Early Support Specialist

Type of Appointment: Full-Time, Probationary
Job Classification: Student Services Professional III
Anticipated Hiring Range: $5,540 maximum
Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

About the Department

The Office of Student Success provides leadership for multiple units focused on meeting the needs of Cal Poly Pomona's diverse student body. The Office of Student Success oversees the coordination of academic advising initiatives to achieve shared goals, and the development and implementation of academic intervention programs to help students make timely progress toward degree completion. Student Success provides oversight for academic and student success as related to academic policies, university advising, academic-related initiatives, and strategic planning. The office handles student petitions related to academic issues, including general academic petitions, retroactive withdrawals, grade appeals, academic renewal, and records the completion of culminating experiences.

Student Success provides oversight for University Advising, the Bronco Advising Center, Student Communication, Advising Technology, Undeclared Advising, Early Alerts Programs, Graduation Pledge Programs, the Early Start Program, the Learning Resource Center; Bronco Tutoring; First Year Experience (FYE); Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Students United to Create a Community for Engineering and Science Success (STEM SUCCESS); Reading, Advising, and Mentoring Program (RAMP); and the University Writing Center. The Office of Student Success collaborates with Academic Programs, Enrollment Management Services, and College leaders to support students in meeting their academic goals.

Responsibilities

• Program Coordination
  • Adapts and implements developmental, student-centered strategies and interventions.
  • Researches best practices and trends on the national and local levels as they relate to early alerts interventions.
  • Implements program enhancements to improve student outcomes and progress to degree.
  • Partners closely with college advising staff (retention and graduation specialists, coordinators, and advisors), academic departments, primary and supplemental advisors, Enrollment Services, and Health and Wellbeing staff to develop alerts, case management workflows, and business processes.
  • Manages and maintains the tracking of student persistence and monitoring progress to degree.
  • Reports on strategies utilizing assessment data, program information, student persistence numbers, graduation rates, and other student success markers.
  • Trains professional staff and student staff on advising models developed.
  • Serves as a resource and referral for professional staff, faculty, and student advisors regarding program implementation and logistics.
• Early Support Specialist (ESS)
  • Ensures that faculty receive the appropriate training to effectively complete the progress reports and issue early alerts.
  • Leverages the work that CPP has been doing to identify "success markers" or courses that have historically had an adverse impact on persistence from the first to second year.
  • Coordinates with course faculty, advisors, and the Learning Resource Center to ensure that students who are currently enrolled in success marker courses are actively engaged in tutoring and supplemental instruction.
  • Partners with the appropriate college advisor to ensure that students who have upcoming or missed success markers are enrolled in the correct course.
  • Supports the assessment/analysis of intervention effectiveness data and reports findings to different audiences (e.g., advisors, retention and graduation specialists, associate deans, deans, student affairs leadership).
• Special Projects
  • Supports the Summer Completion Grant and Centralized Campaigns.
  • Supports the Senior Coordinator of University Advising with students in unique situations (e.g., reentry, inactive).
• Student Staff and Intern Supervision and Training
  • Recruits, hires, trains, and supervises graduate student staff interns on receiving, triaging, and disseminating alerts and cases.
  • Provides training on interpreting University policies, advising and administrative procedures, student development theory, transition issues, advising skills and techniques, and workshop presentations.
  • Coordinates office staffing and scheduling of student staff.
  • Intervenes with any complex student issues that require professional attention.
• General Advising
  • Provides timely, focused advising to all students to ensure they stay on track to graduation and successfully navigate university policies and procedures to meet their academic and career goals.
  • Utilizes a combination of high-level analytical and interpersonal skills as well as independent judgment when developing effective and creative solutions to student problems.
  • Assists with the Bronco Advising Center's drop-in general advising, available to all undergraduate students.
  • Uses E-advising tools including CPP Connect/EAB, Degree Progress Report, and semester conversion tools to advise students and educate them on academic planning.
• Miscellaneous
  • Serves as an active member of the College and University Advising community.
  • Regularly participates in Academic Advisor Council meetings, advisor trainings, webinars, and workshops.
  • Participates in supplemental advising committees and working groups, as appropriate.
  • Provides robust documentation of advising interactions, interventions, and programming via CPP Connect and other available tools.
