Student Engagement Coordinator, High School (Taft Campus) – Bronx, New York
About CSS
Center for Supportive Schools is a fast-paced, collegial, and team-oriented organization wholly committed to helping schools become places where students want to be. Our work directly addresses student disengagement, a root cause of diminished academic performance, students dropping out of school, and other high-risk student behaviors. We partner with schools in three areas: developing all students into leaders; empowering teachers to collaborate with each other and with students; and engaging entire school communities to improve how learning happens.
CSS is driven by the vision that one day, all students will thrive in schools that graduate them prepared for the rigors of college and lives filled with meaningful work, active citizenship, and personal fulfillment.
We are committed to antiracism. Our vision for students will not be realized absent the dismantling of systemic racism that permeates schools and society. Schools are not safe, supportive, engaging, and inspiring unless they address all areas of marginalization and eradicate all the many interconnected forms of oppression. CSS's focus on antiracism results from the outsized role that racism has played in shaping the United States and its institutions, from the fact that racism intersects with all other forms of oppression and given that which we learn and develop - tools, frameworks, resources - in dismantling racism can be leveraged to abolish all other forms of oppression.
Founded in 1979, we are a national organization currently impacting 65,000 students annually and committed to supporting every K-12 school in the country. Most of our partners are economically disadvantaged communities where the consequences of student disengagement can be most devastating.
For more information, please visit www.supportiveschools.org. For more information about CSS's commitment to antiracism, please visit www.supportiveschools.org/antiracism-resources.
About Community Schools
Community Schools offer a holistic approach toward improving academic performance driven by strong, collaborative partnerships among principals, parents, teachers, and CBOs. In Community Schools, parents are real and active partners in their children's education. Each student is connected to a mentor, club, or social service. The school climate is joyful and positive. Community members spend time at the school, participating in activities ranging from swimming and yoga to financial and parenting workshops.
Extended afterschool or weekend classes are commonplace. An integral part of this approach is the blending of school- and community-based services into the school day, such as health, mental health, counseling, and academic enrichment. The administration believes that Community Schools are instrumental in helping schools catch up or leap ahead, and in putting all of our students on the path to four-year colleges and long-term careers.
The Community Schools in New York City will use key strategies to help students achieve success:
- Meaningful family involvement in decision making around student needs
- Meaningful interactions with community-based services and programs
- Maximization of academic programming, college and career preparation, and extended weekend and afterschool programming
- Robust data monitoring and attendance taking practices
The Role
As the full-time Student Engagement Coordinator, you will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the community school's student engagement strategy and development strategy. The Student Engagement Coordinator will be responsible for building and maintaining relationships with administration, faculty, staff, and students as the "Student Engagement and Development Promoter" of the school and community. The Student Engagement Coordinator will create, strengthen, and maintain the bridge between the school and community in the efforts of promoting student success. The Student Engagement Coordinator will facilitate and provide leadership for the collaborative process and development of a continuum of services for student success in academics, attendance, and social-emotional development.
As a Student Engagement Coordinator, you will assist the schools in developing implementation action plans, troubleshooting implementation obstacles, and planning for sustainability. You will track the school's progress against performance goals, collect school data, and support program evaluation activities. Additional responsibilities include managing community partnerships that relate to student engagement and development, and participating at Student Success meetings.
Initially, the Student Engagement Coordinator will support establishing and implementing a community school strategy under the direction of the Community Schools Director. Over time, you may support any or all of CSS's leadership solutions that may be implemented at the school. You will ensure that the student engagement and development strategy is implemented at exceptional levels of quality with full support, buy-in, and regular communication with stakeholders across the school community.
Key Job Responsibilities
- Build and maintain relationships with administration, faculty, staff, students, parents, and community partners in the school community to promote student success
- Participate in weekly Student Success meetings to identify and support interventions and supports
- Conduct a needs assessment process, including: reviewing school and student-level data; conducting focus groups with parents, students, faculty, staff, administrators, and community partners; and reviewing and/or conducting school climate and culture survey
- Research and propose partnership agreements under the direction of the Community School Director with people and community organizations willing to offer programs and services for students at the school in accordance with identified needs
- Identify evidence and research-based practices and/or partnerships that address priority areas for the school community strategy, which may include but are not limited to:
- Youth Development
- Academic Rigor and Instructional Practices
- Health, Mental Health, Tutoring, Afterschool Programming, Mentoring
- Develop and implement ongoing mechanisms to obtain input from teachers, school staff, School Leadership Team (SLT) members, parents, and students to determine ongoing needs to promote student success
- Coordinate, plan, and facilitate meetings with faculty and other school-based staff to plan for specific program implementations, problem-solve implementation obstacles, and ensure program sustainability
- Develop, maintain, and publicize a schedule of student-centered programs and activities offered at the school
- Assist in the implementation and maintenance of processes that encourage referrals to programs and services offered at the school; provide timely feedback to those who make referrals; and alert the Student Success Team to the need for programs not already offered
- Identify needs of chronically absent students, assist in the application of interventions, and track and monitor impact of interventions on a weekly basis, as part of periodic Student Success meetings
- Collect and monitor program implementation data and student data for each partnership and initiative implemented, and assist in the process of data analysis by the Student Success Team, School Leadership Team (SLT), and other school stakeholders
Other responsibilities
- Support the Community School Director and school leadership, as needed
Qualifications and Experience
Education: You've earned a bachelor's degree and probably have a graduate degree in social work, school counseling, or mental health counseling or a strong background in student support services work with 2-4 years relevant work experience. You have extensive knowledge of and experience working in the New York City Public Schools. You also probably have bilingual skills (English-Spanish).
