The Foraker Group

Job Summary

Job Description

Position Profile

Clinical Director | Alaska Family Services |Palmer, Alaska

The Position and Leadership Opportunity: Clinical Director

Alaska Family Services (AFS) seeks a resourceful and compassionate professional to serve as its next Clinical Director. This recently restructured position offers a unique and exciting opportunity to maintain high-quality service delivery while expanding capacity to meet community needs. This position serves as a part of the senior leadership team, ensuring ethical practices, providing guidance on complex client situations, and training staff in clinical documentation, Medicaid compliance, and clinical skills. The ideal candidate will be a collaborative leader who is excited to shape, guide, and grow critical community support programs in Alaska.

The Organization

Alaska Family Services is an accredited, endowed 501(c)(3) non-profit agency headquartered in Palmer, Alaska, offering programs across Alaska.  Established in 1979 as a domestic violence and sexual assault shelter for women and children, AFS has grown their programming and merged with other social service agencies to become one of the largest nonprofit organizations in the state of Alaska.

With an annual budget in excess of seven million dollars, AFS manages ten major grants supporting more than twenty service lines. With a staff of more than 80, AFS serves over 12-thousand individuals annually with a wide spectrum of services focused on the family.

The Mission of AFS is to be, “In service to Alaskans, families, and communities to collectively create a better tomorrow.”. AFS supports individuals and families holistically, without judgment, and with an approach that is strengths based. Practicing a family-centered model, AFS believes there is no “wrong door” through which to receive services.

Strategic Priorities

The next Clinical Director will focus on the following priorities, while partnering with the CEO and leadership team to meet organizational needs.

Long-term Organizational Priorities

• Establish Alaska Family Services as the primary resource for developing and sustaining healthy families. 
• Expand Behavioral Health Treatment Center offerings and programs.
• Continually move systems toward evidence-based and promising practices. 
• Establish Alaska Family Services as the leading social service provider in the Mat-Su Valley. 

Twelve to Eighteen Month Clinical Director Priorities

• Provide program staff with support, stability, and consistency, while reinforcing a healthy work culture.
• Develop a complete understanding of the organization by deeply engaging with staff, programs, and leadership.
• Effectively manage the changes inherent in a newly reorganized program structure with high growth potential.
• Identify recruitment needs for increased staff and program capacity.
• Understand, implement, and provide staff training about the particulars of AFS Medicaid billing systems and requirements.

Key Responsibilities

Reporting to the CEO, the Clinical Director has the role of leading the second largest internal team, directly supervising 3 program managers, who in turn supervise a combined team of 15 across programs, and 4 clinical staff. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Leadership:

• Provide clinical leadership and oversight for the following AFS programs:
  • Behavioral Health Treatment Center (BHTC): Outpatient services that effectively address mental health and substance use disorders through use of evidence-based treatments, in the least restrictive environment possible, and when services are delivered through collaborative partnership with clients.
  • Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Shelter (DVSA): A 32-bed emergency shelter for women and their children seeking safety from domestic violence or sexual assault.
  • Family Support and Preservation Program (FSPP): A range of programs that teach parenting skills and strategies, strengthen parent and child relationships, and help keep children safe.
  • Family Violence Intervention Program (FVIP): A State approved domestic violence intervention program providing education and rehabilitation for male offenders or female offenders of domestic violence; including options for anger management.
• Supervise and mentor clinical staff, providing one-on-one clinical supervision and professional development.
• Ensure professional development for both clinical and non-clinical staff by providing training in case management, ethical decision-making, documentation, crisis intervention, and best practices.
• Support staff in navigating complex client situations and emotional challenges, fostering resilience and ethical decision-making.
• Serve as a member of the Senior Leadership Team, contributing to strategic planning and program expansion, and working collaboratively with the team to ensure high-function daily operations of AFS.
• Lead initiatives to integrate clinical support into non-clinical programs, ensuring holistic, trauma-informed care throughout the agency.

Billing:

• Monitor Medicaid compliance, service delivery, and documentation.
• Expand and optimize billable services across AFS direct service programs.
• Collaborate with the Operations Director and Senior Accountant to ensure billing accuracy, clinical productivity, and address any necessary corrections with clinical staff.

