The Program Lead plays a critical role in the day-to-day management and oversight of specific programs or services within their identified Division. Reporting to the Program Manager, this position is responsible for coordinating program activities, supervising program staff, and ensuring the delivery of high-quality services to program participants. This role may manage a caseload of their own.
Staff Management
- Provide guidance, support, and direction to staff members
- Assign duties and responsibilities to staff based on program needs and individuals’ strengths
- Conduct regular check-ins and provide feedback to staff regarding performance and areas for improvement
Client Care and Safety
- Ensure the safety and security of clients and staff by enforcing program policies and procedures
- Monitor client behavior and intervene as necessary to de-escalate conflicts or address concerns
- Respond to emergencies or crises effectively, following established protocols and seeking assistance as needed
Benefits
Merakey offers generous benefits that promote well-being, financial security, and work-life balance, including:
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, plus access to healthcare advocacy support.
- Retirement plan -- both pre-tax and Roth (after-tax) options available for employee contributions.
- DailyPay -- access your pay when you need it!
- On the Goga well-being platform, featuring self-care tools and resources.
- Access Care.com for backup childcare, elder care, and household services.
- Confidential counseling, legal, and financial services through our Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
- Tuition reimbursement and educational partnerships.
- Employee discounts and savings programs on entertainment, travel, and lifestyle.
- Access to Pryor Online Learning for free online personal development classes.
Learn more about our full benefits package - https://www.merakey.org/careers/benefits
About Merakey
Merakey is a non-profit provider of developmental, behavioral health, and education services. More than 8,000 employees provide support to nearly 40,000 individuals and families throughout 12 states across the country each year. Click here to watch a video about Merakey. Merakey strictly follows a zero-tolerance policy for abuse.
Merakey is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer! We deeply value diversity and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, ethnic background, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, genetic information, or disability status. Moreover, we are committed to creating teams that reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and encourage applicants from underrepresented backgrounds to apply. Merakey welcomes all Veterans to apply!
Preferred Qualifications- Acts as the lead staff and point person when on shift
- Work with the Program Manager to oversee the work of the DSPs
- Approve all DSP timecards and leave requests
- Prepares and manages house schedules in coordination with the Program Manager
- Direct Care responsibilities to include but not limited to activities of daily living (ADLs), food preparation and/or feeding, maintaining required supervision requirements
- Medication management and administration
- Incident Management in coordination with Program Manager and QCO
- Manages all household needs to include but not limited to menu development, grocery shopping, housekeeping
- Ensure ongoing upkeep and maintenance of assigned home
- Ensures overall cleanliness ongoing
- Daily maintenance needs (lightbulbs, filter cleanings, etc.)
- Identifies needed repairs and submits maintenance requests
Skills Required
- Coordinate program activities and supervise program staff
- Manage a personal caseload as needed
- Provide guidance, support, and direction to staff members
- Assign duties and responsibilities to staff based on program needs
- Conduct regular check-ins and provide performance feedback to staff
- Ensure safety and security of clients and staff by enforcing policies and procedures
- Monitor client behavior and de-escalate conflicts as necessary
- Respond to emergencies or crises following established protocols
- Act as lead staff and point person when on shift
- Work with the Program Manager to oversee the work of DSPs
- Approve DSP timecards and leave requests
- Prepare and manage house schedules in coordination with the Program Manager
- Provide direct care including activities of daily living (ADLs), food preparation/feeding, and required supervision
- Medication management and administration
- Incident management in coordination with Program Manager and QCO
- Manage household needs including menu development, grocery shopping, and housekeeping
- Ensure ongoing upkeep, maintenance, and cleanliness of assigned home
- Identify needed repairs and submit maintenance requests
Merakey Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Merakey and has not been reviewed or approved by Merakey.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage is positioned as robust, with multiple medical plan options, telemedicine, care navigation support, and certain specialty medications available at no cost through an affiliated pharmacy.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off policies are structured with separate vacation, sick, and personal time allocations plus paid holidays, and vacation increases with tenure.
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Wellbeing & Lifestyle Benefits — Wellbeing and practical supports include an employee assistance program, tuition support, caregiving resources, discounts, and early wage access that can improve day-to-day financial flexibility.
Merakey Insights
What We Do
Merakey is a leading developmental, behavioral health and education non-profit provider offering a breadth of integrated services to individuals and communities across the country. We leverage our size and expertise to develop innovative solutions and new models of care to meet the needs of individuals, their families, public and private healthcare funders and community partner organizations. We recognize that complex needs require a holistic approach. With our experience, expertise and compassion, we empower everyone within our communities to reach their fullest potential.
