Manager, Well-Being Programs (MSW) – Northern CA

The Manager, Well-Being Programs supports delivery of Defy Ventures’ CEO of Your New Life (CEO YNL) program across California state prisons. CEO YNL is a trauma-informed, entrepreneurship-themed personal development and reentry readiness program serving currently incarcerated adults, referred to as Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs).

The Manager, Well-Being Programs is responsible for supporting implementation of the Well-Being Development Model for Reentry (WBDM), facilitating structured well-being workshops, supporting trauma-informed program delivery, and adapting content to emergent individual and group mental health and well-being needs within a non-clinical carceral environment. Through collaboration with Defy staff and volunteers, the Manager, Well-Being Programs helps EITs develop emotional regulation, healthy coping strategies, self-awareness, prosocial relationship skills, and a future-oriented mindset supportive of successful community reentry.

Individuals with lived experience are strongly encouraged to apply.

Key Responsibilities

Non-Clinical Mental Health and Well-Being Facilitation

• Facilitate well-being workshops for EITs across multiple cohorts and sites.
• Facilitate emotionally intense curriculum sessions on emotional regulation, stress management, trauma processing, self-compassion, mindfulness, conflict resolution, guilt and shame processing, vulnerability, development of positive coping strategies, and challenging trauma-reinforced self-limiting beliefs.
• Support participants in identifying trauma-related symptoms including anxiety, depression, shame, hopelessness, and emotional dysregulation.
• Reinforce healthy thinking patterns, prosocial engagement, effective coping strategies, and positive interpersonal relationship development aligned with the WBDM framework.
• Communicate observations about participant well-being and group dynamics to supervisors.

Participant Support and Assessment

• Adapt program delivery to emergent individual and group mental health or well-being needs during program delivery.
• Review participant self-perception survey data and PCL-5 indicators to assess participant growth and well-being outcomes, and evaluate progress against benchmarks.
• Collaborate with other Defy Program Managers to support participant reentry bridge planning and continuity of care between in-prison and post-release programming.

Program Operations and Administration

• Maintain accurate attendance records, workshop documentation, and session notes in accordance with organizational policies and grant requirements.
• Support collection and review of participant assessments, surveys, and program outcome data.
• Communicate regularly with supervisors regarding participant engagement, cohort progression, and emerging participant needs.
• Collaborate with staff across multiple prison sites to support consistency in program delivery and participant experience.
• Attend monthly consultation and training sessions with the National Program and Operations team.
• Support ongoing program evaluation and continuous quality improvement efforts.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Master of Social Work (MSW) degree required.
• Experience facilitating trauma-informed groups and workshops.
• Experience working with justice-impacted populations and/or people disproportionately impacted by trauma, substance use, and systemic oppression.
• Fluency in motivational interviewing and cognitive-behavioral approaches.
• Familiarity with strengths-based approaches to well-being and personal development.
• Experience managing group dynamics in structured cohort environments.
• Ability to work collaboratively within interdisciplinary teams.
• Strong written documentation and organizational skills.
• Computer proficiency, including Google Workspace and case management systems.
• Ability to obtain clearance to work within CDCR institutions.
• Frequent travel to prison sites in the Northern California region to lead workshops required.
• Reliable transportation and valid driver’s license.

About Defy Ventures

• Defy Ventures is an entrepreneurship, employment, and personal development training program that recognizes the potential in many formerly and currently incarcerated people to become successful, legal entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs) “defy the odds” through our program which includes intensive leadership development, Shark Tankstyle business pitch competitions, and executive mentoring. We build a redemptive, authentic community between EITs and our executive volunteers as they bond in their humanity through their collaboration along the entrepreneurial journey.

Defy Ventures is an equal opportunity employer. Defy Ventures uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all new hires in the United States. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health benefits
• 15 days of paid vacation annually
• 401k, sick time, parental leave

Benefits

• Comprehensive health benefits
• 15 days of paid vacation annually
• 401k, sick time, parental leave