Martin County High School currently has an opening for a School Counselor.  (Start Date:  To Be Determined.)  See the job description below for more information.

DEPARTMENT:  School-Based/Student Services

GRADE: State Salary Scale

FLSA:  Exempt

REPORTS TO:  Principal

SUPERVISES:  None

RECEIVES DIRECTION FROM:  Director of Student Services

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT:  10 months + 1 month of extended employment

QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Masters Level School Counselor License
• Interested individuals without a School Counselor license may qualify for a provisional license if they meet either of the following requirements:
• Completion of a Masters degree in Agency Counseling, Clinical Mental Health, Community Counseliong, or Rehabilitation Counseling from a regionally accredited college or university, OR
• Completion of a minimum of 18 graduate semester hours in a school counselor program.

NATURE OF WORK:  School counselors promote student success, provide preventive services, and respond to identified student needs by implementing a comprehensive school counseling program that addresses academic, career, and personal/social development for all students. 

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• General knowledge of the ethical guidelines applicable to the position as outlined by professional organizations and/or federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations.
• General knowledge of the principles of organization and administration.
• General knowledge of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study.
• Skill in counseling and motivating students.
• Ability to plan, coordinate, and evaluate the effectiveness of student programs.
• Ability to coordinate the efforts of support services personnel and outside agencies.
• Ability to use common office machines and popular computer-driven word processing, spreadsheet and file maintenance programs.
• Ability to maintain complete and accurate records and statistics and to develop meaningful reports from them.
• Ability to effectively express ideas orally and in writing.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships as necessitated by work assignments.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. This list is meant to be representative, not exhaustive. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.  The employee is required to follow all board policies and procedures and to comply with the instructions and/or directives from his/her supervisor(s).

1. MAJOR FUNCTION: DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL COUNSELING PROGRAM

• Discusses the comprehensive school counseling program with the school administrator.
• Develops and maintains a written plan for effective delivery of the school counseling program based on the NC Guidance Standard Course of Study and current individual school data.
• Communicates the goals of the comprehensive school counseling program to education stakeholders (i.e., administrators, teachers, students, parents, and community/business leaders).
• Maintains current and appropriate resources for education stakeholders.
• Uses the majority of time providing direct services through the Guidance Curriculum, Individual Student Planning and Preventive and Responsive Services, and most remaining time in program management, system support, and accountability.
• Uses data to develop comprehensive programs that meet student needs.

2. MAJOR FUNCTION: DELIVERY OF A COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL COUNSELING PROGRAM
   • Provides leadership and collaborates with other educators in the school-wide integration of the State Guidance Curriculum Standard Course of Study.
   • Implements developmentally appropriate and prevention-oriented group activities to meet student needs and school goals.
   • Incorporates into their programs the life skills that students need to be successful in the twenty-first century.
   • Assists all students, individually or in groups, with developing academic, career and personal/social skills, goals, and plans.
   • Accurately and appropriately interprets and utilizes student data.
   • Collaborates with parents/guardians and educators to assist students with educational, career, and life planning.
   • Provides individual and group counseling to students with identified concerns and needs.
   • Consults and collaborates effectively with parents/guardians, teachers, administrators, and other educational/community resources regarding students with identified concerns and needs.
   • Implements an effective referral and follow-up process as needed.
   • Accurately and appropriately uses assessment procedures for determining and structuring individual and group counseling services.
   • Provides appropriate information to school personnel related to the comprehensive school counseling program.
   • Assists teachers, parents/guardians, and other stakeholders in interpreting and understanding student data.
   • Participates in professional development activities to improve knowledge and skills.
   • Uses available technology resources to enhance the school counseling program.
   • Adheres to laws, policies, procedures, and ethical standards of the school counseling profession.
3. MAJOR FUNCTION: ACCOUNTABILITY
   • Conducts a yearly program audit to review extent of program implementation and effectiveness.
   • Collects and analyzes data to guide program direction and emphasis.
   • Measures results of the comprehensive school counseling program activities and shares results as appropriate with relevant stakeholders.
   • Monitors student academic performance, behavior, and attendance and facilitates appropriate interventions.
4. Performs other duties and responsibilities as assigned by supervisor

PHYSICAL AND COGNITIVE REQUIREMENTS:  The major physical and cognitive requirements listed below are applicable to the School Counselor job classification within Martin County Schools.  Work in this classification is considered light physical work requiring the exertion of up to 20 pounds of force occasionally and a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to move objects.

Physical Requirements: Must be physically able to operate a variety of equipment including computers, typewriters, copiers, calculators, etc. Must be able to exert up to 10 pounds of force occasionally, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to lift, carry, push, and pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body. Light Physical Work usually requires walking or standing to a significant degree.

Data Conception: Requires the ability to compare and/or judge the readily observable, functional, structural or composite characteristics (whether similar or divergent from obvious standards) of data, people or things.

Interpersonal Communication: Requires the ability to speak and/or signal people to convey or exchange information. Includes receiving instructions, assignments or directions.

Language Ability: Requires the ability to read a variety of correspondence, reports, forms, press releases, etc. Requires the ability to prepare correspondence, reports, forms, etc., using prescribed formats and conforming to all rules of punctuation, grammar, diction, and style. Requires the ability to speak before groups of people with poise, voice control and confidence.

Intelligence: Requires the ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions; to interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions in mathematical or diagrammatic form; and to deal with several abstract and concrete variables.

Verbal Aptitude: Requires the ability to record and deliver information, to explain procedures, to follow oral and written instructions. Must be able to communicate effectively and efficiently using a variety of technical or professional languages including counseling terminology.

Numerical Aptitude: Requires the ability to utilize mathematical formulas; to add and subtract; multiply and divide; utilize decimals and percentages; and to apply the theories of descriptive statistics.

Form/Spatial Aptitude: Requires the ability to inspect items for proper length, width and shape.

Motor Coordination: Requires the ability to coordinate hands and eyes rapidly and accurately in using office equipment.

Manual Dexterity: Requires the ability to handle a variety of items such as office equipment. Must have minimal levels of eye/hand/foot coordination.

Color Discrimination: Does not require the ability to differentiate between colors and shades of color.

Interpersonal Temperament: Requires the ability to deal with people beyond giving and receiving instructions. Must be adaptable to performing under stress and when confronted with emergency situations.

Physical Communication: Requires the ability to talk and hear: (Talking: expressing or exchanging ideas by means of spoken words. Hearing: perceiving nature of sounds by ear.) Must be able to communicate via telephone.

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee regularly works indoors. The noise level in the work environment is usually minimal. The work is performed in the school.