you may be required to provide information about your criminal history in order to be considered for this position.

Education and Experience: Graduation from an accredited college or university with a bachelor's degree and three (3) years of full-time increasingly responsible professional social or psychological counseling work.

Substitution of Education for

Experience:

Additional graduate coursework in a social or behavioral science may be substituted for the required experience on a year-for-year basis to a maximum of two (2) years.

Substitution of Experience for

Education:

Full-time social or psychological counseling experience may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis to a maximum of two (2) years; requiring two years of study at an accredited college or university.

OR Three (3) years as a Correctional Counselor with the Tennessee Department of Correction.

• A valid vehicle operator's license may be required for employment in some positions.

• Manages Correctional Counselor staff in counseling adult and juvenile offenders.
• Calculates sentencing information to determine accuracy of an offender
  ¿ s sentence computation.
• Verifies that offender sentencing complies with judgment order.
• Completes classification/reclassification and/or risk-needs assessments for offenders.
• Prepares reports on offender history, progress, adjustment, rule violations, visitation, recommendations for special visits, and other related statistics.
• Evaluates all offender records, case notes, and information to ensure compliance with all applicable standards, laws, policies, rules, and regulations while under the guidance of a higher ranking Correctional Counselor.
• Conducts and/or monitors Prison Rape Elimination Act screenings to determine potential victim or aggressor status.
• Monitors environment to identify security related concerns in order to assure continued safety of facility.
• Identifies appropriate intervention techniques to deal with offender behavioral issues.
• Assists offenders in addressing concerns regarding job pay, trust fund, sentence information, and educational needs and programs and with communicating with outside agencies to expedite release plans or respond to emergencies.
• Schedules outside services to assist with offender transition from prison to the community.
• Develops and collaborates reentry plans with re-entry Counselor for offenders within established time frames and in accordance with departmental procedures.
• Acts as a board chair during, and participates in, classification and reclassification hearings to review information relevant to offender behavior, program participation, and other factors to determine offender custody levels and programmatic needs and goals.

• Communicates Effectively
• Decision Quality
• Directs Work
• Plans and Aligns
• Situational Adaptability

• Clerical
• Law and Government
• Psychology
• Public Safety and Security
• Sociology and Anthropology

• Active Learning and Listening
• Mathematics
• Speaking
• Reading Comprehension
• Critical Thinking

• Deductive Reasoning
• Inductive Reasoning
• Originality
• Problem Sensitivity
• Speech Clarity

• Multi-line Phone
• Radio
• Personal Computer
• Word Processing Software
• Electronic/Paper Documents