  • Summarizes all information in annual reports and provides data-informed recommendations for improvements.
  • Utilizes reporting tools such as CPP Connect, CSU Dashboards, and Tableau to identify students in need of support and track progress toward improving their academic outcomes.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree - Equivalent to graduation from a four-year college or university in a related field, including or supplemented by upper division or graduate course work in counseling techniques, interviewing, and conflict resolution where such are job-related.
• Combination - A master’s degree in Counseling, Clinical Psychology, Social Work, or a directly related field may be substituted for one year of experience. A doctorate degree and the appropriate internship or clinical training in counseling or guidance may be substituted for the three years of experience for positions with a major responsibility for professional career or personal counseling.
• Possession of the following knowledge and abilities, as well as those listed at the lower levels in the Student Services Professional series, is required for appointment into this classification:
  • Thorough knowledge of the principles of individual and group behavior.
  • General knowledge of the principles, practices, and trends of the Student Services field as well as general knowledge of the policies, procedures, and practices of the program area to which assigned; general knowledge of individual counseling techniques.
  • General knowledge, or the ability to rapidly acquire such knowledge, of the organizational procedures and activities of the specific campus to which the position is assigned.
  • Working knowledge of student services programs outside the program to which immediately assigned.
  • Ability to analyze complex situations accurately and adopt effective courses of action; advise students individually and in groups on complex student-related matters; determine appropriate courses of action and proper techniques to utilize while engaged with individuals in personal interactions of an argumentative or sensitive nature.
  • Ability to interpret and evaluate descriptions and explanations of problems brought forward by individuals or student organizations, analyze and define the problem, draw valid conclusions, and project consequences of various alternative courses of action.
  • Ability to carry out a variety of professionally complex assignments without detailed instructions; and establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with a variety of individuals.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Educational Leadership, College Student Personnel, Educational Counseling, or a related field.
• Knowledge of General Education in the California State University system.
• Experience working with students in academic distress, dealing with highly sensitive issues.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with experienced staff and unite them around common goals; personal qualities of integrity, flexibility, compassion, and an enduring sense of humor.
• Experience in at least two of the following areas: academic advising, teaching, assessment, counseling, and co-curricular activities.
• Ability to juggle multiple tasks at once while remaining composed.
• Ability to retain and utilize large amounts of detailed information and quickly access and utilize additional information in the moment.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills including phone and in-person, emails, texts, etc.
• Technology savvy.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently, meet deadlines, handle and prioritize simultaneous requests.
• Self-starter who advocates for themselves.
• Excellent interpersonal communication skills.
• Creative and analytical thinker with strong problem-solving skills.
• Ability to interact and maintain good working relationships with individuals of varying social and cultural backgrounds.
• Ability to exercise independent judgment.
• Ability to cultivate strong interpersonal customer and co-worker relationships and work effectively cross-functionally.
• Ability to read and interpret complex information, talk with customers, and listen attentively.
• Must protect the confidentiality of student personal information and comply with Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
• Must comply with all university procedures and policies.
• Experience with and/or a general understanding of program coordination.
• Experience and proficiency with Microsoft Office products including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
• Ability to work independently and possess self-direction skills to initiate plans, organize, prioritize, multi-task, and coordinate work in a fast-paced organization.
• Ability to work efficiently and effectively, and to adapt to change in a dynamic work environment.
• Effective advising and interpersonal skills.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to work with a diverse student population and diverse work environment.
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends.
• Knowledge of critical issues impacting higher education, deep commitment to educational equity and student success, and skill in working with multiple and diverse constituencies to create and sustain positive learning experiences for students.
• Effective program assessment and data management/interpretive skills.

Pay

Anticipated Hiring Range: $5,540 maximum

Schedule

Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm