New York State Department of Civil Service Announces Open-Competitive Examination Open to the Public

Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator

Appointees who work in the five boroughs of New York City or in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, or Westchester Counties will receive an additional $3,026 annual downstate adjustment. Appointees who work in Dutchess, Orange, or Putnam Counties will receive an additional $1,513 annual mid-Hudson adjustment.

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Minimum Qualifications

On or before October 29, 2016, you must have a bachelor���s degree with a major in community health and family studies, correctional studies, counseling, criminal justice, human services, psychology, public justice, social work, sociology, or vocational rehabilitation AND two years of experience providing individual and/or group counseling in a recognized correctional, criminal justice, or community/human services program aimed at assisting clients with the resolution of major social, behavioral, and personal problems. Experience must have included responsibility for conducting counseling sessions designed to provide the participant(s) with counseling for social and personal problems such as alcohol and drug abuse, mental, behavioral, and emotional problems.

Substitution: A master���s degree with a major in community health and family studies, correctional studies, counseling, criminal justice, human services, psychology, public justice, social work, sociology, or vocational rehabilitation may be substituted for one year of the required experience.

Non-Qualifying Experience: Group work oriented toward behavior modification in such areas as self-improvement of tobacco cessation, crisis intervention, or case management alone is NOT qualifying experience.

Notes

1. Your degree must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the NYS Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. If your degree was awarded by an educational institution outside the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to the Examination Information Desk of the NYS Department of Civil Service for a list of acceptable companies who provide this service. You must pay the required evaluation fee. If you are applying on the Internet, you must mail the independent verification of equivalency to the NYS Department of Civil Service, Albany, New York 12239. Attention: S2CMH.
2. If you expect to meet the educational requirements by December 31, 2016, you can be admitted to the written test but you cannot be considered for appointment until you submit proof of successful completion of the educational requirements to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
3. If you pass the examination for No. 26-152 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (Spanish Language), you will be required to demonstrate your Spanish language proficiency at a level that will ensure your ability to perform properly the duties of the position. Only enough candidates to fill current vacancies will be called to the proficiency test.
4. If you submit an application for No. 26-152 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (Spanish Language), an application will automatically be submitted for you for No. 26-151 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator at no additional cost.
5. Verify that you have applied for the correct examination before submitting your online application. You will not be allowed to apply for additional examinations in this series after September 14, 2016.
6. Background Investigation: Because of the nature of the position there is an investigative screening that may include a thorough character investigation. All convictions must be reported. Conviction of a felony or misdemeanor or any falsified or omitted information may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment. Each case is determined on its own merits, consistent with the applicable provisions of state and federal laws.
7. Fingerprints and Fees: Fingerprinting is required at the time of appointment. You will be required to pay the processing fee.
8. Department of Corrections and Community Supervision employees may file for as many examinations for which they are qualified, including open-competitive and transition examinations. The following open-competitive and transition examinations are being held at the same time in addition to those noted on the announcement. NOTE: FEES ARE REQUIRED FOR ALL EXAMINATIONS. OC Examinations: 26-153 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (Manual Communications), 26-154 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (ASAT), 26-216 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (ASAT) (Spanish Language), 26-148 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator Trainee 1, 26-149 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator Trainee 1 (Manual Communications), 26-150 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator Trainee 1 (Spanish Language) or Transition Examinations: 00-349 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (ASAT), 00-350 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (ASAT) (Spanish Language), 00-347 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator Trainee 1, 00-348 Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator Trainee 1 (Spanish Language).
9. Appropriate part-time and volunteer experience, which can be verified, will be accepted on a prorated basis.
10. New York State residence is not required.

The Positions

These positions exist in the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

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Duties

As an Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator, you would be responsible for administering assessment tools and/or instruments to determine risk and/or needs of an inmate to better prepare the individual for eventual return to the community. You would interview inmates and review all relevant information in order to determine counseling needs and make program recommendations. You would evaluate and investigate the inmates��� program participation while completing legislated reports for Earned Eligibility, Merit Time, and Presumptive Release Reviews. You would provide on-going individual and group counseling relative to personal, social, institutional, behavioral, and disciplinary issues. You would provide guidance to inmates, assessing needs and preparing evaluations for the Board of Parole. You would also serve as a facility-based link between the Board of Parole, criminal justice agencies and law enforcement partners, community service providers, and assigned field staff in developing a supervision plan. You would be responsible for the preparation of comprehensive evaluative summary release reports and the development of case-specific supervision plans that are utilized by the Board of Parole when rendering discretionary release decisions and when establishing conditions of release for all inmates released to parole and post-release supervision, and strict and intensive supervision and treatment (SIST) under Article 10 of the Mental Hygiene Law in the correctional facilities of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

As an Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (Spanish Language), you would be required to perform the duties of an Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (see above) for a caseload which includes monolingual Spanish-speaking inmates.

Important: As the processing fee is non-refundable, verify that you entered the correct examination number and title on your online or paper application prior to submitting. If you apply online, you should immediately review your email confirmation notice to verify that you applied for the correct examination. If you do not receive a confirmation number after submitting your online application, your application was NOT received by the Department of Civil Service. No late applications will be accepted after the filing deadline has passed.

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Subject of Examination

There will be a written test which you must pass in order to be considered for appointment. The written test is designed to test for knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in such areas as:

1. Preparing written material - These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.
2. Principles and practices of correction counseling - These questions test for the ability to counsel inmates in a variety of correctional settings. Questions may cover such areas as conducting interviews, managing cases, identifying and resolving problems, establishing goals and objectives, interpreting behavior, conducting individual counseling sessions, selecting counseling techniques, responding to the requirements of a correctional setting, and applying given facility policies.
3. Pre-release casework - These questions test for the knowledge and application of social casework principles and practices in preparing inmates for release to parole and post-release supervision. Questions will cover such areas as conducting pre-release interviews; providing guidance regarding the conditions of release; determining inmate needs in areas such as family support, residential placement, and mental health; and addressing issues that may impact the inmate's successful reintegration into the community.
4. Principles and practices of inmate group counseling - These questions test for a knowledge of and the ability to apply principles and practices of inmate group counseling in a variety of correctional settings. Questions may cover such areas as participant contracts, facilitating groups, and individual and group counseling goals and objectives.

For No 26-152: - Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator (Spanish Language), you must also pass a qualifying multiple choice test in understanding written Spanish given at the time of the written test. Failure on the written Spanish test will eliminate you from further consideration from this title

Written Spanish - These questions test for knowledge of written Spanish. Candidates will be given a passage written in Spanish similar to materials they are required to read on the job. Some of the words in the passage will be missing. Candidates will be asked to identify which one of several Spanish words or phrases should be inserted to best maintain the meaning of the passage.

Your final score must be 70 or higher in order to pass. Rank on the eligible list will be determined after adding any wartime veterans' and Civil Service Law Section 85-a credits to your final passing score.

Important: The Department of Civil Service and other state agencies may communicate with you through email correspondence. This may include the notification of your examination results and canvassing you for interest in appointment. It will be important for you to keep your email address, phone number and mailing address current by logging into https://www.cs.ny.gov/home/myaccount.

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How To Apply

If you do not receive a confirmation number after submitting your online application, your application was NOT processed.

Additional Information

New York State is an Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of the State of New York to provide for and promote equal opportunity employment, compensation, and other terms and conditions of employment without discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, veteran or military service member status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or arrest and/or criminal conviction record unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.

Appointment to many positions in State government require candidates to undergo an investigative screening. This may include a thorough character investigation, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Record History Check, a Child Abuse Registry clearance, or other similar procedures. Candidates may be fingerprinted and may be required to pay any necessary fees for that procedure. Depending on the nature of the job, the criminal convictions discovered, or any falsified or omitted information revealed, the investigative findings may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment.

Eligibility for Employment

You must be legally eligible to work in the United States at the time of appointment and throughout your employment with New York State. If appointed, you must produce documents that establish your identity and eligibility to work in the United States, as required by the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Religious Accommodation

Most written tests are held on Saturdays. If you cannot take the test on the announced test date, due to a conflict with a religious observance or practice, check the box under “Religious Accommodation.” We will make arrangements for you to take the test on a different date (usually the following day).

Reasonable Accommodations in Testing

It is the policy of the Department of Civil Service, in accordance with the New York State Human Rights Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, to provide qualified persons with disabilities equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity to participate in and receive the benefits, services, programs, and activities of the Department. It is the policy of the Department to provide such persons reasonable accommodations and reasonable modifications as are necessary to provide equal opportunity. Persons with disabilities who require an accommodation to participate in an examination must note this on their application. Further information is available from the Test Administration Unit of the Department of Civil Service. In the Albany area, call 518-457-2487. Outside of the Albany area, call toll free at 1-877-697-5627. For TDD services, call NY Relay at 711 (requires a fee) or 1-800-662-1220.

Admission to Examination

Notice to appear for the test may be conditional as review of applications may not be made until after the test. If you have not received your notice to appear for the written test three days before the date of the test, call 518-474 6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627.

Multiple Examinations Scheduled for the Same Day

If you have applied to take a written test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this written test, you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before the test date to make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site. All tests will be held at the state examination center. For your convenience, contact information for all local civil service agencies is available on our website at: http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/local.cfm

Cell Phones or Electronic/Communication Devices at the Test Site

Do not bring cell phones, beepers, headphones, or any electronic or other communication devices to the test site. The use of such devices at the test site in the test room, hallways, restrooms, building, grounds, or other areas could result in your disqualification.

S2/TC2 CMH-vla
Issued: 8/12/2016

This announcement is subject to amendment or cancellation without notice. Do not copy it, or post it to any other site, but link to it instead.

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