clinician

mental health technician

counselor

nurse practitioner

case manager

Vista Hill Foundation

When I first started working at Vista Hill, everyone seemed welcoming, supportive, and trustworthy. I genuinely believed I had found a great place to work. Unfortunately, my overall experience turned out to be very different. As someone working in a program contracted through the County of San Diego and the Grossmont School District to serve students with disabilities, I expected a workplace built on professionalism, communication, fairness, and respect. In my experience, those expectations were not consistently met. One of the biggest challenges I observed was the high turnover among Behavioral Intervention Specialists. During my time there, many employees left or were terminated, making it difficult to maintain consistency for both staff and the students we served. Because these students benefit from stable relationships and routines, frequent staffing changes can have a significant impact on the quality and continuity of services. I also felt that workplace decisions were not always handled consistently. At times, it appeared that personal relationships influenced how concerns were addressed, and employees with similar situations did not always receive the same treatment. When concerns were raised, I often felt they were not fully acknowledged or resolved, which made it difficult to feel comfortable speaking up. Communication was another area that I believe could be improved. There were times when expectations, disciplinary decisions, or changes affecting employees were not clearly communicated. This created confusion and uncertainty within the workplace.
Although the organization promotes values such as dignity, inclusion, and respect, my personal experience did not always reflect those values. I did not always feel supported when raising workplace concerns, and I believe there are opportunities to strengthen transparency, accountability, and consistency across leadership and Human Resources. Despite these challenges, the most rewarding part of the job was working with the students. Building meaningful relationships with them, supporting their growth, and seeing the positive impact of the work made the position worthwhile. I also had the opportunity to work alongside several dedicated coworkers who genuinely cared about the students and supported one another. I hope Vista Hill continues to evaluate its workplace culture, communication, and leadership practices. Creating an environment where employees feel heard, respected, and supported ultimately benefits both staff and the students who rely on consistent, quality care.

The Directors will have their "favorites" and take their word over anything.  I was deeply misunderstood and also given wrong information by co-workers.  If I tried to explain my thought process I was pegged as being "resistant to feedback" and having "defensive explanations" despite me making changes after I was given correct information.  I was shocked that I was frowned upon for trying to communicate my side of the story.  I thought communication is key in any unfortunate situation and a good leader would know there needs to be communication expressed from both sides, not just one.  I was twice handed a paper which included a plethora of accusations and was told you did this and that rather than asking me if I actually did something or if there could have been a misunderstanding. 
Why were these various issues not brought to my attention as it happened so I can address it rather than collect an arsenal and drop a bomb on me? 
I've come to the realization that if this place wants you out, they'll find any and every excuse to get you out.  I've seen some bad stuff from people that have been employees here for years and how they get away with things is beyond me.  Although this place underpays way lower than other non-profits, they offer free healthcare, dental, vision, life insurance, and 401(a) so it does help make up for the extremely low pay.  I loved my job at Vista Hill and even some of my co-workers but once you are set up to fail from a co-worker(s) and/or Director that doesn't like you, you have no fighting chance and will definitely get the boot.  My job before this one I was at for 15 years and I was loved by both my boss and co-workers and was always praised for good work so working here was like the Twilight Zone.

At first, working here was a positive experience. I genuinely enjoyed working with the students and was excited to grow in my new role. Unfortunately, my experience became increasingly negative over time.

Most of the staff are friendly, supportive, and willing to help new employees learn. However, despite the positive work culture among many staff members, the expectations placed on aides can be overwhelming given the level of pay. Employees are often expected to manage situations that can become physically unsafe, and in my experience, that was especially difficult when I did not receive adequate support from the classroom teacher.

My experience with the second teacher I was assigned to was particularly challenging. I did not feel that a safe working environment was maintained, as there were times when behavioral incidents were not appropriately supported, leaving me to manage situations that put me at risk of being injured. I accepted this position because I believed in the mission and wanted to make a positive difference in the lives of the students—not because I expected to face preventable safety concerns.

The HR team, front office staff, and many of my coworkers were kind, welcoming, and helpful throughout my employment. My concerns were specifically with my experience under my second teacher and with the director, whom I felt did not consistently model the expectations that were communicated to staff. Overall, while there are many caring people at this organization, my experience ultimately did not provide the safe and supportive work environment I had hoped for.


