residential staff

cook

behavior technician

mental health therapist

teacher

Gibault Childrens Services

I've heard a lot of stories about this place before I worked here. None of them were good and I've seen things firsthand now. 

The class you take for a week is not nearly enough to prepare you for what you actually face. They try and make things seem better than they actually are. None of what they teach you is used or useful in the actual field because the kids essentially run the dorm because they don't listen to new staff (which is basically all gibault has aside from a few tenured managers) and staff who have been there for longer than a few months laugh at you with the kids because they don't want the kids to come at them. So expect no actual support from coworkers.

 They say you'll be making overtime, around 50 hours a week, but everyone I've met usually works 60-70+ hours a week. The weekly schedule changes often so there's no way to plan your life around work, if you somehow manage to get a day off. Shifts can last almost 24 hours at times. You're regularly schedule doubles and in dorms the managers know you won't fit or work well in. There are NO breaks. 

Overnight staff is alone in main campus dorms so you can't use the bathroom unless you call security to take your place. 

Free food is provided, however this is public school type food and you're not allowed to bring in your own food because it might make the kids upset. So you have to eat the school food or go hungry. 

The hourly pay is okay for the area, but not nearly enough for the stress the job causes. One of the security guys (age 27-32) had a work stress related stroke because of this job and they had him back at work not long after. 

The dorms have TOO MANY kids for the amount of staff, which makes it difficult and even impossible to control the environment. Usually the ratio is 2:12.

Overall, this job is only good short term if you're trying to make a quick buck while you look for a better job. It's hard to hold onto the passion for helping kids with this job. Especially when you're set up for failure.

Typical day at Gibault for me personally consisted of a 14 hour day, within a clinical setting. I would arrive to campus at 5:45 am, to open the clinic by myself. Medication was sorted and then I performed rounds to all 12 living units, to pass out medication to over 100 clients. I was responsible for, the clinic which could entitle receiving medication from the pharmacy, logging in medications, sorting of medications, packing medications for students to leave on furlough, handling interaction between multiple clients and general physician, psychologist and psychiatrist. I completed initial medical assessments of new clients, which consisted of vitals and logging in medication.  I learned numerous skills, such as the ability to communicate with a variety of people in diverse settings, empathy, the ability to deescalate juveniles in a crisis situation and the art of self-monitor to allow balancing my work responsibilities within the a chaotic work environment .The most important thing I obtained through my work experience at Gibault would be the realization of what I want to obtain my bachelor degree in, psychology. Gibault had numerous members of management, but my immediate manger over the clinic made my job enjoyable. She worked side by side her employees, providing structure, enthusiasm and support. She was very knowledgeable of procedure and state regulations, always being patient when questions were asked. The clinic was a small subunit at Gibault, so I only had limited close exposure with two other employees and my supervisor. I did interact with numerous other employees briefly within other living units. I feel as though the interactions where cordial and professional. The most difficult part of the job was the discipline of the clients. The most enjoyable aspect of the job was feeling as if I helped someone and working with the children. They brought an unpredictable element to my day, I feel like no two days where the same.

A typical day at work typically starts with relieving whoever just got done working a 14+ hour shift so that you can start your 14+ hour shift. The kids at Gibault don't receive the discipline everyone claims they do so children get to run around nearly 24/7 and do whatever they want as long as they don't get violent with another client or staff. So essentially your day is filled with trying to find ways to give kids consequences for bad behaviors that isn't going to result in them behaving worse and attempting to run away or threaten to commit suicide. 
The management there is halfway great but also halfway awful. People get fired for performing the restraints that they were taught to do because a department that isn't even apart of Gibault considered it abuse. You have management getting upset that you restrained and the other half upset you didn't restrain sooner. The CEO feels like they are constantly down your neck and establishing some super high expectations that can't be met because you can't stop a kid from doing 90% of the things they are at Gibault for to begin with.
The hardest part of the job is the fact that nobody at Gibault is ever satisfied with what you do there because everybody is dealing with the same amount of ridiculousness. 
If Gibault actually let the kids see therapeutic treatment they are there for more often and would actually have suitable consequences for kids violent behaviors (and I am talking kids 11-17) then the job would be amazing! 
No matter what you do at Gibault, you typically always end the shift feeling unsuccessful and like could be fired at any point.

