residential counselor

therapist

registered nurse

licensed practical nurse

teacher

Mountain Youth Academy

i’ll start off with the good, because not everything about this job was awful. First and foremost, the pay is awesome. It’s the biggest reason I started working there. It’s a base pay of $19; second shift has a five dollar incentive, and third shift has a two dollar incentive, no incentive for first shift. They have an attendance incentive of two dollars which you earn if you don’t call out for two months; once you do, it takes 4 months to earn it back (50€ every month). Some of the kids genuinely are amazing, they’re so bright and you will genuinely enjoy working with them. 
but that’s genuinely the only upside to this job.

The week long training they give you at the start is honestly a joke. Most of the things they tell you aren’t how the job actually works. A lot of people break the rules there, and if you don’t, it’s harder to build up rapport with the kids. (ex: you’re not allowed to bring food or gifts in for them, but staff do, usually as an incentive for them to stop acting up.)
A lot of the kids here are behavioral, even though it’s a trauma facility. There’s virtually no consequences for any of their actions, and the kids know this. it creates room for very dangerous situations for the staff to occur, and they do.
Mandations were the biggest reason i left. You are assigned 5 shifts a week, two days off. you also have a 6th shift, which is basically another shift that you have to work if they don’t have enough staff. The entire time I worked there, I think there was only once I didn’t have to work my sixth shift. You can either choose to assign your sixth shift on one of your days off, or before/after a scheduled shift (ex: you work 1st and your sixth shift is 2nd, so you’d work 7am-11:30pm). On top of that, you can get mandated anywhere from 1-3 times a week. 
If you have a family or virtually any life outside of work, I would not work here. They will work you until you genuinely cannot take it anymore. For a facility that centers around mental health and working around children that have been through immense trauma, I don’t know why they think this is appropriate. Staff are so tired and mentally drained. 

Everyone has a different experience. Mine has been that the work is extremely rewarding. Getting to know the kids and developing relationships with them is extremely meaningful. This is why I have worked here for as long as I have. 

On another note, the company is extremely understaffed. You will work until you are burnt out every single week if you are full-time. You will possibly be mandated with only a three hour warning, meaning you may have to stay for an entire other shift or over night. If you call out you will get points, which are bad. The more points you have the more you will be mandated. The system is brutal. It is in need of some serious re-adjustment, but it is unlikely that this will ever happen. 

The coworkers are very friendly and it will feel like a family if you work here long enough. However, it is very hard to reach the higher ups, it is rare that your hard work will be recognized by them. But, if you put in the work, the kids will notice. 

You will have a radio and an ear piece to communicate with others, which I thought was pretty cool. It can be a very stressful environment. These kids have a lot of trauma. They are also kids, so they are very blunt and will speak their mind. You have to have a hard back-bone, or they will tear you apart. Gain their respect by not being rude and barking orders at them. Be respectful to them and they will be respectful back, You are entering into their home, not yours. 

Good Luck

A typical day at work was both challenging and rewarding, focused on supporting youth through structure, care, and encouragement. I learned patience, communication, and crisis management skills that helped me grow personally and professionally. Management was supportive and valued teamwork, providing guidance when needed. The workplace culture was centered on compassion, respect, and collaboration among staff. The hardest part of the job was seeing youth struggle emotionally, but the most enjoyable part was witnessing their progress and knowing I made a difference in their lives.

Typical day at MYA, is incredibly stressful. Many times you will be pushed to the point of breaking because of how unsafe and tough this job is. Management will make choices on your behalf without your knowledge. Example was once I had to go the hospital I was scheduled to work a double that day. Obviously BEING AT THE HOSPITAL FOR AN INJURY, I was not going to make it happen. So instead of just going on they without my consent changed my schedule to work another double the very next day. The culture is difficult, the people you will work with are either amazing individuals or there for a paycheck. Hardest part of the job is not the kids, or the stressful moments. It's the STRESS from higher ups that actually makes the job horrible. The most enjoyable part of the job, is actually making a difference in children's lives. It doesn't happen often because your made to say something else . But it does happen. The pay is EXTREMELY GOOD. but if you don't devote your life to MYA you will be last for any promotion and you will not be respected.

