REHABILITATION THERAPIST - F/C - APD/ DDDP CHATTAHOOCHEE, FL

REHABILITATION THERAPIST - F/C - 67036076 APD/ DDDP CHATTAHOOCHEE, FL

Date: May 20, 2026

The State Personnel System is an E-Verify employer. For more information click on our E-Verify Website ( .

Requisition No: 870742

Agency: Agency for Persons with Disabilities

Working Title: REHABILITATION THERAPIST - F/C - 67036076 APD/ DDDP CHATTAHOOCHEE, FL

Pay Plan: Career Service

Position Number: 67036076

Salary: $1,336.92- $1,724.44 BIWEEKLY

Posting Closing Date: 06/15/2026

Total Compensation Estimator Tool (

AGENCY FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

POSITION: Rehabilitation Therapist F/C - Career Service

POSITION NUMBER: 67036076

OPEN COMPETITIVE OPPORTUNITY

SALARY RANGE: $1,336.92- $1,724.44 BIWEEKLY

CANDIDATE POOL: Future vacancies may be filled from this advertisement for a period of up to six months.

The Benefits of Working for the State of Florida

Working for the State of Florida is more than a paycheck. The State’s total compensation package for eligible employees features a highly competitive set of employee benefits, including:

• Annual and Sick Leave benefits.

• Nine paid holidays and one Personal Holiday each year.

• State Group Insurance coverage options, including health, life, dental, vision, and other supplemental insurance options.

• Retirement plan options, including employer contributions (For more information, please click ).

• Flexible Spending Accounts.

• Tuition waivers.

• And more! For a more complete list of benefits, visit .

• Paid Maternity and Parental Leave.

The Agency seeks team members who demonstrate the qualities of being humble, hungry, and smart and lead others to embody the same. This entails lacking excessive ego, sharing credit, being self-motivated, and exercising good judgment and intuition regarding the subtleties of group dynamics.

This position with APD will serve staff and management across the Agency. Your work will impact the workplace culture, our community, and the population we serve as we continuously strive to achieve the Agency’s mission.

*Responses to the qualifying questions are required and must be verifiable based on your submitted application.

Program Overview

The Developmental Disabilities Defendant Program operates on the campus of Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee and at Sunland in Marianna under the auspices of The State of Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD). The Developmental Disabilities Defendant Program (DDDP) is dedicated to empowering people with developmental disabilities charged with a felony crime to:

1. Acquire the skills and support that will prepare them for success in their future environments.
2. Acquire the skills needed to become competent to stand trial.

Position Summary

This is work planning, conducting, and participating in a rehabilitation therapy program. The employee(s) in the position(s) allocated to this class must spend a minimum of 75 percent of their time performing duties which involve contact with patients in a forensic facility.

• Interviews, counsels, and evaluates patients to determine individual therapeutic activity needs.

• Consults with other professionals and team members concerning recommended programs.

• Creates lesson plans, monitors/adjusts resident schedules, tracks attendance, documents behaviors, incidents, and other documentation related to the program.

• Provides people served all aspects of the rehabilitation therapy programs and recreational activities.

• Prepares reports on patients' progress towards objectives and their reactions to various activities.

• Evaluates rehabilitation therapy programs and makes recommendations for adjustment and revisions.

• Escorts residents as appropriate to ensure that their security, safety, and well-being are not compromised.

• Functions as a role model for residents to reinforce the behavioral and social skills required to be successful in integrating into community and/or residential environments.

• Performs related work as required.

• Completes all the training required.

The Work You Will Do

DDDP is a forensic facility working with individuals with disabilities in a secure setting.  These individuals have been adjudicated by the courts as incompetent to proceed to trial and have significant behavioral and psychiatric issues.  DDDP provides rehabilitative, vocational, and daily living skills training to the individuals served which allows for a smooth transition back into a non-secure residential or community setting.  

Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities

• Knowledge of the principles and practices of one of the allied health field disciplines or one of the rehabilitative sciences.

• Knowledge of interviewing techniques.