Loved the job. Loved the kids. The job itself wasn’t hard. The requirements weren’t hard. The management was extremely toxic. They overscheduled and overworked you so hard. I am 21 and worked an average of 69 hours a week….. management is constantly telling you not to do things, and will turn around and do them right in your face. Management is rude and treats you just like the children. HR says you can switch RSMs if you have any issues. When you bring your issues to HR you’re ignored. You’re just overworked and ignored at gibault in terre haute. That’s why the turnover rate is so high. Stop scheduling mandatory overtime. That should be the managers responsibility. Not the employees responsibility. It’s ridiculous. No one should be forced into 70 hours a week and then treated like a child with behavioral issues on top of that. They also don’t listen to you when you say you need certain days off. I go to therapy and they never give me my days off that i need. I value myself and my mental health more than i value my job. So i left. It is not worth it. The job was making me so sick and depressed it’s ridiculous 

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part about working for this company is that you can make a difference in a child's life and be someone that truly helps them

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part about working at that company is that there is a huge lack of support and you are very overworked with what seems like a lack of care at all

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Depending on the department you work in the environment and culture can be good with a good leader or really bad with immature leaders

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day for me while I was there was a 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. shift I was a teacher I had to lesson plan and teach for grades 7th through 12th all different ages and grades and I was expected to teach every subject

Besides the fact that the staff get attacked in the regular and management not caring about staff wellbeing it was an okay place to work I guess. They do not protect the staff members is no way shape or form at that place and that it why I left. Kids would attack staff and beat staff bloody and management did nothing about it. But the second a staff member did anything non-harming to a kid to protect themselves they were fired. They staff also is forced to work 60+ hours and they are not flexible with schedules at all! They make you work whatever schedule they give you regardless of request offs or availability. If you don’t work the shift you get points against you with I think is very unfair. I had one day out of the week I could never work due to college and I was scheduled for that day every week because the supervisor supposedly didn’t have anyone to work it. It was a lie.

I got hired on at $9.50/hr and left at $11.50 as base pay, but $13.50 for Covid compensation. That is not nearly enough for the stress this job gives you. The shifts are way too long; expect to work multiple 15-16 hour shifts a week, with no break. I was hired on at part-time, working 40+ hours a week, and working 50-60+ hours as full time. While other staff I knew worked 70+ hours a week. I believe that the staff hired need to have stricter requirements. As someone who was working toward a psychology degree at the time of hire, I had way more experience talking with clients than most of my co-workers. I witnessed staff speaking to clients unprofessionally and non therapeutic. Gibault seems to hire anyone who can pass a background check, regardless of their qualifications for the job.

The best part of the job is seeing the kids change their life around, and to be a part of that is very rewarding. Although, this is another job where "the better the employee you are, the more they push you out the door". Gibault has proven that they care more about the money than they do for the kids. This job would be perfect for someone that just wants a paycheck, sadly. You will get attached to these kids, you are even told to atleast build a rapport with them. But once you start putting in a bunch of effort with them, you will find yourself in HR more often than not. If helping kids succeed is something you are passionate about, this is not the job for you.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Team support and great training

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Depends on the situation, each day it is good to have a positive mental attitude. This can avoid being stressed over situations that cause stress.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Team work and trained staff that cares about being the best they can be. HR is a good support system. CEO great at being hands on to assure a safe environment.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Buisy and rewarding, it feels good once the clients feel they can depend on you for being there  for them.

The turnover rate is out of control due to the kids staying there , they know that you can't physically touch them unless it's absolutely necessary and even then it's only by the company standards, kids will punch,bite,spit, on you,  call you out of your name etc. staff constantly call off due to the nature of the facility and behavior of the kids so if you're at work you will be mandated to stay mind you this is a 24/7 facility communication is a non factor, the on call supervisors won't answer their phones, you can't plan for anything except your scheduled days off due to possible mandation but if you're looking for a lot of OT and A challenge go for it

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Residential staff 5 salaries reported	$60,000 per year
Cook 3 salaries reported	$14.17 per hour
Behavior technician 5 salaries reported	$17.00 per hour
Mental health therapist 2 salaries reported	$60,000 per year
Teacher 1 salary reported	$41,000 per year

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