High School Counselor

Otter Valley Union Middle and High School is seeking an enthusiastic, innovative, and collaborative full-time High School counselor to fill a vacancy in the 2025-26 school year. The High School Counselor is an essential component of the entire school community at OVUHS. The School Counselor serves as both student advocate and guide whose primary purposes are to assist students with academic, developmental, social/emotional, and career/college needs of students on their caseload, and to participate actively as a member of a collaborative student support team. We encourage candidates of diverse backgrounds, including those outside of traditional education, to apply for this position. It is anticipated that the successful candidate will be assigned as the school counselor for students in Grades 9-10, though the exact distribution of caseloads will be determined based on the strengths of the members of the team. Job Responsibilities Provides guidance and counseling services for the purpose of assisting all Otter Valley students with increasing their abilities to understand and make healthy choices both academically and personally. Responsible for a student caseload of approximately 190 students. The responsibilities to each student involve academic planning, maintenance of academic schedule, addressing social and emotional needs, attending related team meetings, development of post secondary plans, and facilitating close communication with students, home, and school. Provides students and parents with information and resources about college, post-secondary, career planning, pre-vocational and pre-college testing, and financial aid. Writes letters of recommendation for seniors and individually assists seniors with college applications. Designs and implements events for students and parents, workshops, presentations, special programs, and publications on such topics as: college admissions, financial aid, career exploration, course selection, and other caregiver education programs as needed. Assists with all activities related to student course registration. This includes orientation programs for all students, developing registration materials, supervising the registration process in grades 9-10, in a timely and efficient way. Coordinates individual student scheduling and planning in order to allow for equitable access for diverse and robust learning opportunities for each student. Consults with caregivers and teachers in constructively planning for the learning needs and social-emotional concerns of the students. Serves as an active member/organizer of student team meetings. Provides short term counseling to students as they mature developmentally, academically, and socially. Mediates conflicts between students, students and faculty, and works closely with administration for discipline and harassment concerns. Provides crisis intervention to students and school community and makes appropriate referrals to community and school-based services, including through the use of suicide screening as appropriate. Oversees the registration, placement, and orientation programs which facilitate the transition of new and transfer students on your caseload. Plans and attends numerous special events, including but not limited to: awards assemblies and programs, parents nights, orientation programs, and graduation. Keeps professionally current in counseling practices. Participates in appropriate school, district, and community councils and committees. Helps foster a positive and inclusive school climate. Education, Training and Experience Requirements Master Degree A minimum of 1 years experience, preferred in a 7-12 educational setting Licensure or eligibility for licensure in the area of school counseling Strong communication, facilitation, computer, and organizational skills Excellent counseling skills and experience with a wide variety of populations Career development, academic advising, and college counseling knowledge A strong commitment to equitable access to meaningful and rigorous learning opportunities for all students Interested candidates should apply on schoolspring.com to: Michael Ruppel, Principal

Salary : $48,000 - $96,000