Valley Hope Substance Abuse
Counselor Training
If you are interested in becoming a professional substance abuse treatment counselor, the Valley Hope Association has an unique opportunity for you.
Valley Hope has reinstated the Counselor Training Program which was originated in 1973. Counselor trainees are hired one or two times a year depending on
the projected need for future counselors. The curriculum of this updated program closely follows the original Substance Abuse Training Program but is now
taught "on-line"
enabling trainees to be placed in various Valley Hope centers across our seven-state network. This also allows instructors to originate their class from
different locations.
Counselor trainees in the one-year program are full-time employees and receive compensation and limited benefits. Trainees need to reside in a fairly
close proximity to the facility where they are employed. Trainees attend the classes and complete the required practicum at the facility to which they are
assigned. Upon successful completion of the substance abuse treatment training program, the Association will offer appropriate positions, if available,
within the Valley Hope
organization. Trainees are obligated to remain at the facility in which they trained unless there is no position available. Trainees sign an agreement to
work for Valley Hope for two years following the year of training or reimburse Valley Hope at a prorated rate for the training.
Recovering candidates must have a minimum of two years of on-going recovery before substance abuse training begins. Additionally, if an individual has
been a patient at a
Valley Hope inpatient or outpatient facility, the individual must have completed treatment a minimum of two years prior to hiring. It is also important to
note that credentialing requirements in each of the states in which Valley Hope operates vary and preference is given to individuals with degrees in the
behavioral sciences. Many of the states in which Valley Hope currently operates are in the process of increasing the minimum educational requirements for
substance abuse counselors to become credentialed or licensed. In Texas, trainees must already have their LCDC credential prior to being hired or be eligible
for an internship for the LCDC. The minimum education requirement in Oklahoma is a bachelor degree in the behavioral sciences or education contingent upon the
degree meeting the requirements set by the Board of Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselors, State of Oklahoma. The minimum educational requirement in Kansas is
also a bachelors degree in a related field and the degree must meet the requirements as established by the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board.
In Arizona an Associate degree in the behavioral sciences is the minimum educational requirement. Although college degrees are not required at this time in
Nebraska, Missouri, and Colorado, it is helpful for applicants to have completed some if not all of the credentialing requirements in those states.
In Nebraska, in addition to the Valley Hope Counselor training courses, trainees must complete the required TAP courses as required by the state.
Due to the licensure changes in KS, the trainees do not currently receive college credits for the courses. However, if you are interested and do
qualify for meeting credentialing or licensing requirements in the state in which you are interested in being hired as a trainee, we are interested
in hearing from you and will soon be taking applications from qualified individuals.
For further information, please contact:
Curt Krebsbach, PhD, LPC
Director of Training
Valley Hope Association
at 480-899-3335 or send an e-mail including resume to:
curtk@valleyhope.com
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