Personally , I would recommend you to stay away, everything about this job screams toxicity. There is no work , life balance. If you work as a clinician trying to earn your hours , your not supported through supervision, you are left on your own to fight off the wolves. Families and clients are complex dynamics , the socio economic status plays into their family structure dynamic. If you are not Spanish speaking , it is hard to communicate with the families which you need to so you can collect your family hours. 

It is also a lot of paper work associated with intakes , assessments, and discharges. Vista Hill does not pay you enough for the amount of work that you need to do, that is not even stated in their work description. You will not be properly trained , again , trying to stay afloat is very hard, they set you up to drown. 

Their is no place to move up it is based on favoritism, if they like you they will keep you. If they don’t , they will fire you without any warning. It is an at will agency , and they will tell you “it’s just not working out “. Management does not investigate, it is truly about what others say without any follow through. 

Terrible work environment, very toxic. To much work , very little pay. It is hard to request time off , and when you do , you get punished for it or fired. This place is not worth your mental health, trust me , stay away. 

•	Provide social and emotional support one on one and group activities
•	Help children to learn new vocabulary and communicate.
•	Assist the infant/toddler teacher and preschool teachers in carrying out goals, policies, and activities designed to implement educational objectives and performance standards. 
•	 Assist with supervision of children at all times in classroom, restroom, and on playground. 
•	Assist in an equal share of joint housekeeping, class preparation, ordered arrangement, appearance, decor, and learning environment of the classroom in cooperation with other staff. 
•	Assist the infant/toddler teacher with documentation of daily needs and service plans.) 
•	Implement activities to develop and improve concentration, fine and motor skills. 
•	Assist care giving routines and implementation of health plans. 
•	Attend staff meetings and in-service training. 
•	Contribute to a healthy and successful nutrition program by eating center prepared meals with the children. 
•	Other duties as assigned.

What is the best part of working at the company?
They care for their employees at least in the program that I'm working. Everyone is nice and respectful to each other. Manager is helpful and likes to motivate her employees to better ourselves always with a positive energy.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
I don't find anything stressful so far about the company.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Everyone is welcome, we are all equally respected , positive energy positive vibes, teamwork, and keep informed keep active, with a willingness to help at all times.


What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Most of the days are good days, we want to see our coworkers and boss because we care for each other as a 2nd family.

My specific program was not good and just did not fit what I want/need for my workplace. Program manager did not practice or encourage or model self care -- group supervision was spent with rehashing her stressful time that week managing the district and county's needs instead of checking in with clinicians about their weeks at their schools. PM also spent an average of 3-4 months to sign and return one single BBS weekly summary of hours experience sheets, which was very, very exasperating for someone trying to get licensed who is also working in a position providing very minimal experience hours. 

Overall, leaves a bad taste in my mouth for this company, but I know the company and other programs work wonders for other people.

The Program Director at the Bridges North Central location is unprofessional and short tempered towards the staff. Counselors can’t keep up with her indecisive weekly staff meetings about procedures changing and she lets staff know she will fire an employee if they make mistakes completing paperwork. I was waiting for the day I was fired to come because she let me know every time I spoke to her that  which is rarely because she makes it very clear asking her anything for clarity has annoyed her, and if you want to have a good day at work you would avoid her. Try to work at any other of there locations because once she lets you go, you can no longer work within the organization.

A great place to start and a good way to accumulate your hours, quickly. However, not a great place to stay for too long. I feel that management pushes you to cross your Ts and dot your Is instead of creating lasting change for clients. As a clinician, my main focus has always been the client and what they need, but management never seemed to supportive of this. Supervisors have not great, and I do not feel that Vista Hill was invested in me growing as a therapist. Benefits are good, hours are flexible, pay is incredibly low and they give very small, minimal increases. 

Program is not effective. Most referrals come from high schools for kids who get caught smoking pot on campus. Kids are often rude and disrespectful to group leaders and staff. When kids are disrespectful you will get no support from management. In fact, on a number of occasions they blamed situations on staff. Interviews are also not transparent. They often don’t tell you that you are also responsible for driving the kids home in a company vehicle. If you value your sanity, please don’t work here. There is nothing redeeming about the work or the people of the program. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Clinician 6 salaries reported	$34.25 per hour
Mental health technician 4 salaries reported	$34.38 per hour
Counselor 2 salaries reported	$24.75 per hour
Nurse practitioner 4 salaries reported	$66.00 per hour
Case manager 7 salaries reported	$23.96 per hour

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