Program Director Jobs in Connecticut (NOW HIRING)

Job Description

Established in 1968, Gilead Community Services, Inc. has over 50 years of experience providing the highest quality services supporting people in recovery from mental health and substance use challenges. Gilead empowers personal growth, independence, and recovery through improved mental health, physical well-being, and community integration. Gilead’s supportive and collaborative services are marked by excellence, compassion, innovation, and integrity.

Unlike large healthcare systems, our work is grounded in real relationships. We know our clients by name, and we put their needs first.

Gilead Community Services seeks an experienced and committed leader to serve as the Residential Program Director for our Adolescent program located in Old Saybrook, CT. You’ll provide clinical and administrative oversite of a therapeutic residential setting, ensuring high-quality, trauma-informed care for youth with behavioral health challenges.

Why This Role Matters

This is a unique opportunity to lead a highly valued, clinically rich adolescent program that delivers trauma-informed, restorative care with a strong focus on building skills for success, valuing diversity and increasing self-esteem. As a Therapeutic Group Home, the program has integrated complimentary models including Attachment, Self-Regulation, and Competency (ARC), Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI), and The Council for Boys & Young Men of the One Circle Foundation while partnering closely with onsite clinicians and prescribers.

How You’ll Make Your Impact

The successful candidate will lead a program focused on supporting young men, between the ages of 14 – 20 years old, and their families in building skills to address the internal and interpersonal barriers preventing them from living successfully and independently in the community. You will bring strengths in clinical treatment and in leadership and team building.

The position is designed to ensure compliance with DCF licensing, contractual requirements, and CARF standards while making a meaningful impact by fostering strong, collaborative relationships with families, neighbors and local community to support a positive and responsive group home environment.

Lead high-quality, recovery-focused care

• Oversee clinical and administrative operations for an adolescent residential mental health program.
• Ensure services align with Gilead’s mission and recovery principles, with an emphasis on trauma-informed, person-centered care.
• Guide admissions, service planning, and discharge processes to maximize impact and maintain fiscal stability.
• Ensure provision of evidence-based best treatment modalities, trauma informed and culturally sensitive clinical care.

Strengthen teams and elevate clinical practice

• Supervise and develop clinical and program staff, ensuring strong performance and continuous growth.
• Oversee staffing levels, hiring, and retention efforts in partnership with Human Resources.
• Develops a positive, supportive work environment that promotes staff engagement and job satisfaction.
  

Navigate regulatory and system complexity

• Monitors and maintains compliance with contractual and licensing requirements (DCF, CARF, etc.).
• Build and maintain relations with clinical, educational, and managed care system partners (i.e., DCF area offices, Carelon, special education and local educational school systems, the legal system, etc.).
• Responds to after-hours needs on a rotating on-call basis to support program continuity and risk management.

Build relationships and expand capacity

• Act as liaison to municipal, state, private, and community partners.
• Collaborate with Gilead’s other program leaders to improve policy, develop, and refine services implementation aligned with organizational goals.
• Participates as a champion of Gilead’s culture through agency development initiatives and community events.

This Role Might Be for You If You’re:

• Experienced and ready to lead: You are an emerging or established leader with experience in adolescent residential or community behavioral health, ready to guide and support a team.  
  
• Looking for a meaningful change from the corporate healthcare model. You are ready to reconnect with the heart of mental health services work in setting where client care (not just revenue targets) drives the work.
  
• Grounded and relational: You connect naturally with clients and the staff who support them. You prefer being present in programs and communities versus leading from behind a desk.
  
• Flexible, adaptive, and steady in complexity: You can navigate clinical nuance, regulatory requirements, operational demands with confidence while balancing multiple priorities and the human realities at the same time.
  

What You Bring:

• Master’s degree required. Must hold (or be eligible for) CT associate-level clinical licensure and be working toward full licensure (LCSW, LPC, LMFT), with 6+ years of experience in adolescent mental health.

• Experience in administrative supervision. Union and previous program oversite experienced preferred.
• A calm, steady presence to a fast-paced program for adolescent males, ability to manage competing needs and lead effectively in a dynamic and demanding.  
• A hands-on, engaged leader who thrives in a dynamic, 24/7 environment that is comfortable rolling up your sleeves, supporting the staff and youth participants.
• A valid driver’s license and automobile insurance.

We Offer:

• Starting salary of $83,00 to $93,000 annually.
• Generous paid time off (up to 4 weeks paid vacation, 13 holidays, 2 paid personal days, 12 sick days).
• Truly affordable medical, dental and vision benefits that save you nearly 50% more than the national average.
• Investment in your future through our 401(k) retirement plan and match, scholarship programs, tuition reimbursement, and professional development opportunities.
• Peace of mind with free long-term disability insurance and affordable short- and long-term life insurance options.

We support equality for and advancement of all people, based on their qualifications and actions alone, without regard to color, gender, age, religion, national origin or disability.

Our company is dedicated to fostering an inclusive environment. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, please reach out to total.rewards@oakhillct.org. We will make every effort to accommodate your needs in accordance with applicable laws and our commitment to accessibility and inclusion.

An Equal Opportunity Employer.