Description
Position: Academic/College Counselor
Reports to: Head of School
About St. Mary’s Academy
St. Mary’s Academy is a Catholic High School for young women, founded and sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. Together with the students’ families, the administration, faculty and staff are committed to forming a Christian community that nurtures and challenges each young woman to attain her full potential. This effort is consistently characterized by respect for the individual, service to the “dear neighbor,” academic excellence; preparation for higher education and the empowerment of young women who are inspired to take their places in an ever-changing world. This education promotes the formation and integral development of young women from various backgrounds and cultures and provides opportunities for the development of contemporary leadership while preserving the spirit that has made St. Mary’s Academy unique.
Essential Responsibilities
Academic/College Counseling
- Advises the Head of School on best practices in college matriculation, persistence, and completion
- Counsels students one-on-one to further students’ capacity to be their own advocates and successfully navigates their own lives.
- Meets every semester with students on their caseload ensuring students receive academic and personal support every grading period.
- Monitors student progress to assign students for intervention and support.
- Meets with students and parents annually or when needed to ensure students are having their academic needs met.
- Manages a clear system to communicate learning differences to teachers to best support students.
- Identifies and refers students with signs of learning differences for evaluation through the school district or community organizations.
- Coordinates the administration of PSAT and SAT.
- Coordinates request for SAT accommodations.
- Organizes extended time testing for students with approved accommodations.
- Communicates with parents on a regular basis about academic issues collaborating with Head of School, Deans of Academic, and Dean of Students, and Faculty.
- Participates in Parent-Teacher Conferences.
- Contacts parents with positive news regarding students’ performances and improvement.
- Guides and assists students through the entire college and financial aid application process
- Coordinates the process for letters of recommendation, school profile updates, application tracking software updates, and on-site events (e.g. college fairs, FAFSA workshops, etc.)
- Develops collaborative partnerships with colleges alumni attend, creating capacity to link students to college/university resources that support their successful enrollment and retention
- Ensures students take advantage of special opportunities made available to students in the college search and application process (i.e. fee waivers, fly-‐in visits, university partner programs and scholarships)
- Participates in professional development opportunities offered by local and national college associations
- Develops and maintain a robust network of college admission professionals through regular communication, college admissions visits, and participation in information programs hosted by colleges/universities
- Establishes, pursues, and tracks school goals for college admissions, enrollment, persistence, and completion,
- Builds and celebrates a school‐wide college‐going culture (e.g., publicly posting college acceptances, on-‐site admissions days, planning and leading senior acceptance assemblies, and other school-‐wide traditions)
- Collaborates with junior college colleagues on dual enrollment
Personal Counseling
- Provides a safe environment for students to voice concerns and seek counseling while maintaining appropriate confidentiality.
- Provides a short-term, solution-oriented counseling for students experiencing developmental difficulties, mental health concerns, relational issues, academic and/or behavioral problems.
- Effectively collaborates with CPLA intern caseload/ consultation programs, referral process and procedure records, etc., budgets and daily operations.
- Provides students assemblies at least once per semester to promote healthy peer relationships, mindfulness, conflict resolution, test anxiety, problem solving, etc.
Other Duties
- Manages all summer school/ credit recovery requirements, if necessary.
- Evaluates the effectiveness of the schoolwide counseling program and recommend revisions
- Plans and leads workshops for key stakeholders (parents, students, teachers, and school administration) on topics related to the college admissions process, including financial aid planning, college list development, and essay writing and emotional health and well being
Professional Presence.
- Lead by modeling the school’s core values and serving as an exemplar of the mission: treating all stakeholders with empathy, love and care, modeling excellence in your work, prioritizing effectively, following through with commitments, communicating with integrity, serving others, spreading optimism and joy.
- Approach your professional practice through a developmental lens, and enthusiastically participate in professional development; seek and apply feedback from leadership and from colleagues in the interest of growth; demonstrate drive and independence in accessing resources to further your own improvement.
- Contribute fully, intentionally, and constructively to the team—the Board, school leadership, and faculty and school staff—in a range of contexts; collaborate with integrity, humility, commitment, and joy to ensure the foundation of trust that will enable the team to accomplish its ambitious goals.
- Embrace the team’s goals and the results we achieve as the collective responsibility of the entire SMA team; collaborate with colleagues to maximize the team’s impact; seek opportunities to push the team, to laugh with colleagues, and to recognize and celebrate the team’s accomplishments.
- Exhibit a commitment to equity by providing and targeting every opportunity and resource to obtain comparably high academic and other positive outcomes for every student.
Requirements
Qualifications
Successful applicants will embody the mission-commitment (serve), intellectual curiosity (learn), openness to growth (live), joy (love) that are central to the character of our team. In addition, they will meet or exceed the following requirements:
- Master’s degree in counseling or related field, plus pupil personnel services credential required.
- Proven ability to serve racially diverse students and their families.
- Proficiency using technology to communicate and to track and analyze data;
- A belief that all students can succeed in college and career
Compensation and Benefits
- Salary is based on prior work experience. Salary range: $60K-$70K
- Medical, dental, and vision plan options are covered
- Retirement
- Teacher Coaching/ Professional Development
- Leadership Opportunities
- Faith Opportunities
Interested candidates should submit a letter of intent explaining your interest in St. Mary’s Academy. Please include ways in which you would contribute to the mission and what elements of your background and experience make you a good candidate for our community. Please also attach a resume with your submission. Intent letter and resume should be emailed to hr@smabelles.org.
Wage Range
The rate of pay offered to the selected candidate is based on internal pay policy and budget. New hires are commonly paid at the minimum of the wage range or within the lower part of the range. We consider a number of factors when making compensation decisions including, but not limited to, skill sets, experience, training and other department needs.
Information/Application Contact
St. Mary’s Academy (Inglewood)
701 Grace Avenue
Inglewood, CA 90301
mperez@smabelles.org