BHRS Peer Support Counselor II, Bilingual Required (English/Spanish)

ABOUT US

At the County of Marin, our employees overwhelmingly report feeling their work is meaningful, they like the work they do, and they are proud to tell people “I work for the County of Marin.” Discover more about us, our values and our organizational culture on the Department of Human Resources website . Read on to find out more about this opportunity.

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES :

At Health & Human Services, we serve our community through the values of support, unity, trust and excellence with one common goal: to promote and protect the health, well-being, safety and self-sufficiency of all in Marin. Join our team of bright, committed, and energetic people who also want to make an impact through public service.

ABOUT THE POSITION

There is currently one (1) Full-Time, Regular-Hire Peer Support Counselor II (Bilingual-Required) position available within the Mobile Crisis Continuum (MCC) under the county’s Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Division (BHRS). The MCC unit encompasses the Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) and the Crisis Aftercare Team (CAT). These two teams work closely together with an understanding and expectation to cross-train and provide coverage as needed.

The MCRT program focuses on field-based acute crisis de-escalation and intervention and the CAT program focus is on short-term, intensive case management and behavioral health linkage for clients at risk of and/or coming out of a behavioral health crisis. The program provides mental health treatment services to Marin Medi-Cal residents (all ages) diagnosed with moderate to severe mental illness.

The Peer II role will be part of a multidisciplinary team which aims to reduce the gaps in service for individuals in crisis situations struggling with persistent and severe mental illnesses and/or co-occurring substance use disorders The Peer reports to the Unit Supervisors assigned to the MCC teams under the Crisis and Justice-Involved Services Division. The Peers are field/community-based and responsive to individuals presenting with behavioral health and substance-related crisis across Marin County.

Below are overall descriptions of the two Mobile Crisis Continuum Teams-

MCRT: MCRT is a 24/7/365 service. This role will be part of a team of two providing field-based interventions responding to acute behavioral health crises. During the interventions, the Peer provides significant help to their colleagues and the potential client by fostering communication between the two by using their expertise, knowledge, and lived experience (having experienced their own behavioral health/recovery directly or by supporting program participants through behavioral health/recovery) to help establish trust between the team and the client. When needed, duties as a Peer Support Counselor also include answering and logging calls for service utilizing a standardized intake screening tool and providing consultation and recommendations as well as information and education within scope of practice. All calls for service are documented in the County’s designated Electronic Health Record (EHR)- SmartCare. All MCRT roles require a degree of initiative and self-starting as well as the ability to collaborate with team members and community-based organizations including schools, hospitals, law enforcement, private providers, and BHRS Systems of Care. Peer Counselors are also responsible for assisting with case follow-up but initiating follow-up calls and providing emotional support and/or partnering with a clinician to complete a field-based follow-up with the client. The position is shift-based including evenings, weekends and holidays.

CAT: Serves as a safety net service, which providers short-term intensive assessments, case management and linkage for clients experiencing acute behavioral health challenges and who are not currently linked with the appropriate level of treatment and support. CAT Peer Support Counselors are partnered with a Crisis Specialist/Clinician in every case and work in tandem to best support and meet the needs of each client. The clinician is lead on each case with the Peer Counselor's primary function as providing self-help and emotional support to compliment the work of the assigned clinician. The Peer provides significant help to their colleagues and the potential client by fostering communication between the two by using their expertise, knowledge, and lived experience (having experienced their own behavioral health/recovery directly or by supporting program participants through behavioral health/recovery) to help establish trust between the team and the client. The clinician and Peer Support Counselor work to identify barriers to connection and support the clients in overcoming those barriers. CAT is also responsible for developing an in-depth understanding of available resources in the county and utilize warm hand-offs to ensure continuity of care. This is a voluntary service and sometimes requires extended outreach and engagement.

Peer Counselors on either team are responsible for timely, comprehensive documentation of any and al client/collateral contact in the county’s designated electronic health records. Peers will utilize various documentation templates created by the state or by the program supervisors to ensure standardization and standards of care are met. Peer documentation are co-signed by management and reviewed on a regular, ongoing basis.

If you are invited to participate in round 1 of interviews, they are scheduled the week of May 25, 2026.

If you are invited to participate in round 2 of interviews, they are scheduled the week of June 1, 2026.

