School Counselor

School Guidance Counselor

Qualifications: Masters degree in School Guidance Counseling; NCDPI Licensure as a School Counselor; School Guidance Counselor experience preferred.

Reports to: Principal and Chief Student Services Officer

Supervises: May coordinate and direct activities of Guidance Office Administrative Assistant.

Purpose of Position:

MGSD is looking for a leader who is licensed and experienced in school counseling. Under general supervision, school counselors provide preventative services that are responsive to student needs by implementing a comprehensive school counseling program to address the academic, interpersonal, social and career development goals for all students. The school counselor works directly with students, families and educators to ensure student success. This includes working with families and the community to build awareness around mental health, create access to counseling services, develop systems of support at the school level and address barriers for students and families seeking assistance. The major functions of the school counselor role include aspects of the ASCA Model and the North Carolina State Board of Education's mission to ensure that every student will graduate from high school globally competitive for work and postsecondary education and prepared for life in the 21st century.

Responsibilities, Duties, & Expectations:

Instructional Support Process:

Uses effective, efficient, and ethically appropriate oral and written expression; Uses strong collaboration skills to coordinate with internal teams and external agencies; Meets with school administrators to determine at-risk student populations; Regularly meets/collaborates with school counselors, social workers, and behavior support team to determine at-risk student populations; Establishes support groups for at-risk students, including students suffering poverty, mental illness, or other environmental factors; Conducts home visits as needed; Manages data and systems that support these services; Provides individual counseling to students who exhibit mental health, behavior, or social problems that limit their success in the classroom; Helps students and families access resources like shelters, food banks, and medical care and support any areas of need, ie. hunger, violence, abuse, or homelessness; Provides systematic family outreach; Works with attendance (data managers) & behavior specialists on processes, ie. Letters sent home; Provides psychological and counseling services and bills Medicaid when applicable

Public Relations and Professional Code of Conduct:

Establishes and maintains cooperative and positive relationships with colleagues; Works in partnership with parents to strengthen the educational program for all children; Communicates positively in public to all stakeholders about school and district educational programming; Maintains appropriate and ethical work habits, including regular and punctual attendance, appropriate management of planning time during the workday, and abiding by the rules of the organization as public role models for students and the community; Keeps all student records and information confidential in accordance with accepted professional ethics along with state and federal laws; Upholds and enforces school board policy, administrative procedures, and school rules/regulations at all times in all situations.

Professional Growth:

Continues professional growth and enhanced knowledge through attendance to workshops, seminars, conferences, and/or advanced coursework at institutions of higher learning; Maintains membership in appropriate and relevant professional organizations; Cooperates with school administration in planning appropriate in-service training programs at the school or district level; Participates in all faculty, staff, department, grade level, and committee meetings, as required.

Evaluation and Measurement of Performance: All staff are evaluated using the North Carolina Educator Effectiveness System, formal and informal classroom walkthroughs, along with formal and informal observations by School Administration and Central Services Administration.

Physical Requirements: As necessary prolonged and irregular hours of duty and weekend work and availability for work related communication; Must be able to exert a negligible amount of force to move objects; classification consistent with light work.

Term of Employment: 10-month contract with salary commensurate with the NC State Salary Schedule as outlined by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Full benefits package offered with full-time employment.

Minimum Training and Experience: Bachelor's degree in a related field with a Master's degree in counseling or any equivalent combination of training and experience that provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities.

Special Requirements: Must be licensed by the State of North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in counseling or able to obtain licensure in this area.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

General knowledge of the ethical guidelines applicable to the position as outlined by professional organizations and/or federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations.

General knowledge of the principles of organization and administration.

General knowledge of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study.

Skill in counseling and motivating students.

Ability to plan, coordinate, and evaluate the effectiveness of student programs.

Ability to coordinate the efforts of support services personnel and outside agencies.

Ability to use common office machines and popular computer-driven word processing, spreadsheet and file maintenance programs.

Ability to maintain complete and accurate records and statistics and to develop meaningful reports from them.

Ability to effectively express ideas orally and in writing.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships as necessitated by work assignments.

Disclaimer: The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees to this job.