therapist

youth specialist

mental health technician

crisis response specialist

clinical supervisor

Applewood Centers

A typical day at work is that it is never typical. Every day is different. There is always plenty of paperwork to do and it is never boring. The day flies by. I have to bring home back with me though so it is hard. However I love the families I work with and when the kids I work with make huge progress. I have learned alot about mental health assessments, writing ISP's and have had first hand social work case management experience before graduation. I could not have asked for better experience prior to graduating. I have also made some great friends with my coworkers even though we could go a week without seeing each other. THe hardest part of my job is not getting credit for driving around, not knowing when I will eat lunch everyday,dealing with difficult parents as well as hard to reach kids and the never ending paperwork. THe most enjoyable part of my job is the positive impact I get to make on the families and the kids I work with as well as the progress I see them make over the course of a year. I have also learned a lot about myself in the process, a lot about mental health and a lot about interventions to do in relation to those mental health disorders. I have also learned a lot about the systems involved such as juvenile court, children and family services, the educational aspect of a childs life, IEP's, probation as well as accessing community resources.

This is a great job to help you get your foot in the door in the mental health field. The work is rewarding, coworkers are supportive, and you gain a lot of experience in many areas. However, you will be incredibly overworked and underpaid. Although caseloads in this position are relatively low, you are expected to wear multiple hats (therapist, case manager, intake specialist, etc.) and accomplish difficult tasks in a very short period of time. For example, all notes are due within 24 hours, which can be very difficult to keep up with. A significant amount of the paperwork is not on a computer and has to be handwritten on paper, which makes it much harder to complete work quickly. Additionally, while you get a lot of PTO, management is VERY strict about taking sick time. Ever since the beginning of COVID, management's mentality is, "if you don't have COVID, you need to come in or you're screwing over the team." People have been guilted into coming into work even if they have severe migraines, stomach flus, sinus infections, and many other illnesses. Overall, the job is great but management doesn't take care of their employees.

As a TBS worker, the lorain Applewood office was highly supportive. I came into this position knowing nothing of treatment plans, doing notes, or interacting with kids on this level. The experience I received, the support I got, and the overall joy and happiness working this position was immense.

The massive downside was caseload and productivity. I ended up having to leave the position due to COVID issues making my caseload small and my hours and productivity dwindling so badly I couldn't pay bills. There is a high expectation for productivity and sometimes you could have upwards to 30-40 clients to manage. 

Despite this, my supervisor had been extremely thoughtful, supportive, and considerate when working with me on different ideas to try and increase this. I miss this position, the environment, and the support that came with it.

A typical day at Applewood consisted of reviewing logs to see what occurred during the previous shifts, how youth were disciplined, maintenance issues,etc. Their was a culture there that felt like shut up and do your job. Any issues that were raised by co workers to management often were overlooked depending on who it concerned. Management stood up for each other and had no accountability. If your were not apart of "the clique" then you were a  problem often making you feel isolated. The best part was the line staff and how they actually supported the youth and cared about what happened to them. The management hear needs an overhaul they are truly the reason why this place has such a high turnover.

Clients wake at 7:30a and go to bed at 8:30p. Clients must be under constant supervision from staff. Most employees are enjoyable to work with, if for nothing more than sharing mutual distaste in the job. Fights between clients are not uncommon, and occasionally do result in police being brought in site. Staff are responsible for driving clients to/from all medical appointments. 

Overtime is not mandatory, but is frequently requested to fill gaps in schedule. Will be trained in and expected to use restraining procedures to subdue aggressive clients.

Mandatory that you work at least Saturday or Sunday each week. Set scheduled 2 days off, not guaranteed to be consecutive. Required to work holidays if they fall on your scheduled work days. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Making a difference in the lives of troubled youths.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The restraints, every adult in the facility is required to assists with restraints. The restraints are very dangerous to everyone involved. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
There are pleasant times, moments where you might feel like you’ve made a positive impact. The pleasant moments can change within a blink of an eye such as fights between the youths, youths assaulting staff, and or planning riots. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The kids must be monitored 24 hr daily, there’s no time to have a moment to regroup. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner with the youths until your shift is over.

Working at Applewood was an absolute honor,  serving the youth of Lorain County was one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. Unfortunately, the environment began to change when new management was established. Leadership came in with the wrong intent, posturing themselves as superior rather than collaborative, and demonstrating little ability to connect with the staff or the community we served. It became clear that the focus shifted from supporting those doing the work to making their roles unnecessarily difficult.

Despite that, the mission and the youth themselves made every day worthwhile. The work was meaningful, the impact was real, and I’ll always be grateful for the opportunity to make a difference in their lives. 

Severely understaffed, organizational culture is terrible. Leadership is unhelpful, no one listens to staff concerns or display any compassion for the well-being of treatment specialists. Often it feels like it’s you and your fellow TS against the world. Everyone gossips, it’s incredibly clique like, communication is terrible and no one ever seems to know what is going on. Most of the time it is a dangerous environment and you risk getting hurt. This is good  experience and if you can make it here you can do anything. And you don’t get paid NEARLY as much as you should. 

A typical work day for Applewood would consist having a lot of interaction with kids from different backgrounds. You could be doing anything from playing cards, playing catch, going to groups, and or going to school with them, while teaching them important and meaningful life lessons in the process. While working here, you can expect to have co-workers that that are patient, kind, and there for the best interests of the kids.From the time I was there this program seemed to be growing for the better every day. For me the most enjoyable part of the job was making an impact on a young kids life.

This place was a piece of work. I had two amazing supervisors but once they left, the job became impossible. Supervisiors harrased staff while playing favorites. If you weren’t a favorite, you were miserable and ignored. Management is terrible. Literally met her one time and hadn’t seen her since. The kids beat on you and they will physically and verbally assault you. If you want to work at a job like this making $12.00 an hour while having a required bachelors degree, go for it. You’ll regret it; i promise.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Therapist 53 salaries reported	$54,030 per year
Youth specialist 11 salaries reported	$19.30 per hour
Mental health technician 12 salaries reported	$22.92 per hour
Crisis response specialist 9 salaries reported	$60,000 per year
Clinical supervisor 7 salaries reported	$64,429 per year

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