YSS is seeking a compassionate, dependable, motivated, Full-Time, Lead Recovery Specialist to join our Residential Addiction staff. If you are ready to help build coping skills, educate on substance abuse, and motivate youth to be successful in their journey toward sobriety, come work with us!
ResponsibilitiesThe Lead Recovery Specialist primary responsibilities include the supervision and care of the clients as well as providing support during crisis situations. Responsibilities include:

• Relating to clients in a caring, supportive, and therapeutic manner.
• Providing the necessary amount of structure to facilitate growth.
• Consistently observing limits and consequences and sees that they are carried out.
• Enforcing rules and procedures as established in all YSS materials.
• Ensuring that client’s needs are being met through the proper request process.
• Maintaining communication with internal and external resources (partnership with clinical and leadership staff).
• Communicating with client family members and workers.
• Part of the on-call rotation for client support.

Please note that this description is not intended to be a complete list of the responsibilities required for this position. Duties may change at any time, with or without notice. For more about how we support our Residential Treatment program, please visit https://www.yss.org/program/ember-recovery/.
What will you get out of working at YSS?
In addition to having the opportunity to do meaningful, mission-driven work YSS also offers the following:
Benefits Provided To ALL YSS Staff

• An exciting, welcoming workplace
• Bright, collaborative, supportive, colleagues
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Employee recognition/years of service program
• Training opportunities
• Personal wellness programs
• Pet insurance discounts
• Qualification for the PSLF

Benefits Provided To FULL TIME Staff Include

• Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance
• Supplemental accident, critical illness, and hospital indemnity insurance
• Accrued PTO, plus paid time off for holidays, your birthday, and volunteering
• Retirement options (terms apply)

MUST HAVES - Required QualificationsWe want to create a world where youth are valued and empowered to stand strong. To do this, we ask our staff to embrace YSS core values - Commitment, Collaboration, Compassion, Innovation, Integrity, and a “Can Do” Spirit. Additionally, we ask for the following:

• Bachelors degree or higher.
• One (1) year of related experience.
• Recovering applicants must have a minimum of two years of continuous sobriety to be considered for this position.
• Travel, including transporting clients, is required for this position. For YSS insurance purposes, you must:
• be 21 years of age,
• have a valid, state-issued, driver’s license,
• have a clean driving record, and
• have adequate insurance coverage per YSS policy.

SHOULD HAVES - Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelors degree or higher in a human services related field.
• Understanding of the needs of youth facing substance use and dependency and an awareness of available other intervention strategies.
• Collaborative and able to work effectively with others regardless of backgrounds, identities, and goals.
• Able to effectively communicate with customers, clients, and the public as well as colleagues and other staff members.
• Flexibility to serve on the on-call rotation and cover shifts.

The IDEAL Candidate

• Is patient and calm under pressure and able to deal with challenging situations with a good attitude.
• Speaks a language(s) in addition to English.
• Has personal knowledge and understanding gained through lived experience and the ability to draw on that experience to support others on the journey to stability, recovery, and healing.

About YSS...One of Iowa's oldest and largest, youth-serving, nonprofit organizations, YSS's mission is to create hope and opportunity by putting kids first. Our programs impact tens of thousands of youths and families each year. We offer education to build healthy minds and bodies; counseling to overcome life’s challenges; and stability to focus on the future. Our diverse leadership team brings together a wide range of specialties and expertise, all dedicated to our mission.
Headquartered in Ames and located across Iowa, our sites are not cookie-cutter models—we tailor our services to fit the highest needs of each community. And we are still growing. YSS is constructing Ember, a 50-acre recovery campus in Central Iowa that will offer shelter, crisis stabilization, and residential addiction treatment for youth and young adults.
Our goal is to create a continuum of care—together, with programs give youth the tools they need to succeed their entire lives. Work for YSS and you too can have a positive impact in the lives of young people.
Helpful to Know
YSS is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace. We believe that our strength lies in the unique perspectives and backgrounds of our employees. We strive to create an environment where all individuals are treated with respect and have equal opportunities to succeed. Our ongoing efforts to promote diversity and inclusion are central to our mission, and we are dedicated to continuous improvement in these areas.
YSS is a nicotine-free workplace.
The YSS Hiring ProcessCommunication with applicants is done primarily via email from our Paycom system. Please check your messages regularly. If you don’t see messages in your inbox, please check your spam/junk folder. If you have questions about your application, please email recruitment@yss.org.

• Application - All applicants are required to complete an online application. The application is considered complete when all questions have been answered, all required documents (resume, waivers) have been submitted, and the application has been electronically signed.
• Assessment – As they are received, applications are reviewed for education, experience, and licensure (if required). If the required qualifications are not met, the application will be declined.
• Interview – Depending on the number of applications received, we may choose to do initial phone interviews. Otherwise, we will move directly to in-person or Zoom interviews.
• References – Applicants moving forward after their interview are asked to submit three references, which YSS then contacts.
• Pre-employment Screening – Applicants are required to submit background check waiver forms at the time they apply. YSS conducts a Single Contact Repository (SING) background check on all final candidates. All offers of employment at YSS are contingent upon clear results of the SING. The SING provides authorized organizations online access to Iowa Criminal History and Sex Offender Registry information held by the Department of Public Safety/Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), Department of Human Services (DHS) Central Abuse Registry for Child Abuse (CA) and Dependent Adult Abuse (DAA), as well as Professional License information. YSS also requires a clean driving record for positions that provide transport. Verification will be done through the records of the state that issued the current license.
• Offer – Applicants selected for hire will receive a formal offer of employment via email with instructions of how to reply.
• New Hire Meeting - The offer email will provide details on how to set up this meeting. You must schedule and attend this meeting before you can begin working or getting paid.