Early High School Student Advising and Program Coordinator in Austin, Texas at Breakthrough Central Texas

About Breakthrough Central Texas

Breakthrough is the leading college access and success nonprofit in Central Texas. For more than 20 years, we have partnered with thousands of middle and high school students who aspire to be the first in their family to graduate with a degree or certificate. We make a radical, long-term commitment to students, to and through college, unlocking the power of education and a lifetime of opportunity. We support the whole student with personalized services, work closely with community partners, campuses, and employers, and advocate for our students with lawmakers. Breakthrough students attend 60+ public schools and persist at nearly 100 colleges and universities. The result is that 55% of Breakthrough students graduate from college, compared to 17% of low-income students in our region. Our work has resulted in more than 550 college graduates, with 4,000 on their way, positively impacting families for generations, our region’s educational access, and the Central Texas economy.

Why Work at Breakthrough Central Texas
By working for Breakthrough Central Texas, you will help hundreds of students achieve their dreams of success and receive the high-quality education they deserve. Breakthrough is an organization committed to its students and recognizes that our greatest resource to support them is our dedicated and talented staff. If you believe all young people deserve the opportunity to achieve postsecondary success and you desire to work at an organization committed to its employees and building the strongest team culture anywhere, then join us!

ABOUT THE EARLY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT ADVISING & PROGRAM COORDINATOR ROLE

The Early High School Student Advising & Program Coordinator leads critical advising services and programs for 9th and 10th grade high school students on their path to postsecondary success. The primary responsibility is to provide high quality academic advising and support, career and postsecondary pathway education, and college readiness support to 9th and 10th grade students, ensuring that they are equipped with a variety of postsecondary options before they enter 11th grade. In addition, Early High School advisors design and lead engaging Saturday, Summer and school-based programs to provide learning to students and their families about the path to and through college, and are part of a high-performing team. The role includes the responsibilities of both supervision and team collaboration. Specific responsibilities of the Early High School Advising & Program Coordinator include

Student Advising & Support

• Provide timely, high quality academic advising and mentoring to a caseload of 45-60 students.
• Develop and maintain relationships with a diverse group of students and their families by adhering to advising standards of service and conducting holistic check ins.
• Support students to develop the academic tools such as study skills, time management, goal setting, and self-advocacy, necessary for high school success.
• In partnership with students and their guardians, develop plans for academic intervention and monitoring for students failing or at risk of failing one more class.
• Meet and communicate regularly with guardians/families on student progress.

• Support students to take academic and non-academic steps necessary to be prepared for postsecondary pathways, including high school course selection, information about GPA, college readiness and prep, career explorations, college majors and all postsecondary pathways.

Program Development, Coordination, and Leadership

• Along with the College Bound team, plan and lead Saturday events and programs for 9th and 10th grade students and their families.
• Design, plan and lead campus-based programming during or after school to promote school success and foster a college-going culture.
• Design, plan and facilitate summer programming for rising 10th and rising 11th grade students in Austin, Del Valle, and Manor.
• Support program evaluation efforts and make continuous program improvements to achieve outcomes
• Participate in committees and workgroups to engage in team planning, organizational change work, as needed.
• Manage large groups of students to build a positive learning community aligned with Breakthrough’s core values and college-going culture.

Supervision

• Supervise, support, develop and evaluate an AmeriCorps member to ensure highest performance and optimal student outcomes.
• Manage and support volunteers assigned to students or events.

Partnership Development

• Strategically develop relationships with key partners, including teachers, school administrators, district leaders, counselors, and leaders of other community-based organizations on campus.
• Meet regularly and work collaboratively with other staff members and volunteers in order to support students and families

ABOUT YOU

You are a strong candidate for the Early High School Student Advisor and Program Coordinator role if, above all, you are a champion for increasing social and economic opportunity through educational attainment. You are a servant leader, and feel at your best in a deep relationship with the communities in which you serve and in collaboration with others you work and partner with. You are passionate about building authentic relationships with students, family members and caregivers, and the educators at the schools your students attend. You bring content expertise in youth development, college access, and in event or program operations. You will also bring experience or demonstrated capacity in the following competencies:

• High School Success & College Access Advising: Ensures strong high school course selection and academic progress, meeting testing requirements, and envisioning a career pathway.

• Student Advising & Relationship Building: Provides high-quality advising services to students, with a focus on building authentic relationships and a skill at advocating for the student’s success in school and other settings. Demonstrate advising behaviors that build trust and foster student and family engagement.
• Student Centered Impact Orientation: Supports all students’ growth and postsecondary success by setting and achieving ambitious, measurable goals.
• Youth Development: Meets young people where they are and acts in developmentally appropriate ways to support them at the relevant stage while nurturing a sense of self-efficacy and academic identity development.

• Family Navigation & Caregiver Engagement: Builds trusting relationships and works effectively with caregivers to provide information, guidance and resources so that students stay engaged and thrive.
• Inclusive Communication: Approaches conversations about identity, power and privilege with awareness, humility and a quest for greater understanding. Trailer communication to meet the needs of a variety of audiences including students, families, staff members, school personnel, and individuals who speak a language other than English.
• Resource Connection: Works effectively with the Student and Family Support Specialist to connect students and their families to non-academic providers and resources within the community, including school-based services, mental health services, and others.
• Data Tracking & Evaluation: Submits timely, accurate, comprehensive case notes and other information and tracks/analyzes data with fidelity to drive action that supports student success, informs program design, and ensures meeting team, advising and persistence goals.
• Continuous Learning & Improvement: Embraces and applies feedback, demonstrates curiosity, creativity and growth mindset , and pursues opportunities to strengthen individual performance and team/organizational outcomes.
• Prioritization & Resourcefulness: Effectively puts time and effort where it is needed the most, asks for help, maximizes resources and envisions innovative solutions to reaching outcomes. Prioritizes multiple tasks and delivers commitments in a timely manner, and possesses a disciplined, strong work ethic and comfort with working non-standard hours (some weekends and evenings).

REPORTING AND SUPERVISING RELATIONSHIPS

The Early High School Students Advisor & Program Coordinator will report to the Early High School Associate Director of their advising site (Del Valle/Manor or Austin). Direct reports may include a year round AmeriCorps member.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

• Competitive salary between $56,000-$74,000 depending on experience and qualifications
• Health, dental and vision insurance(Breakthrough pays 100% of employee premiums)
• Life insurance
• Matching 401K retirement plan
• Thirty days of PTO annually, with immediate accrual, recognizing that staff have lives outside of work
• Additional leave benefits, including company holidays and FMLA eligibility (varies by year)

Breakthrough Central Texas provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.