State of Maryland

The Marriage and Family Graduate Professional Counselor is the entry level of professional counseling work, at the Licensed Clinical Marriage and Family Therapist (LCMFT) level, providing counseling services to clients and their families by using assessment, evaluation, intervention, rehabilitation and treatment regimens. Employees in this classification do not supervise.

Employees in this classification receive close supervision from a Marriage and Family Professional Counselor Supervisor or other supervisor approved by the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists. Employees in this classification may be required to work evenings and on weekends. The work is performed in State mental health programs located in Local Health Departments and community-based programs.

The Marriage and Family Professional Counselor and the Marriage and Family Graduate Professional Counselor are differentiated on the basis of licensure and supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees. The Marriage and Family Professional Counselor is the Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor level of work and the employee performs the full-range of duties under general supervision and the Marriage and Family Graduate Professional Counselor is the Licensed Graduate Professional Counselor level of work and the employee learns to perform duties under close supervision.

Learns to provide mental health diagnosis, clinical counseling and case management services to clients and their families;

Learns to advocate for client and family services, collaborate with other disciplines involved in providing treatment and coordinate all treatment activities with services provided to the clients and their family by other resources;

Learns to provide counseling, individually or in group sessions, to clients experiencing temporary difficulties in handling family, vocational, social or other life crises;

Learns to plan, organize, or lead structured programs of counseling, work, study, recreation, or social activities for clients;

Learns to provide group counseling to clients and their families;

Learns to evaluate client progress in implementing the treatment plan and make appropriate changes to ensure progress;

Learns to screen clients and their families to determine the most appropriate initial course of action with regard to treatment;

Learns to develops client treatment plans including problem areas, desired treatment outcomes and the strategies for achieving them;

Learns to make referrals to facilitate the client’s use of available support systems and resources in response to needs identified in clinical evaluation;

Learns to identify and respond to clients in crisis;

Learns to provide family and marriage related education and teach life skills relevant to family structure;

Learns to document client-related information in accordance with accepted principles of medical records management;

Learns to adhere to accepted ethical and behavioral standards of conduct and participate in continuing professional development;

Learns to perform other related duties.

Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins;

Knowledge of the philosophies, practices, policies, and outcomes of the most generally accepted and scientifically supported models of treatment and continuing care for mental health-related problems;

Knowledge of the established diagnostic criteria for mental and emotional disorders, treatment modalities and placement criteria within the continuum of care;

Knowledge of models and theories of treatment problems related to mental health;

Knowledge of ethical and behavioral standards of conduct in the helping relationship;

Knowledge of principles of learning and a variety of educational techniques;

Knowledge of medical and pharmacological resources in the treatment of mental and emotional disorders;

Knowledge of methods of measuring treatment outcome;

Knowledge of federal, State, local and agency policies and procedures governing the delivery of treatment services;

Knowledge of a variety of current and emerging helping strategies for reducing the negative effects of mental and emotional abuse and dependence;

Skill in tailoring helping strategies and treatment modalities to the client’s stage of dependence on negative influences to change or recovery;

Skill in providing treatment services appropriate to the personal and cultural identity of the client;

Skill in working cooperatively with other professionals and agencies;

Skill in making effective presentations to a variety of audiences;

Skill in accurately documenting client-related information;

Skill in adapting clinical practice to the range of treatment settings and modalities in State institutions and facilities;

Skill in applying management skills to client crisis;

Skill in applying setting-specific policies and procedures to clinical practice;

Ability to establish and maintain a therapeutic relationship with clients with mental health disorders and their significant others;

Ability to identify the support systems and resources available to clients and their significant others;

Ability to identify and utilize the role of family, social networks, self-help groups and systems in the treatment and recovery process;

Ability to make constructive therapeutic responses when the client’s behavior is inconsistent with stated recovery goals;

Ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences;

Ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events);

Ability to give full attention to what other people are saying, take time to understand the points being made, ask questions as appropriate, and not interrupt at inappropriate times;

Ability to actively look for ways to help people;

Ability to handle complaints, settle disputes, resolve grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiate with others;

Ability to use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems;

Ability to communicate effectively.

Education: Determined by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists under the requirements for Licensed Clinical Marriage and Family Therapist (LCMFT).

Experience: None.

Note:

1. These requirements are established by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists. The Department of Budget and Management, Office of Personnel Services and Benefits does not have the authority to accept substitutions or equivalents.

1. In accordance with Health Occupations Title 17 and Code of Maryland Regulations 10.58.08, a candidate placed in this classification must be licensed as a Graduate Marriage and Family Professional Counselor by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists.

2. Employees certified as a Licensed Graduate Marriage and Family Professional Counselor (LGMFPC) may practice graduate professional counseling for 2 years under the supervision of an approved supervisor. As required by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists, these employees must possess certification as a Licensed Graduate Marriage and Family Professional Counselor (LGMFPC) by the end of this 2 year period.

3. Candidates appointed to positions in this classification may be assigned duties which require the operation of a motor vehicle. Employees assigned such duties will be required to possess a motor vehicle operator's license valid in the State of Maryland.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Professional Service classification in the State Personnel Management System. All positions in this classification are Professional Service positions. Some positions in Professional Service classifications may be designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is assigned to Bargaining Unit E, Health Care Professionals classes. As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining. Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series. NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance levels in a classification series. In order to be noncompetitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class as defined in the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of supervision defined in the class specification, and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification.

Employees in this classification are eligible to receive overtime compensation. An employee who works more than the normal workweek is entitled to be compensated for that overtime as provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 8-305.