Havenwood Academy is a residential treatment center in Cedar City, Utah, intentionally working with the most complex and challenging clinical cases in the country. We're dedicated to helping teenage girls heal from trauma. Many of our students are adoptees who carry deep emotional and relational wounds. Our goal is simple but powerful: *rewire the traumatized brain through positive, trust-based relationships and experiences.*
*Your Opportunity:*
Own a campus-wide experiential therapy program that turns purposeful challenge and adventure into clinical change. You'll design and deliver high-quality experiential treatment that stimulates an appropriate limbic response in our clients followed by intentional regulation experiences for all students and provide deep, relationship-based therapy to a small caseload (two students). You'll collaborate with a skilled, values-driven team using advanced modalities (e.g., EMDR, DBT, Brainspotting, ART, neurofeedback, equine-assisted work) and help shape a program known for connection over compliance.
*As the Experiential Therapist at Havenwood we expect to see:*
* *Leadership:* You set the vision for experiential therapy, uphold safety, and raise the bar for quality and outcomes.
* *Motivation: *The right candidate will feel invigorated by the opportunity to work with the challenging, complex, defiant, and amazing guests in our program.
* *Teamability:* Co-create an immersive experiential experience with clinical, residential, medical, and academic teams.
* *Discipline & Follow-Through:* Adhere to clinical modality,, deliver timely and thorough clinical notes (24 hrs), on-time groups, reliable Saturday programming.
* *Resilience & Grit*: Provide a calm, energetic presence in experiential environments (outdoors, ropes/challenge, equine, creative activities).
* *High Task Switching Ability*: Moving fluidly between group facilitation, debriefs, family/individual therapy, and risk management.
* *Integrity & Humility:* Professional, ethical, safety-first judgment; you clean gear, load vans, and model service.
* *Continuous Improvement*: Data-minded; you track outcomes and iterate the curriculum to drive measurable growth.
*A day in the life:*
You'll lead experiential groups and debriefs that deliver *1.5 hours/week of experiential therapy per student*. You'll complete experiential assessments within 14 days of intake and maintain individualized experiential plans tied to treatment goals. You'll run department operations: weekly calendars, vendor/venue coordination, gear checks, dynamic risk assessments, incident reviews, outcome reporting, and Saturday programming. Clinically, you'll provide *weekly individual and family therapy* for *a minimum of two students*, facilitate therapy groups, attend and collaborate during treatment team, and document within 24 hours. Expect a highly active schedule with outdoor/creative sessions, treatment planning, staff huddles, and interdepartmental coordination.
*What Does Success Look Like:*
* High student recreation therapy satisfaction
* Program completion of 85% or higher for individual caseload
* Campus receives consistent, purposeful experiential groups weekly (coverage and quality are reliable).
* 100% coverage: Every student receives 1.5 hours of experiential/rec therapy weekly.
* 24-hour documentation: Progress and therapeutic notes are submitted within 24 hours.
* Safety: strong risk-management protocols; low incident rates; high perceived safety from students and staff.
* One team: Maintains collaborative, win-win relationships with clinical, residential, medical, and academics.
*Key Objectives in Year 1*
* Establish a structured experiential curriculum with clear objectives and debrief guides.
* Develop trust with students and staff
* Establish consistent and well-planned recreation therapy activities weekly
* Increase student engagement in rec therapy
*Core Responsibilities*
* Lead the experiential therapy initiative: strategy, weekly schedule, quality control, data, and continuous improvement.
* Deliver experiential groups (outdoor/challenge, equine-assisted, creative, service/leadership, mindfulness/somatic).
* Facilitate high-quality debriefs that connect experience to neuroscience, skills practice, and daily life.
* Provide individual and family therapy (caseload of a minimum of 2 students); facilitate therapy groups as assigned.
* Complete experiential assessments within 14 days of intake; align plans with treatment goals.
* Document within 24 hours; present monthly outcomes; participate in treatment team.
* Ensure physical and emotional safety: dynamic risk assessment, gear checks, incident reviews, vendor/venue coordination.
* Provide Saturday programming; support campus events aligned to therapeutic goals.
*Qualifications*
* Master's degree in a clinical field (required).
* Licensed or working toward licensure in Utah (LCSW/CSW, LMFT/AMFT, CMHC/ACMHC, etc.).
* Experiential/rec therapy background strongly preferred; CTRS a plus.
* Demonstrated skill in trauma-informed care, experiential processing, and adolescent risk management.
* Experience in residential, wilderness/experiential, or similar settings preferred.
* Able to pass DHS background check, drug test, and TB screening.
*Compensation & Benefits*
* *Salary:* *$60,000 - $87,000/year* (Therapist pay scale)
* *Schedule:* *Tuesday-Saturday, 11:00 AM - 8:00 PM* (on-site, Cedar City, UT)
* Student Loan Reimbursement
* Relocation Assistance
* 401(k) with employer contributions;
* Health, Dental, Vision, HSA;
* Life Insurance;
* Paid Time Off;
* Parental Leave;
* Employee Assistance Program;
* Tuition/Professional Development reimbursement;
* Flexible, supportive clinical environment
*Apply if you're ready* to turn courageous moments into lasting healing-and to lead an experiential program that changes lives through connection, challenge, and growth.
Pay: $60,000.00 - $87,000.00 per year
Benefits:
* 401(k)
* 401(k) matching
* Dental insurance
* Employee assistance program
* Health insurance
* Health savings account
* Life insurance
* Paid time off
* Parental leave
* Professional development assistance
* Referral program
* Relocation assistance
* Tuition reimbursement
* Vision insurance
Work Location: In person