Compliance and Quality Assurance:

• Promote a culture of continuous improvement by participating in quality assurance initiatives, in-service training, and data reporting.
• Provide clinical quality assurance for documentation.
• Authorize and provide oversight of outpatient substance use disorder treatment urinalysis (UA) testing at the BHTC as appropriate.
• Serve as an internal resource for compliance with confidentiality regulations and ethical standards in all service areas.

Qualifications of the Ideal Candidate

While no one candidate will embody all the qualifications enumerated below, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences:

Education

• Master’s degree in a behavioral health field (e.g., sociology, counseling, psychology, psychiatric nursing, addiction studies, human services, or social work) with current Alaska licensure (LCSW preferred or LPC) and current National Provider Identifier (NPI) number.

Skills and Expertise

• At least five years of clinical leadership and/or program management experience; nonprofit-specific experience is preferred.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with an ability to communicate effectively and comfortably to a wide variety of audiences.
• At least five years of experience leading, managing, and developing high-functioning clinical and/or cross-disciplinary teams, including recruiting and retaining staff.
• At least two years of mental health/substance abuse clinical experience with children, youth, and adults.
• At least two years of experience with Medicaid billing, Alaska Medicaid preferred.
• Experience working with 24/7 emergency programs, working in the field of victim services, and/or training in a similar field is a plus.
• A robust knowledge of HIPAA and 42 CFR part 2.
• Ability to obtain an NPI number if one is not currently possessed.
• Proven ability to monitor and work within budgets while maximizing operational resources; experience with Municipal, State, and Federal grants and managing complex revenues a plus.

Attributes

• Passion for AFS’s mission and excitement to make a meaningful impact in support thereof.
• A collaborative and approachable leadership style consistent with building and maintaining an authentic, transparent, and respectful work culture.
• Demonstrated commitment to ethical client practices and an ability to support others in ethical decision making.
• Excited to create and support a culture of ethical and trauma-informed client care.
• Demonstrated ability to respond calmly and creatively to unexpected and difficult challenges and opportunities.
• Ability to think strategically and systematically, and to integrate available resources to efficiently and effectively meet mission.
• Strong attention to detail and highly organized while able to operate in ambiguity.
• Self-starter who stays curious about how to make continual improvements.

Compensation and Benefits

This is a full-time position. The annual salary range is between $90,000-$110,000 commensurate with qualifications and experience.  AFS provides a competitive benefits package, which includes:

• Medical Insurance: Choice between two plans. Includes vision and hearing benefits. AFS pays between 86-92% of the monthly premium.
• Dental Insurance: AFS pays 50% of the monthly premiums.
• Paid Time Off (PTO): Accrual rate is based on hours paid as of first day in an eligible classification. Competitive schedule with increases for every two years of service.
• 11 paid holidays.
• Sick leave: Accrued based on hours worked, and separate from the PTO.
• Flexible scheduling available. Family-oriented workplace philosophy.
• Generous bereavement leave available.
• Paid jury duty leave.
• Life Insurance: Employer paid. $25,000 basic and AD&D insurance. Eligibility is the first of the month after 30 days in an eligible classification.
• Employee Assistance Program: With enrollment in life insurance, confidential access to Specialist or a Licensed Professional Counselor to help with personal or professional concerns.
• 401K Plan: AFS will match up to 3% of employee’s contribution after one year of employment and 1,000 hours of work.
• Supplementary Benefits: May purchase additional benefits through payroll deduction.
• Professional Development Assistance: After 6 months of employment, eligible to apply for assistance with professional development activities including tuition reimbursement.
• Paid Family Leave: After 6 months of employment, eligible for up to 8 weeks of qualifying paid leave.
• Potential for relocation benefits to be discussed at time of offer.

Application Process

To apply, email your credentials to AFSClinical@ForakerGroup.org. Applicants should include a resume and cover letter describing interest and qualifications. For questions, contact Adorable Harper, lead recruiter, at AFSClinical@ForakerGroup.org. Communications will be treated with confidence. Deadline for application submission is October 21, 2025. Due to the pace of this search, candidates are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Resume reviews begin immediately. The search process will include a multi-step interview process.

AFS follows the spirit and intent of all federal, state and local employment law and is committed to equal employment opportunity. AFS is committed to providing equal opportunity for all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, political affiliation, personal appearance, family responsibilities, matriculation or any other characteristic protected under federal, state or local law.