College & Career Readiness Specialist- Excel Center Bartholomew County

The general salary range for this position is $50,000–$60,000 and includes full benefits.

About the role

The College and Career Readiness Specialist (CCR Specialist) builds relationships, systems, and programs to ensure that each student at The Excel Center graduates with a realistic career plan connected to postsecondary employment and education. The CCR Specialist provides direct advising and case management services for students as they near graduation and is instrumental in implementing a comprehensive foundational career-development program. This role allows for intentional advisement of students on academic diploma tracks and enrollment in industry-recognized certification courses and/or dual-credit course attainment.

The CCR Specialist develops and maintains an industry-based network of community partners, along with close-knit working relationships with local college and university staff, departments, and enrollment protocol. The work assures that graduates are directed to a viable pathway into a career and/or college placement, prepared with the skills, resources, and assistance to actualize their postsecondary plan. The CCR Specialist facilitates the student path from enrollment through graduation, ensuring a successful transition into work and/or college engagement, and follows up with graduates/alumni to assure sustained success along their career pathways.

Responsibilities

• Creates and maintains relationships with community partners, certification providers, and employers to aid the needs of students.
• Strategically implements programming to expose students to workplace experiences using internal and external resources.
• Refers students to internal partners and tracks employment/work-based learning opportunities.
• Implements programming to expose students to college experiences to increase interest. Connects and enrolls students into dual credits and/or certification opportunities that align with their post-secondary plans.
• Facilitates the graduation capstone course with fidelity to The Excel Center model. Adapts the course to meet the needs of all students based on readiness, interests, and special populations.
• Identifies and tracks relevant student/school data/staff performance to set improvement and/or achievement goals and to drive future evaluation and feedback.
• Partners with various administrative teams and instructors to conduct interventions with systems, staff, and students.
• Develops personal professional/performance goals and action plans to reach goals. Reflects on prior goals and makes adjustments to professional practice and goals.
• Works directly with the school director to develop and implement school-wide goals around graduation outcomes, enrollment needs, student achievement, retention, etc.
• Assists staff with professional development, training, and goal setting.
• Sets and maintains a high-performance culture for staff and students.
• Participates in student recruitment, enrollment, and outreach efforts.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, human relations, rehabilitation counseling, or related fields.
• Experience working in a secondary or higher education setting, and/or in career counseling and workforce development.
• Knowledgeable of the financial aid process, college admissions process, and various scholarships, internships, and certifications.
• Working knowledge of G Suite and MS Office, as well as student information systems.
• Strong communication skills, including articulating thoughts and expressing ideas effectively using oral, written, visual, and non-verbal communication skills.
• Ability to make informed decisions by identifying and comprehending issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing data from different sources to draw conclusions; and using effective approaches for choosing a course of action.
• Ability to work well with others and contribute in a team setting to achieve required goals and outcomes.
• Contributes to creating a positive learning environment that promotes productivity, mentoring, teamwork, and partnership.
• All candidates must pass a pre-employment background check.

Preferred Qualifications

• Skilled at developing, organizing, monitoring, and evaluating career pathway development programs, including writing policies and procedures mapped to learning goals that align with post-secondary plans.
• Experience building and maintaining collaborative relationships with community resources, employers, Indiana State agencies, and others.

Benefits

• Continuing education and leadership development as well as tuition reimbursement.
• Comprehensive health plan.
• Paid time off (PTO) and paid holidays.
• Life, dental, and vision insurance.
• Short- and long-term disability plans.
• Parental and sabbatical leaves.
• Nationally recognized preventive health and wellness program.
• Section 125 pretax health spending account, dependent care spending account, and premiums.
• Retirement plan with generous match or contribution into Teachers’ Retirement Fund for eligible employees.
• Eligible for the Public Student Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.

About the Organization

Goodwill Education Initiatives strongly believes it is essential to raise education attainment levels in Indiana. Not only are the lifetime earnings of high school graduates significantly higher than those of dropouts, children of high school graduates are 50% less likely to drop out of high school than the children of dropouts are. Goodwill provides opportunities for adults (The Excel Center) and youth (Indianapolis Metropolitan High School).

The Excel Center® is operated by Goodwill Education Initiatives, Inc., a not-for-profit organization formed by Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana. Recognizing that nearly a half million working-age Hoosiers lack a high school diploma, Goodwill opened The Excel Center for adults in 2010. The Excel Center is a tuition-free public high school for adults offering an Indiana Core 40 high school diploma.