College Counselor

POSITION:     College Counselor

LOCATION:    Great Hearts Irving Upper School 

REPORTS TO: Headmaster 

FLSA STATUS: Full-time/Exempt

Company Description 

Great Hearts Academies is a nonprofit charter management organization (CMO) that operates classical, preparatory, K-12 public charter schools.  Our academies cultivate the minds and hearts of students through the pursuit of truth, goodness and beauty.  We currently serve over 30,000 students across our network. Great Hearts is dedicated to providing additional communities with access to our liberal arts model, and, as the network scales both locally and nationally, we aim to restore excellence to American public education. We proudly prepare students for success at the best colleges and universities in the nation, but see our larger purpose as producing great-hearted graduates that are prepared to be intellectual, moral and engaged citizens. Additional information can be found at www.greatheartsamerica.org/careers. 

College Counselor 

Scope: Great Hearts Academies provides quality support and individualized attention to each student throughout our multi-year preparation for the college application process.  Our perspective is that university life offers profound opportunities to students for the continuation of their pursuit of truth, goodness, and beauty.  It provides the time and space for students to greater deepen who they are, both intellectually and morally amongst their leaders and peers. Thus it is of the utmost importance that our college counselors assist students in identifying and attending an appropriate educational environment since the formation they receive at university will be a determining factor in their vocations and roles in society. 

Purpose:   College Counselors provide individualized planning and advice to students and their parents.  The counselor’s aim is to help students identify,  and eventually attend the school that is the best fit given their interest, family goals and financial circumstances. There is no crisis counseling, and since the curriculum contains no electives, college counselors do not work on course selection and student scheduling.  

Detailed Responsibilities 

Duties involve, but are not limited to: 

• Developing college workshops for parents and providing individual parent counseling to answer questions about high school curriculum, college acceptance, the application process, etc. 

• Deliver college curriculum to prepare students for post-secondary planning 

• One-on-one advising on prospective colleges, as well as helping students evaluate their interests for an initial selection of a college major, if needed 

• Educating upperclassmen on application process through group workshops and individual meetings 

• Assisting students with applications, college essays and scholarship essays 

• Processing college application paperwork and writing letters of recommendation for admissions and scholarships 

• Researching and advertising summer study, internships, and scholarship opportunities 

• Facilitating the selection process for students nominated to represent the school for summer programs or scholarships 

• Updating the School Profile and other Academy documents 

• Maintaining a working calendar of events and tasks within the office 

• Coordinating and administering PSAT/NMSQT to sophomores and juniors and providing post-test counseling to develop individual test preparation plans for the SAT/ACT, as needed 

• Working as the school’s SSD Liaison (Services for Students with Disabilities) and assuring that the information process on college testing accommodations is coordinated with the Academy’s Special Education Coordinator 

• Coordinate the ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) test for interested sophomores, juniors, and seniors 

• Updating and maintaining college test stats, college acceptance data, scholarship tracking, and alumni information 

• Responsibility for registrar tasks; coordinating with the office manager for some of the registrar tasks; taking on responsibility for issuing transcripts for high school students applying to summer programs and colleges, as well as issuing final transcripts for high school graduates 

• Assisting the office with the processing of incoming transfer credits and serving as liaison to the Headmaster in matters of credit acceptance and necessary make-up credits for transfer students 

• Assisting the headmaster or his/her designated representative with devising remediation plans for high school failing semester grades to allow on-time high school graduation 

• Maintaining the school’s college counseling website, Naviance, and college rep visit site 

• Developing background information for the end-of-year awards ceremony highlighting the plans of each graduating senior 

• Collaborating with the Great Hearts College Counseling  Team in Texas on various projects 

• Attending various College Counseling meetings and other trainings 

• Chaperoning for College Counseling events 

• Networking with colleges, including travel to schools and hosting admissions reps; activity in NACAC and attending National Conferences 

• Consulting with the Director of Academics as needed 

Qualifications 

Qualified candidates will bring: 

• Experience in school college guidance or selective college admissions; BA ; MA preferred; 

• A deep knowledge of institutions of higher education, including signature and honors programs, financial aid, scholarship opportunities, and the various factors informing a student’s institutional fit; 

• Leadership of a compelling program detailing the admissions process for students and families, with informative, transparent, supportive relationships with those families undertaking the daunting process and a momentous decision; 

• Exceptional writing, organizational, leadership, and interpersonal skills, along with receptivity to accountability; 

• A strong work ethic, self-confidence, and the proven ability to design and execute projects; 

• Responsiveness to all constituencies: students, parents, faculty, administration, the board, colleges; 

• Eagerness to represent the school on campus visits, in membership to NACAC, and in community programming. 

Additional Requirements 

Type of fingerprint clearance: Must be able to pass fingerprint background clearance. 

Physical functions: Requires but is not limited to standing, sitting, repetitious hand and body movements, bending, squatting, and reaching. May be  to move or position equipment up to 20 pounds approximately.

Travel required: May need to travel locally to the various academies within the Dallas  metro area. Candidate must have reliable transportation and valid driver’s license. Some national travel may be .