School Counselor (SY24-25, Middle School)

Springfield

Job Description Job Description What You’ll Do

As a School Counselor at Veritas Prep you’ll partner with teachers, leaders, and staff to ensure all students have the support they need to achieve, grow, and thrive at school. You’ll provide counseling services, develop and facilitate small skill-building groups, create and monitor behavior plans, and provide a variety of other social, emotional, and behavioral supports to students with and without special education needs.

You’ll also

Provide casework/group work services to scholars and/or parents to enhance scholars’ educational progress

Cultivate relationships with community organizations and connect students to appropriate resources for social and mental health services when needed

Provide positive outreach to parents and/or scholars in target populations to facilitate scholars’ productive engagement in school

Lead the assessment, creation, implementation, and monitoring of individualized behavior plans

Assist with the development of standard procedures to handle crises and support the training of staff to implement those procedures

Assist in developing and implementing prevention activities and services in the school community, such as peer mediation and bullying prevention, leading community meetings around relevant topics for scholars

Consult with staff, scholars, parents, and community agencies, acting as a liaison between these groups to ensure the social-emotional needs of scholars are being met

Consult with schools leaders and teachers to revise and improve the social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum and support teachers to implement it as needed

Participate in scholar support and IEP meetings, contributing information on scholars’ social/developmental histories to develop a complete and holistic assessment of scholar’s needs

Develop and monitor student progress toward social emotional goals

Collaboratively develop IEPs for related services and write IEP progress reports during each marking period

Engage in learning about racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in education

Requirements

What You'll Need (Qualifications)

An unwavering belief that all students can achieve amazing things

A passion for continuous growth as a counselor

One to two years of school counseling experience (preferred)

Proficiency in Spanish (preferred)

Degree in social work, school counseling, or a related field

Appropriate license issued by Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Work or Massachusetts Board of Allied Mental Health Professionals OR be eligible for a MA School Adjustment Counselor/School Social Worker license

Current authorization to work in the United States – a candidate must have such authorization by his or her first day of employment

Training in administering functional behavioral assessments (preferred)

Veritas Prep is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against employees or qualified job applicants on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran or military status, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity or expression, or any other status or condition protected by applicable law. This policy extends to, but is not limited to, recruitment, selection, compensation, benefits, promotion, training, and termination.

Benefits

About Veritas Prep

Veritas Prep is a public, tuition-free school in Springfield that prepares students in grades 5 through 12 to compete, achieve, and succeed in college and beyond. Veritas Prep accelerates every student’s path to college and career by helping them set a strong academic foundation in middle school and guaranteeing access to college classes and college prep support in our wall-to-wall early-college high school.

At Veritas Prep, we are not only breaking down barriers to college access but also providing the tools students need to persist through college and prepare for a successful career. Our middle school program has been serving students in Springfield since 2012 and is one of the top middle schools in Springfield. Our scholars are supported by skilled, dedicated, and diverse teachers and are challenged to achieve at high levels academically, socially, and emotionally, setting them up for success as they enter our high school.

Our early-college high school program, in partnership with STCC and Worcester State University, prepares students to earn high-impact college degrees, saving students up to two years’ time in college and thousands of dollars. Students can earn up to an associate degree for free, and the general studies associate degree from STCC means students enter as JUNIORS at any Massachusetts public college or university after high school graduation.

Students at Veritas Prep benefit from high academic standards and robust support, an exceptional learning environment, a diverse staff of high-quality educators, a strong commitment to social/emotional and practical skill development, and an inclusive, anti-racist community that values the identities and backgrounds of all students.