Job Title:         Counselor                                  Wage/Hour Status:      Exempt

Reports to:       Principal                                    Date Revised:              March, 2022

Dept./School:  Assigned Campus

Summary:

Plan, implement, and evaluate a comprehensive school counseling program at assigned campus. Counsel students to fully develop each student’s academic, career, personal, and social abilities and address the needs of special population students. Deliver guidance curriculum in various group sizes. Educate students of skills necessary to address troublesome circumstances, support students in challenging situations, and assist students with needed resources to navigate crisis situations.

Qualifications/Education:

• Master's degree in counseling from an accredited college or university
• Two years creditable experience as a classroom teacher
• Valid Texas school counselor certificate

 Other Skills and Abilities:

1. Knowledge of counseling procedures, student appraisal, and career development.
2. Excellent organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills.
3. Ability to instruct students and manage their behavior.
4. Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with students, peers and parents. Skill in oral and written communication.
5. Ability to write reports, procedure manuals, and other school related correspondence.
6. Ability to present information in one-on-one, small group, and large group situations to administrators, board of trustees, staff, students, parents, and the general public.
7. Ability to apply concepts of basic algebra and geometry. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and to draw and interpret bar graphs.
8. Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
9. Ability to provide virtual/distance services and lessons to students via Google Classroom and other multimedia options in response to pandemics, natural disasters, catastrophic events, etc.

 Major Responsibilities and Duties:

Guidance Curriculum

1. Plan, organize, implement, and deliver structured group lessons according to the district’s guidance curriculum to improve students’ interpersonal and intrapersonal effectiveness, personal health and safety, post-secondary planning and readiness, and other developmental needs.
2. Teach the school guidance curriculum components through the use of effective instructional strategies and planned structured groups considering diverse student populations and needs for differentiated instruction.
3. Work with students, staff, parents or guardians, and the community to identify priorities where students will be served through the guidance curriculum component. Collaborate across curricular areas to integrate guidance lessons into content area curriculum.
4. Create a balanced curriculum by using well-planned and intentional activities and materials, incorporating guest speakers, and offering engaging delivery techniques, including technology tools.

Responsive Services

1. Use accepted theories and effective techniques of developmental guidance to respond to problematic or critical incidents to support students and offer services in time of need.
2. Use preventive activities to remove barriers that interfere with a student’s educational, career, personal, and social development.
3. Implement remediation practices to assist students in coping with problem situations or unwise choices. Identify precipitating and antecedent factors, effective and ineffective approaches to dealing with the circumstances, and provide feedback to guide future decisions.
4. Use an effective referral process to help students and others use special programs and services.
5. Use specialized skills to support students in crisis situations requiring immediate response. Maintain a healthy and safe school environment by collaborating with district staff, parents or guardians, and local officials.
6. Provide continued support to students in need through individual counseling, small group counseling, consultation, or referral to services outside the school or district.
7. Serve as an impartial, non-reporting resource for interpersonal conflicts and discourse involving two or more students, including accusations of bullying.

Individual Planning

1. Create school counseling services that are developmental and age appropriate and provide information or literature that highlights related topics to students, teachers, and administrators.
2. Assist individual students and their parents or guardians in monitoring their academic, career, personal, and social development as they progress in school.
3. Act as a student advocate, leader, collaborator, and systems change agent. Advocate for a school environment that acknowledges and respects diversity and ensures equitable access and placement in courses and programs for minority, disenfranchised, homeless, and other special populations.
4. Interpret standardized test results, offer career development activities, provide strategies for grade level transitions, and guide students in individual goal setting and planning including creating and reviewing personal graduation plans and providing information about post-secondary opportunities.

 System Support

1. Participate in planning, implementation, and evaluation of campus standardized testing program.
2. Collect, summarize, and interpret testing data to plan, create interventions, guide students, and address specific student needs.
3. Conduct an annual program audit to inform accountability, action plans, time management, and systemic change.
4. Participate in campus-based school improvement planning and goal setting.
5. Provide parent or guardian and staff training and consultation to foster student educational, career, personal, and social development.
6. Clearly articulate and communicate the counseling program’s management system and related program action plans to campus and district staff, parents or guardians, and the community.
7. Participate in staff development and continuing education opportunities to improve job-related skills and research to identify best practices in implementing a comprehensive school counseling program.

Other Related Duties

1. Maintain confidentiality.
2. Participate in meetings and special events as assigned.in absences; be punctual to work, meetings, and appointments.
3. Exercise professional judgement
4. Compile, maintain, and file all reports, records, and other documents.
5. Comply with policies established by federal and state law, State Board of Education rule, and board policy. Comply with all district and campus routines and regulations.
6. Adhere to legal, ethical, and professional standards for school counselors including current professional standards of competence and practice.
7. Maintain a positive and effective relationship with supervisors.
8. Model behavior that is professional, ethical, and responsible.
9. Follow district safety protocols and emergency procedures.
10. Perform other duties as assigned by the immediate supervisor.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Supervise assigned counseling aide(s) and clerical employee(s) if applicable.

Equipment Used:

Computer, telephone, printer, copier, fax machine and calculator and peripherals.

Working Conditions:

Occasional absences are understood but regular attendance is required. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit and talk or hear.  The employee is subject to Prolonged sitting; frequent standing, kneeling/squatting, bending/stooping, pushing/pulling, and twisting, frequent walking. Regular light lifting and carrying (less than 15 pounds); occasional physical restraint of students to control behavior. Employee will work inside and may work outside and may be subject to extreme weather. The employee must maintain emotional control under stress; may work prolonged or irregular hours.

In accordance with TEA regulations, STET/HMPS will provide virtual/distance learning when it is necessary. This platform will be conducted either from a classroom or a location other than the school building, as approved by the Superintendent.  Employee will be subject to virtual/distance learning policies and procedures as set forth in the employee handbook.

STET/HMPS considers applications for all positions without regard to race, color, national origin, age, religion, sex, marital status, veteran or military status, the presence of a medical condition, disability, or any other legally protected status.

The information contained in this job description is for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) and is not an exhaustive list of the duties performed for this position.  Additional duties are performed by the individuals currently holding this position and additional duties may be assigned.