Professional Experiences and Personal Qualities/Skills: You have demonstrated exceptional abilities to problem solve, plan, and prioritize; a "roll-up-your-sleeves" entrepreneurial, startup attitude; knowledge of experience working in education reform and student support services; and the proven ability to work in a fast-paced environment managing multiple projects. You possess a high level of interpersonal and cross-cultural skills, including the ability to build relationships internally and externally and to manage effective teams.
In addition, you have likely had the following experiences and have demonstrated the following attributes:
- Excellent listening, writing, and speaking skills
- Highly effective time-management, goal-setting, problem-solving, and decision-making skills
- Ability to gather, analyze, synthesize, and communicate information from various sources
- Strong public speaking and group facilitation skills
- Knowledgeable in issues relation to K-12 schools and adult education
- Knowledgeable in student support services
- Ability to obtain and utilize student and school data to drive decisions
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively
- Flexibility and resourcefulness
- Ability to use discretion and judgment in handling confidential and sensitive information
- Knowledge of and an enthusiastic commitment to the organization's mission, solutions, and offerings
- Connections with community-based organizations and experience facilitating partnerships with these organizations
- Ability to work effectively with school-aged youth (preferably 9-12 grade), educators, families, and communities from a wide range of culture, social, and economic backgrounds
- Experience working in school-based settings, with knowledge about tenets of community organizing, student support services, and youth development theories
- Ability to work collaboratively, with strong relationship-building skills
- DOE fingerprinting and background clearances
- Program implementation experience preferred
- Knowledgeable in technology
- Remarkable references
COVID-19 Vaccination & Testing
CSS requires all school-facing staff members to be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. As of the time of this position announcement posting, fully vaccinated means receiving two vaccination doses of either the Pfizer vaccine or the Moderna vaccine, or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Non-school facing staff members who are not vaccinated because of a CSS-approved medical or religious accommodation must submit a copy of a COVID-19 test result 48-72 hours in advance of any CSS-related in-person interaction (this includes in-person interaction with other staff, in-person training events, office visits, business meetings, and/or school visits).
Location
The Student Engagement Coordinator will be based at three New York City partner high schools, all located on the Taft Campus in Bronx, New York. Occasional travel to CSS's Manhattan and New Jersey offices will be necessary.
Work Environment/Physical Requirements
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working at a computer, including participating in virtual videoconference meetings
- Communicating with others in writing and verbally to exchange information
- Ability to lift and move boxes weighing as much as 15 pounds
Compensation and Benefits
The anticipated starting date for this position is October 2022. The annual salary range for this position is $51,500 - $64,400. CSS offers the following benefits:
- Comprehensive and competitive benefits plan, including health, dental, vision, flexible spending accounts, health reimbursement accounts, commuter and transit accounts
- 403(b) plan with employer match
- Generous paid time off
- Paid holidays and winter break
- Flexible work option based on job role eligibility
- Employee Assistance Program
- Reduced schedule on Fridays during summer months
- Phone stipend
To Apply
Interested applicants are requested to apply immediately by emailing a cover letter and CV/resume to resumes@supportiveschools.org. Please include (1) the title of the position in the subject line of your email and (2) where you found the position posting in your cover letter. If possible, please email all documents in PDF format. Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) are strongly encouraged to apply. NYC Department of Education fingerprinting and background clearances will be required, as well as proof of COVID-19 vaccination from a WHO approved vaccine (two doses of Pfizer, two doses of Moderna, or one dose of Johnson & Johnson.)
Center for Supportive Schools is an equal opportunity employer committed to inclusive hiring and dedicated to diversity, inclusion, and equity in its work and staff. CSS's Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action related policies are available upon request.
For more information, or to apply now, you must go to the website below. Please DO NOT email your resume to us as we only accept applications through our website.