Great Oaks Legacy Charter School in Newark is seeking a College Advisor or College Counselor to join our College and Alumni Office (CAO) team. To learn more about working at Great Oaks Legacy, please see our school video.


About this Role

Great Oaks Legacy's College and Alumni Office is looking for a passionate and industrious College Advisor/College Counselor who is dedicated to join our growing team as we prepare to graduate the third class of students and transition them into highly competitive 4-year colleges and universities. The College Advisor will play an integral role within the CAO by teaching the College Action course; by coordinating our summer enrichment placement and community engagement program for all grades; by serving as an academic and college advisor for a third of 11th and 12th grade students; and by working hand-in-hand with the CAO team to stay abreast of the latest trends and news related to post-secondary placement of underrepresented student groups.

Responsibilities

The College Advisor/College Counselor will be successful in the following areas:

Communication:

• Assist with internal correspondence with faculty and staff by drafting and distributing the "College Office Memo," which serves as a weekly newsletter that highlights upcoming events and representative site visits that students will attend throughout the school year.
• Assist with external communications with colleges and universities in hope of building and sustaining partnerships
• Assist with communicating pertinent information regarding the college admissions and financial aid process with students and their families through the GOLCS weekly Green Sheet system.
• Manage incoming college and enrichment site visit requests by prioritizing, researching and responding to responses as needed, ensuring seamless communication between the College and Alumni Office and partners.
• Maintain staff, family and stakeholder confidence and protect operations by keeping student and programming information confidential.

College Readiness Curriculum and Instruction

• Assist by teaching the 11th and 12th grade College Action course by creating weekly lesson plans and by tracking students' progress through assessments, weekly homework assignments and classwork reflections.
• Create and implement exciting classroom systems to develop students' awareness around professionalism and college-readiness.
• Correspond with students and families on a bi-weekly basis regarding the academic performance and growth exhibited by the student.

Scheduling/Coordination:

• Assist with managing the CAO's email and calendar regarding college tours/fairs and additional CAO programs
• Assist in scheduling summer enrichment and volunteer opportunity presentations for all GOLCHS students
• Assist in coordinating and managing the logistics for representative site visits, events and enrichment presentations with the Operations team
• Represent the Director of College Counseling by attending counselor meetings and/or conferences in the director's absence.

College/Career Advising:

• Provide specialized post-secondary guidance for students looking for alternative post-graduation opportunities
• Co-facilitate the college counselling summer home visitation program to ensure the rising seniors and their families are aware of the college admissions and financial aid/scholarships process.
• Assist with advising a third of the 11th grade students regarding the college admissions process.
• Assist a third of the senior class in preparing and submitting college applications and financial aid/EOF documentation.
• Co-facilitate the annual FAFSA and CSS Profile family workshops with the CAO team during the fall term.
• Assist in facilitating conversations with families about programs such as EOF/EOP, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), etc.
• Co-facilitate bi-monthly Parent Education Series workshops with the CAO team
• College alumni outreach and support as prescribed by the Director of College Counseling.

Special Projects & Reporting:

• Manage, track and report data around the enrichment and volunteer opportunities taken by current GOLCHS students
• Assist with special event logistics as needed (college tours/ fairs, summer and college enrichment programs, family workshops, etc.) and address a variety of audiences with a knowledgeable and friendly demeanor
• Organize, manage, and provide administrative support for special projects
• Prepare reports, presentations and other documents, by collecting and analyzing data
• Coordinate and complete projects and tasks as requested by the Director of College Counseling to further the mission and brand of the school, following up on results
• Contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed

Qualifications and Skills

The College Advisor must:

• Have a "will do" mindset to positively impact the growth of the CAO and further the success of GOLCS students to and through college.
• Be able to manage a college counseling workload of about 40%; teaching workload of about 20% and program management and administrative workload of 40%.
• Be flexible and ready to roll up their sleeves to complete the hard work at hand
• Strongly believe every student has the ability to succeed and remain data driven to inform actionable steps
• Be relentlessly committed to the mission of preparing every student for college and post-secondary success
• Possess strong entrepreneurial and team skills
• Possess the strong ability to be self-reflective, willing to learn and receive/give constructive feedback
• Possess the ability and flexibility to travel to visit and provide transitional support to current students and alumni when necessary
• Have superb organizational and self-management skills and be able to handle multiple responsibilities effectively; have strong planning and execution skills; be a goal-oriented and effective problem-solver

Candidates must possess:

• A genuine interest in working with underrepresented students from diverse backgrounds
• Excellent planning, entrepreneurial, management, and communication skills, with a proven ability to project manage and provide individual and group counseling
• Excellent technological and word processing skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent skills of organization and follow-through
• A relentless work ethic and commitment to achieving the school's mission
• A strong academic record, including a bachelor's degree from an accredited university, and/or a counseling master's degree from a CACREP accredited program

Staff and Reporting Relationships

The College Advisor will report directly to the Director of the College and Career Office and serve as additional support for the student support staff.

Compensation

Salaries at Great Oaks Legacy are competitive and include benefits for all full-time staff members. Great Oaks Legacy Charter School is an equal opportunity employer.