• Ability to interview clients to identify needs.

• Ability to plan and conduct rehabilitation therapy programs.

• Ability to prepare reports and complete other forms of documentation

• Ability to plan, organize and coordinate work assignments.

• Ability to write evaluation and progress reports.

• Ability to communicate effectively.

• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with others.

• Ability to maintain the required Prevention and Safety Strategies certification.

Minimum Qualifications

• A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a major in:

an allied health field , one of the behavioral or rehabilitative sciences , music therapy, music education, or music , physical education with coursework in adaptive physical education, vocational education , sociology , trades and arts education , industrial arts education , leisure studies with coursework in therapeutic recreation , horticulture therapy, or at least 4 years of related experience.

• A valid driver’s license.

Additional Information

We are dedicated to empowering persons with developmental disabilities charged with a felony crime to acquire the skills needed to become competent to stand trial, and to acquire the skills and supports that will prepare them for success in their future environments.

Recruiting Contact:      

Jodi NeSmith      

Recruitment Manager- Developmental Disabilities Defendant Program & Pathways  

Agency for Persons with Disabilities      

Telephone: View phone number on click.appcast.io

Email: View email address on click.appcast.io

Profile Completion

Applicants must complete all fields in the Candidate Profile, including their work history with the month and year, to qualify for this position.

Responses to Qualifying Questions must be verifiable in the Candidate Profile, and “see resume” will not be considered an acceptable response.

Resumes and other documentation can be attached to provide additional information, but these will not replace the required completed Candidate Profile.

Retiree Notice

If you are a retiree of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), please check with the FRS on how your current benefits will be affected if you are re-employed with the State of Florida. Your current retirement benefits may be suspended or voided, and you will be required to repay all benefits received depending upon the date of your retirement.

Direct Deposit Program

As a condition of employment, a person appointed to a position in the State Personnel System is required to participate in the Direct Deposit Program. Rather than receiving a paper paycheck, your funds will be deposited directly into your account at your financial institution. This will be accomplished by Electronic Funds Transfer. Banks, savings and loan associations, and credit unions are eligible to accept such deposits. Retirement funds are also required to be in the Direct Deposit Program.

Background Screening Requirement

It is the policy of the Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities that applicants for employment undergo Level 2 employment screening in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 435, Florida Statutes, as a condition of employment or being permitted to serve as a volunteer.

No applicant for a designated position will be employed or permitted to volunteer until the Level 2 screening results are received, reviewed, and approved by the Agency.

Level 2 background screening shall include, but not be limited to, fingerprinting for Statewide criminal and juvenile records checks through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and Federal criminal records checks through the Federal Bureau of Investigation and may include local criminal records checks through local law enforcement agencies.

Pursuant to S. 110.1127(1), Florida Statutes, this position requires a background investigation, including fingerprinting.

APD only hires U.S. citizens, and those lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. APD participates in the U.S. government’s employment eligibility verification program (E-verify). E-verify is a program that electronically confirms an employee’s eligibility to work in the U.S. after completing the employment eligibility verification form (I-9).

All applicants should complete the online application process. If assistance is needed to apply for this position, please call the people first service center at View phone number on click.appcast.io.

Responses to the qualifying questions are required to be considered for this position. Answers to the qualifying questions must be verifiable based on your submitted application.

The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer, and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center View phone number on click.appcast.io). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

VETERANS’ PREFERENCE. Pursuant to Chapter 295, Florida Statutes, candidates eligible for Veterans’ Preference will receive preference in employment for Career Service vacancies and are encouraged to apply. Certain service members may be eligible to receive waivers for postsecondary educational requirements. Candidates claiming Veterans’ Preference must attach supporting documentation with each submission that includes character of service (for example, DD Form 214 Member Copy #4) along with any other documentation as required by Rule 55A-7, Florida Administrative Code. Veterans’ Preference documentation requirements are available by clickinghere ( . All documentation is due by the close of the vacancy announcement.

Location:

CHATTAHOOCHEE, FL, US, 32324

Nearest Major Market:Tallahassee