Program Associate, Summer Search

Posted by Summer Search Philadelphia on July 11, 2016

PROGRAM ASSOCIATE
PHILADELPHIA, PA

We are Summer Search, a national college success organization working to close the opportunity gap for low-income students by transforming what they believe is possible for themselves.

THE OPPORTUNITY
At this time, our Philadelphia office is seeking a Program Associate to manage a caseload of approximately 25-35 high school students, building long-term 1:1 relationships and providing regular mentoring from sophomore year through high school graduation. Additionally, this hire will coordinate efforts to successfully recruit students during our annual outreach season. Joining a close-knit and supportive team, this hire will also prepare students for two challenging summer experiences, support college readiness and matriculation, and contribute to closing the opportunity gap for thousands of low-income youth nationwide.

Specifically, the Program Associate will advance Summer Search’s mission through the following job responsibilities:

Student Mentoring and Program Facilitation (50%)

• Manage a caseload of approximately 25-35 high school students, building multi-year relationships and conducting regular mentoring by phone or in-person.
• Utilize a unique mentoring model based upon social-emotional and cognitive development with adolescents.
• Drive program outcomes by holding students accountable to the process around school-year and summer program participation, as well as demonstrating a personal commitment to students that result in a high level of engagement throughout their Summer Search experience.
• Monitor students’ academic and extracurricular participation and performance, as well as college readiness requirements.
• Help plan and attend attending key milestone events for students and their families throughout the school year, including generally three evening and one weekend event per year.
• Serve as 24/7 on-call support during summer months, typically 25-30 days per summer.

Outreach Coordination (30%)

• In partnership with the Program Director, develop and implement a plan to engage existing school partners and recruit high school sophomores during our annual outreach season, with an overall goal of enrolling around 25 new students in the 2016-2017 school year.
• Coordinate with school partners to clarify eligibility requirements, nominate students, communicate acceptance decisions and student updates, and coordinate school visits, group presentations, and student interviewing sessions.
• Pursue creative ways to recruit and enroll 50% males of color as program participants, reflecting an understanding of challenges to male student engagement in low-income communities.
• Collaborate with program staff to execute annual outreach season activities, including in-school presentations, interview days, student events, and school communication.
• Represent Summer Search publically at community and school events where appropriate.

Administration and Project Management (20%)

• Enter and track student data accurately on a daily basis in Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) database to assess student progress and drive organizational learning, to ensure high levels of program quality and professional development.
• Actively participate in and/or coordinate projects related to other aspects of program delivery, including event support, summer programs logistics, college access student support, college success student support, and/or alumni engagement.
• Collaborate with the Development Team where appropriate to support fundraising efforts through student stories, preparation and data.

WHO YOU ARE

• You are a highly motivated and self-led professional with at least 2 years of experience in youth development, social work, or high school education, preferably with low-income, diverse populations.
• You utilize active listening and reflect others’ viewpoints in order to build trusting relationships with students, school and community partners, and colleagues.
• You bring a demonstrated awareness of challenges commonly facing low-income high school students, and comfort and humility in engaging with students about these challenges.
• You take personal responsibility for work product and results; excellent project management and organizational skills to juggle multiple projects and ad hoc requests.
• You are a flexible and eager team player who is excited to collaborate with colleagues and participate in an authentic, feedback-driven office culture.
• You are proficient in using databases and Microsoft Office applications; experience using Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) or a similar student database is a plus.
• Above all, you bring a genuine interest in Summer Search’s mission and enthusiasm for scaling a national nonprofit program and helping more youth realize their potential and achieve college success.

https://www.summersearch.org/who-we-are/careers-page?gnk=job&gni=8a78844955712e020155980dbf4c5d6a