Hillcrest strives for continuous quality improvement and staffing effectiveness. We utilize a variety of measures to insure staff qualifications and competence.
1. Screening applicants for employment: Applicants for all positions are assessed to insure that their qualifications are consistent with and appropriate for the responsibilities of the job for which they are being considered. Prior to hire, applicants are interviewed by a Human Resources Manager of Employment. If successful, the applicant is then interviewed at the campus by a program administrator, and they spend a minimum of 4 hours observing students and program at the campus. During this process the formal position description is carefully reviewed with the applicant. If the candidate appears to be qualified for the position, a background record check (to include CORI and DCF) is conducted, references are checked and degrees are verified.
2. New Staff Orientation: All staff (including full time, part time and on call staff) are required to attend and successfully complete New Staff Orientation prior to assuming their respective duties and responsibilities of their position at Hillcrest Educational Centers. Interns, volunteers and others who work in the program will attend all or portions of New Staff Orientation as determined by the extent of their interactions with students, as well as their respective roles within the agency.
Staff may not be assigned any direct care duties with students until they have participated in and successfully completed all aspects of the New Employee Orientation. Successful completion requires participation in New Staff Orientation in its entirety including being present for all training delivered, completion of all on line orientation coursework, and meeting all competency ratings on written and practical assessments given.
Documentation of successful completion of New Staff Orientation is kept in the staff’s Human Resource File.
3. On-Site Orientation: : Following New Staff Orientation, all staff participates in an On Site Observation lasting the length of a normal workday or normal work shift. This On Site Observation is in addition to pre-employment on site observation that all staff participate in as part of the interview and hiring process. On Site Observation following New Staff Orientation, allows the new staff to observe their work environment after receiving the initial training, giving them an additional opportunity to observe and ask questions now that they have some background, knowledge, and skills and have been oriented to the organization.
4. Supervision: In addition to supervision during their workday, staff, including volunteers and interns, participate in formal supervision meetings during the introductory period, which typically is 90 days, but which can be extended if there are skills or core competencies that need improvement. Frequent formal supervisory meetings continue until staff have shown appropriate levels of competence. The frequency of formal supervision meetings can than decrease based on the evaluation of the supervisor and the type of position. Supervision sheets documenting supervision meetings are kept at the campus.
5. Performance Evaluation: Staff in all positions, including volunteers and interns, are formally evaluated at the end of the introductory period, and at least annually thereafter. Evaluations consist of the measurable assessment of the staff’s ability to perform the activities required by the position they hold and the students with whom they work. The Human Resource Department tracks evaluations to insure they are done in a timely fashion.
6. Continuous assessment of staff competence:
i. Daily Interaction: Supervisors and administrators evaluate verbal and physical skills and competencies on a daily basis and they continuously coach and train staff, volunteers and interns in the most effective methods of working with our students.
ii. Observation: Video from the program’s surveillance cameras are reviewed by supervisors regularly to insure that HEC policies are carried out even when a supervisor is not present. In addition to video review supervisors will observe their staff, volunteers and interns during in the moment interactions with our students as a means of ensuring competency. An educational administrator will be responsible for conducting at least 2 teacher observations in the classroom annually. Any observation of behavior that appears inappropriate or shows less skill than desired is addressed immediately with the staff.
iii. Campus Reports: All significant incidents are reported, reviewed by Campus Administration and entered into a database. The database allows us to seek and identify patterns and trends and can provide information on a vast assortment of fields. Reports can be produced by student name, staff name, building, time of day, day of week and type of incident. These reports are reviewed by the Supervisors, Campus Administration and the Improving Organizational Performance Committee (IOP) for assessment and improvement.
iv. Human Resource Reports: All injuries are tracked by Human Resources in a database that can provide information on the types of injuries, number of injuries, treatment required, name of staff and/or student involved, time of day, day of week, location. Monthly reports and data analyses for the current month are reviewed by campus administration and IOP Committees. Comparisons of current and past months, and between current and past years are also conducted. These reports are reviewed and assessed by the Environment of Care and Senior Management Team for continuous improvement.
v. Outside Consultants: HEC periodically contracts with outside consultants to observe and make recommendations for continuous improvement.
7. Ongoing Training and Development: All staff (including full time, part time, on call, new employees, intern and volunteers) must participate in a minimum of 24 hours of training per year. All staff must be in compliance with all annual federal, state, agency, licensing, and accreditation training requirements. All staff working at program sites must minimally attend one 2 hour training a month offered at each program sites. All staff must complete all ongoing training assigned in the learning management system. All staff at the program sites are required to maintain a First Aid, CPR and AED Certification. All staff at the program sites must attend 12 hours of Therapeutic Crisis Intervention training each year. Six hours must be spent attending and successfully completing the Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Recertification course.
Staff in all departments are also eligible to participate in relevant training, workshops and conferences offered in the state, region, nation and/or on line formats.