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Starfish Family Services

Everyone working at Starfish knows the company is financially struggling. We've seen high-level management leave, and CEO decides not to replace them.  We've seen coworkers terminated for not meeting productivity expectations...despite it being CMH and our clients having high no-show rates which we cannot predict or control. The agency cancelled the annual employee picnic to save money, which is a major tell of how bad their financial situation is. Now we are losing health benefits as they shift to a model they claim is revolutionary, but it's one used only by small businesses and which shifts the risk of out-of-control premiums and plan administration onto employees. They are going from group coverage to ICHRA, which forces employees to use the poorly-regulated, confusing, and unfairly priced health insurance marketplace to insure themselves with a set amount of money reimbursed to employees each month, the details of which have not been disclosed. It's also undisclosed whether this amount will increase each year as premiums do, or if your salary can predictably decline each year as SFS contribution stagnates as premiums increase. This is a nightmare for employees of an agency that already doesn't give salary increases. 

The family we work with and our coworkers are AMAZING and the only reason to work at Starfish. You will love that aspect of your job. However, you will regret accepting a position at this company vs others that provide actual health benefits to employees. I would not advise anyone to accept a position at Starfish in this risky environment that will get worse as revenue-generating employees leave for jobs at agencies that respect them enough to provide health benefits. 

Starfish is well-regarded in the community for providing support to children and families, but employees are unappreciated. A new CEO started two months ago, and there has yet to be a message from her about her vision for the agency. Many employees would benefit from hope, because we're feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. The pay is at least 15% less than at other agencies, and interns have job offers at other agencies with starting salaries much higher than their Starfish mentors. You have to BEG for a raise when you're making less than you were two years ago due to increases in health insurance costs. There is constant turnover as clinicians complete their limited license and run for better pay. Limited license clinicians are left onsite without a fully-licensed supervisor for support, and often in charge of interns. This agency does not attract or retain talent; many new hires are have been working several years on a limited licenses, making them ineligible for most other agencies. Supervision is hit-or-miss depending on your supervisor. You could have very good support, or you could feel like you're self-teaching while hoping you are not habituating mistakes. There are frequent programming changes without regard to how service users are affected; only SFS bottom line is considered, another point of second-hand embarrassment for the agency that services the community. PTO is generous, which is good when you need a break or so you can work a second job to make up salary deficit. Coworkers are wonderful, and so are the families you work with.  

A typical day at work was very stressful, especially after Covid. Not enough real support for teachers struggling with children's challenging behaviors. Removing a child from the classroom to give said child a treat and return said child to the classroom isn't the kind of support I needed. It only lessened the chaos momentarily. It didn't do anything to stop the behavior.  
Pay was pretty good, but a bit messed up as they cut out seniority and experience and based the tiers solely on education. So, a teacher with over 30 years' experience made the same as a teacher fresh out of college. But if they spoke fluent Spanish, they got an extra dollar per hour.
There wasn't any consistency with management. 
The hardest part of my job was working with someone who didn't share the same values when it came to teaching children. 
The best part of my job was if I needed a day off, I usually got it. Also, working with my children. 

Day are full of some predictable elements, and some unpredictable ones. Typical day included checking on assignments, prioritizing, communicating intentions or issues where needed, and then engaging in field work across many different sites. Many days included minor plumbing issues, changing HVAC filters, finding/replacing file cabinets keys/locks at various sites, setting up tables and chairs for events, transport of files, furniture, or materials between sites, minor electrical, carpentry, or drywall repairs, etc.
Learned a lot about problem solving, the value of communication, and the value of thinking and behaving positively regardless of the task at hand.
Workplace culture is friendly and family oriented, varies with the individual.
Hardest part of the job is keeping track of everything you are working on. A strong sense of organization and planning skills will take you far.
Most enjoyable part of the job is the sense of accomplishment for fixing an issue and putting smiles on peoples faces by improving their work life.

Working with families and children was enjoyable and I felt like I was really making a difference in some of their lives. However, the department I worked in is a mess. You will get no information on what you should or shouldn't be doing and then will get threatened for not doing things "the right way". My boss had no idea what was going on in my classroom, she couldn't even name my students and I would go entire weeks without seeing her once.  But she had no problem observing the room for 30 seconds and then telling me to change everything I was doing.  Some people are able to do whatever they want and others get yelled at for the same exact same things.  Everyone blames each other for every little thing, there is no team work. You constantly feel like you're under attack and you have to defend everything you do.  It's a miserable and stressful work environment.

The outpatient therapy supervisors and behavioral health manager are supportive, validating, and welcoming. The company as a whole is separated into the behavioral health side and the early intervention/early childhood education side. The CEO seems to know nothing about behavioral health and clearly favors early childhood development programs. The salary seems about equal or slightly greater than other community mental health agencies nearby (Guidance Center, Hegira, etc), and the caseloads and productivity expectations aren't as ridiculous. No one working in CMH anywhere is making a cushy salary. There are opportunities to be trained in multiple evidenced-based practices and there are opportunities to advance within the company. I would recommend working in one of Starfish's outpatient clinics if you want to work with the CMH population.

Starfish was at one time one of the better CMH agencies to work for, however over the last 2 years it has become financially unstable and created a workplace culture and set of work place expectations that are unreasonable. Now they have begun to eliminate basic benefits like group health care and replace it with ICHRA which is an allowance to help employees purchase healthcare off the marketplace. They did not forecast this change and it was presented in a hurried manner and described as being good despite leading to less health coverage at a higher cost for employees. They have reduced benefits while simultaneously increasing pressure to perform and blaming the companies financial struggles on poor employee performance. 

A typical day at work (Head Start) is a little challenging but manageable. Working with diverse children and their families has been enjoyable thus far. My co-workers is what makes my job fun and exciting. We work as a team throughout the entire site. The hardest part of my job is getting Disability Aides on board to help limit challenging behaviors in my classroom. Management throughout our company is respectful and good about open communication. One thing I have learned about my job is that you get quality training, and high encouragements of upgrading your levels of education. I enjoy working with children,however, I feel at home and at peace when I enter a medical environment.

The agency has taken steps for improvement, and is better compared to other CMH's in the area.  Your experience will depend on which location/department you work and who your supervisor is.  You are mandated to have x amount of open appointments available in the evening, which makes for late days and a more difficult time with work/life balance. It is a good place to start your career if you are new to the field.  They offer support and trainings.  There are numerous county requirements outside of the agencies control  that create a lot of stress and often takes away from having time to plan.  Things constantly change as well, making it hard to keep track of county requirements. If you do something wrong, it isn't always communicated clearly.

First and foremost, the supervision and guidance I received throughout this internship were exceptional. The team of experienced therapists at 
 Starfish demonstrated an unwavering commitment to my growth and development. Their mentorship, regular feedback, and willingness to answer my questions allowed me to build a solid foundation in the field of therapy.

One of the standout aspects of this internship was the diverse range of clients I had the privilege of working with. From children to adults, and from various cultural backgrounds, I gained exposure to a broad spectrum of clients, each with unique needs and challenges. This diversity not only expanded my therapeutic toolkit but also broadened my understanding of the complexities of human behavior and emotions.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Therapist 1 salary reported	$70,000 per year
Teacher 1 salary reported	$18.50 per hour
School principal 2 salaries reported	$22.75 per hour
Transporter 3 salaries reported	$18.00 per hour
Teaching assistant 3 salaries reported	$14.50 per hour

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