The teaching team was great to work with. We were able to work in a co-operative venue on many difficult subjects with ease. The team always had the students well being at heart. I learned to have fun and make some difficult discussions at the same time.
The management of the eduction department was not ideal but we made the most of what we had to work with. We did what was asked by working together and presenting a united well organized unit.The hardest part of our job was not to take the drama of the work place home. Some of the students had very difficult problems and it was hard not to let these problems become part of ones own.The most enjoyable part of the job was when our students achieved their goals. To watch their faces as they was they were able to do what we had told them along they could do. No joy is so great as to watch others reach for a goal thought unattainable only for it to be attained. Also to work with a group of people you love and admire.

Helping the kids was so rewarding,  but the unrealistic expectations asked from upper management and disregard for one's health was unmanageable.  

I would not change my working there. I was able to positively impact the lives of so many kids and became very strong mentally after being there, but that was only after months of therapy to heal from my work there. 

The patients could often be violent.  I was bitten,  spit on, punched, kicked, etc. I was expected to work while I had the flu. I also watched as staff were written up for missing work due to major illness and deaths within their own families. 

As much as the work there is needed I cannot support working for them until a major change occurs with the management structure in getting ones that are truly there for the effective treatment of kids as opposed to the money they could accrue

It is a great work environment and has a wonderful mission. I enjoy working here. This is not your normal workplace. MYA is a trauma therapy hospital; we treat children who have experienced major trauma in life. So yes, they can have behavior issues, but our care is based on the trauma that has happened to them, and we are treating the trauma they have experienced. Because we are a 24/7 environment and have mandatory staffing minimums staff are sometimes mandated to stay over. MYA does a good job of trying to minimize those instances, but they cannot always foresee when other staff will call off/out. I would highly recommend working at MYA if you understand what your role is at MYA. Senior Leadership is very open and accessible to all staff.

Working with the students was a joy. 
Working with the staff and faculty was difficult because the high school level MHAs and supervisors were so narrow minded and afraid their jobs would be taken away. Their low self esteem and quick to blame attitude was distributed in a negative way over to the behavior of the at-risk students. 
Consistency was never apparent. 
Farm animals were running around the classroom and biting the children.
Educating the students was not a priority though the students were required to meet the TN Core Standards of education while attending. 
The facility has a fantastic mental health facility but the educational department is a joke. 
The Mental Health Assistance and the supervisors over the students is a nighmare!

Staff is friendly, hard working and usually excited, young people looking to help children with needs. Unfortunately, the structure of the facility from the top does not support that. For example, the head of the school is not called a president, but a CEO. It is a money first before kids needs company. Children do not receive good meals, and if you criticize the food it is framed as you are criticizing the workers and not the company for not providing sufficient funds for additional staff and nutritious meals. The parent company is the same company that runs some of the most egregious for-profit prisons in the country. You CAN make an impact on kid's lives here, but know you will be working entirely against the system to do so.

The kids are great,  they are troubled.  But that are not the worst part of this job at all.  The worst part is administration.  To be so focused on mental health they truly don't have any consideration for employee mental health.  They have no preparation in the work life for burn out.  They will over work you until you can't take it anymore and quit. They say mandation (working a 16 hour shift instead of 8 hours) happens sometimes.  No,  it usually happens.  Be prepared. You can't make doctors appointments or get the oil changed in your car because they keep you for the following shift. There is no rotation of the people being kept.  58+ hours a week.  

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Residential counselor 13 salaries reported	$20.38 per hour
Therapist 11 salaries reported	$62,955 per year
Registered nurse 5 salaries reported	$37.00 per hour
Licensed practical nurse 5 salaries reported	$27.00 per hour
Teacher 3 salaries reported	$59,167 per year

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