Shift Hours:

CAT

Monday - Friday 10am-6pm with a 30-minute lunch

MCRT

Sunday - Wednesday 7am - 3pm with a 30-minute lunch

Wednesday - Saturday 2pm - 10pm with a 30-minute lunch

Depending on the assigned shift, you may receive one of the differentials below:

• PM/evening shift = 7.5%
• NOC/overnight shift = 15%
• Weekend shift = 10%
• Weekend PM/evening shift = 17.5%
• Weekend NOC/Overnight shift = 25%

You must work a minimum of four (4) hours within the defined shift to qualify for the shift differential (consecutively, not concurrently)

*All scheduled are subject to change based on programmatic and community needs.

Bilingual Testing/Certification: The successful candidate must possess bilingual skills and must demonstrate proficiency in both Spanish and English prior to appointment. A bilingual proficiency exam will be administered to ensure the candidates possess the appropriate skill level to meet the requirements.

ABOUT YOU

Our Highly Qualified Candidate

The overall purpose of the Peer Support Counselor position is to incorporate peer input, expertise, knowledge, and lived experience (having experienced behavioral health/recovery directly or by supporting a family member through behavioral health/recovery) and to support client and their system of support by contributing to their individual functioning and connecting them to BHRS programs and other community resources as indicated.
Our highly qualified candidate will be someone who has experience working with clients experiencing severe and persistent mental health challenges across all ages in crisis or emergent situations. The candidate will be able to work well with a small team and demonstrate effective communication, reliability and consistency in performance and efficient time management. The candidate will be able to organize their work effectively, as well as be able to document complex client information quickly, accurately, and concisely, and utilize this information to rapidly develop a treatment plan or safety plan alongside their clinician partner. The ideal candidate can provide a welcoming environment to even the most distraught client with the ability to work with and relay information to a wide range of clients, families, and other professionals. In addition, the ideal candidate will have experience in de-escalating people in high-stress and/or high anxiety situations to maintain the safety of clients and staff.

QUALIFICATIONS
KNOWLEDGE OF

• Needs and difficulties faced by diverse consumers, caregivers, and families of consumers of services.
• Public and/or private agency services available for families, children and adults for assigned area.
• Self-help and consumer oriented treatment models.
• Methods to effectively communicate with consumers, family/caregivers, the community and multidisciplinary teams.

ABILITY TO

• Understand the fundamentals of the assigned area and effectively work within the system.
• Effectively represent and advocate for the consumer perspective within the community and the system in the assigned area.
• Understand and articulate the cultural and social factors affecting behavior patterns.
• Effectively explain the workings of the system of the assigned area to consumers, parents, family members and caregivers.
• Demonstrate tact, diplomacy, patience, compassion, and discretion.
• Establish and maintain strong working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
• Obtain and record accurate information for case documentation and other reports.
• Prepare clear, accurate, and concise reports and other written material.

PLEASE NOTE: The benefits described herein do not apply to temporary (contingent) or to part-time employees that work less than 50%.

COUNTY OF MARIN BENEFITS: GENERAL
Below are some of the excellent benefits the County offers. More information about our benefits can be found on the Marin County's Benefits Homepage .

Paid Time Off : Competitive vacation accrual; 12 holidays per year; and generous sick leave accruals. Additional types of paid leaves are available for some bargaining units.

Health Plan : Choice of four health plans (two Kaiser HMOs, Western Health Advantage HMO, and an Anthem Blue Cross PPO) along with dental through Delta Dental PPO, and vision through Vision Service Plan (VSP). There is a County contribution toward the premiums (the contribution amount varies depending on coverage tier elected such as employee only, employee + 1, employee + family). Plus, the County offers excellent Life Insurance, Disability, Flexible Spending Plans, a Dependent Care Assistance Program, professional development and more.

Retirement : Defined benefit plan under the County Employees Retirement Act of 1937. More information can be found online at www.mcera.org.

IRS 457 Plan : Choice of pre-tax or post-tax (Roth) employee contribution up to the IRS annual maximum.

Retiree Medical : The County provides access to group health plan coverage to eligible retirees.

For specific questions regarding the employment process, please contact Human Resources at (415) 473-6104. For additional details about the benefits or retirement, please contact the Benefits Division at (415) 473-2197.

*IMPORTANT NOTE: Benefits described herein do not represent a contract and may be changed without notice.

Closing Date/Time: 5/14/2026 2:29 PM Pacific

• 

• County of Marin

• (415) 473-6104

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