Orange Beach City Schools

Job Title: School Counselor

Reports To: Principal/Director of Student Affairs

Job Goal: Provide student counseling and comprehensive, developmental guidance services to foster a culture of intellectual curiosity where all students have ownership over their learning and are inspired to think, innovate, and create.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree or higher
• Holds or able to acquire a valid teaching certificate in Alabama with proper endorsement in school counseling
• Proficiency in oral and written communication skills
• Demonstrates aptitude or competence for assigned duties or responsibilities
• Alternatives to the above qualifications as the Board might find appropriate and acceptable

Performance Responsibilities:

• Demonstrates support for the school system and its vision, mission, goals, and priorities
• Ensure confidentiality of counseling sessions, conferences, student records, etc
• Continuously consult and collaborate with administrators, teachers, staff, and parents in understanding and meeting the academic, social, and emotional needs of students
• Continuously design and redesign the guidance counseling services to be responsive to the needs of students and parents and advances the system's mission
• Co-design and lead orientation programs for students and parents
• Guide and counsel large groups, small groups, and individual students through the development of personal, social, educational, and career plans
• Value and collaborate with parents as partners in their children's education
• Learn, utilize, and share effective resources and tools to help students learn how to cope with challenging academic, social, and emotional issues
• Refer students and their parents to appropriate specialists, special programs, or outside agencies as needed
• Conduct meaningful parent workshops and inform parents about the guidance counseling services on a regular basis
• Conduct focus groups and needs assessments to determine areas and topics to respond to parents' needs and interests
• Conduct focus groups and needs assessments to determine areas and topics to respond to students' needs and interests
• Conduct student focus groups to determine their level of engagement and ownership of their learning
• Lead and co-design the creation of a variety of tools to measure students' engagement and assess students' learning
• Support and partner with teachers in their role as facilitator, navigator, mentor, and encourager
• Encourage students' curiosity, self-discipline, and ownership of learning
• Value and collaborate with community and global experts to create challenging, authentic, and meaningful learning experiences and projects for students - including the use of mentors, internships, apprenticeships, field trips, etc
• Design, redesign, and facilitate challenging, authentic, and meaningful work that appeals to students' motives, interests, and learning styles
• Consistently encourage and support each student to reach his/her fullest potential and foster a positive school culture in which each student is valued and respected
• Model and co-design experiences that teach students, parents, teachers, and staff to learn resiliency
• Understand and foster the understanding that failure is a valuable part of the learning process that occurs when students challenge themselves
• Value and encourage students to learn any time and any place
• Acts as school testing coordinator in carrying out the state testing program
• Works with administrators, teachers and parents to interpret assessment data
• Lead professional learning, mentor aspiring teachers, conduct action research, share expertise, and contribute to the field of education
• Fulfill professional responsibilities beyond those exhibited in the classroom to include participation in school programs, school and system program improvement efforts, and community and parent groups
• Model appropriate personal characteristics and work habits
• Abide by and promote high ethical standards and adhere to the Alabama Code of Ethics for Educators
• Properly uses and cares for equipment and material resources of the school system
• Supports and complies with school system rules, administrative procedures, local Board policies, and state, federal, and local regulations
• Performs other tasks and assumes other responsibilities as may be assigned by supervisor(s)

Terms of Employment/Salary: 9, 10, or 12 months as assigned / To be determined, commensurate with local salary matrix, credentials, and experience.

Evaluation: Performance to be evaluated in accordance with provisions of the Board’s policy on Evaluation of Certified/Classified Personnel.

For School District information, please click here.

For Orange Beach City Schools Salary Schedule, please click here.