Lead School Counselor

Position Summary

The Lead School Counselor leads efforts to ensure a supportive, equitable, and inclusive environment for all students, focusing on underrepresented populations. The Lead School Counselor advances the overall student experience, including health and wellness, addressing students’ emotional health needs through short-term solution-focused counseling. Additionally, they will collaborate with external providers to ensure comprehensive care coordination for students, including liaising with therapists, psychiatrists, and education specialists.

Reporting to the Head of Community Life, the Lead School Counselor will develop curriculum, organize staff training and professional development needs, and provide leadership and strategic direction for student support services, diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives school wide. The Lead School Counselor position is 40 hours per week and follows the academic calendar (starting in mid-August and ending the second week in June).

The Lead School Counselor is expected to participate in opening and closing faculty and staff meetings and collaborate with the health office and appropriate parties to prepare for the arrival of students each August. This position is fully benefits eligible. The pay range for this full time position is $80,000 - $90,000.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Partnering with the Head of Community Life, support, design and deliver training to teaching staff on supporting students' academic and personal growth, including training on cultural competency, implicit bias, and microaggressions.
• Supervise other school counselors to provide students with streamlined and thoughtful counseling support, including direct, short-term solution-focused counseling support and care coordination with families and outside providers (e.g., therapists, psychiatrists, and education specialists).
• Build relationships with students, families, and external organizations to support students' mental health, wellness, and success.
• Provide short-term solution-focused counseling to address the emotional health needs of students.
• Design and deliver NEIA’s wellbeing curriculum as part of our Life Design programming.
• Contribute to mental health programming and outreach initiatives to support student well-being.
• Consult with faculty to address students' mental health needs and provide appropriate interventions.
• Reviews, updates, and maintains health records in the student database.
• Maintains comprehensive and confidential health records for students that are in compliance with state regulations.
• Be available for immediate crisis assessment and intervention to ensure the safety and well-being of students.
• Review student records, psycho educational testing, and sharing pertinent information with classroom teachers, using a variety of assessment procedures to determine appropriate interventions and programming.
• Work with external sources to provide services to respond to critical student needs and incidents.
• Empower students to achieve personal and educational goals by working effectively with advocates and liaising with educational psychologists and specialist services.
• Provide mission-aligned leadership and focus, demonstrating cultural competence, a growth mindset, and a deep and steadfast commitment to equity and inclusion.
• Support the Head of Community life to assist with growth program support in Advocacy to support students' metacognition and reflection skills, social and emotional awareness, and sense of responsibility for the community.
• Collaborates with the school nurse and other supportive staff.

• The Lead School Counselor supervises the school counselors.

• Master’s degree in Educational Psychology, Counseling, Social Work, Curriculum and Instruction, or a related field is required.
• A minimum of 5 years of experience in student support services, preferably in a school setting.
• Understanding of the social, psychological, and physical development of children and adolescents.
• Experience in curriculum design and implementation.
• Experience with coaching…