FY 25-26 HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELOR

JOB TITLE: Secondary School Counselor - VISA (High School)

STATUS: Full Time, Exempt

REPORTS TO: Director of Mental Health

ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW

Vaughn Next Century Learning Center (“Vaughn”), located in Pacoima, is a large urban public school within the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Since the early 1970s, low student achievement had been a pattern. In 1993, tired of being helpless and hopeless, Vaughn became the first conversion charter school in the nation and was authorized by LAUSD. The charter was renewed most recently in 2018. Vaughn has over 25 years of experience as a successful independent charter school serving the district’s low-income students. This previously failing elementary public school is now a full-service, community-based, K-12th charter school that assures all students are college/career ready, digitally literate, and globally competent.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The School Counselor at Vaughn Next Century Learning Center plays a vital role in supporting students’ academic, social-emotional, and college/career development. This position is responsible for implementing Tier I and Tier II interventions, providing counseling services to individuals and small groups, and collaborating with staff, families, and the community to foster a positive school climate. The counselor ensures that all students receive equitable support through proactive prevention, targeted interventions, and crisis management as needed.

The role involves contributing to the creation and management of the high school master schedule, participating in multidisciplinary teams, including 504, IEP, SSPT, and threat assessment meetings, and supporting school-wide initiatives to enhance student behavior, welfare, and attendance. The counselor also serves as a resource for student behavior management strategies and community referrals, while utilizing electronic record-keeping systems to maintain compliance with programmatic and regulatory requirements.

This position requires a commitment to collaborative work, flexibility to extend beyond standard school hours, and dedication to modeling and teaching the core values of Vaughn Next Century Learning Center.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the direction of the Administrator/Coordinator, the responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Assists students in the area of academic, social/emotional and college/career development.
• Oversees and supports Tier I and Tier II educational and social-emotional interventions (including but not limited to prevention and intervention activities at individual, small group, family, classroom and school-wide level).
• Assists with the creation of the high school master schedule. Ensures proper planning and preparation of the scheduling process to align with school preparation and priorities.
• Provides behavioral and educational counseling to individuals and small groups of students.
• Develops and maintains a written plan for efficient delivery of school counseling services on current individual data.
• Prepares records and reports related to the assignment; prepares letters to parents, reports, referrals, and related documents.
• Collaborates with peers, aides, teachers, and administrators to develop school-wide efforts to enhance school climate and build positive behavior supports.
• Communicates with support staff, administrators, teachers and parents about student progress
• Supports with multi-tiered attendance efforts as necessary.
• Provides and conducts home visits as appropriate.
• Provides crisis support services (risk assessment, safety planning, brief counseling, linkages) as necessary.
• Serves as a resource on student behavior management strategies, welfare and attendance problems and concerns.
• Makes referrals to other community resources, support groups, and social service agencies as appropriate.
• Utilizes electronic health records systems (Aeries and Welligent) for documentation pertaining to programmatic requirements, and to comply with federal, state, and Department of Mental Health regulations.
• Participate in and successfully complete all requirements necessary for billing under behavioral health services programs, including but not limited to, compliance with the California Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) fee schedule and any related documentation, training, or reporting obligations.
• Participates in 504 and IEP meetings for assigned students.
• Participates in staff development and faculty meetings.
• Participates and assists with SSPT meetings as necessary.
• Supports administration with yard supervision as necessary.
• Plans, coordinates, and participates in multidisciplinary teams, including Graduate-level student intern training and supervision program.
• Participates in Governing Committees.
• Participates in the Vaughn Mental Health Team meetings and events.
• Participates in Crisis Teams and Threat Assessment Team.
• Provides support recovery programs for students and staff in the event of a natural disaster or act of violence/terrorism.
• Desires to collaborate closely with students, colleagues, and community in modeling and teaching the values of Vaughn Next Century Learning Center.
• Is willing to work beyond the parameters of a regular school day to assure the success of the program.
• Other duties as assigned.

SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS

• Possess a work ethic and personal belief system that aligns with the mission and vision of Vaughn Next Century Learning Center
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and the ability to interact and forge relationships with students, parents, staff and community members
• Extremely high standards for student achievement
• Demonstrated relentlessness to meet organizational goals
• Self-directed with the ability to work both autonomously and in teams
• Bilingual (Spanish/English) preferred but not required

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• Must have a valid California Pupil Personnel Services credential with a School Counseling authorization
• Masters of Arts Degree in Counseling

HEALTH AND FITNESS REQUIREMENTS

• Must have the physical and mental fitness to perform the duties of a certificated school counselor (Ed. Code §44839).

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

• A valid California Driver License and the use of an automobile.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

• $74,029.20 - $101,717.25
• 184 days of work per year
• 10 Sick Days per year (accrued on a per payroll basis)
• Eligible for competitive health benefits (medical, dental, vision)
• 100% employer covered life insurance
• 100% employer covered long-term disability insurance
• Access to Vaughn Perks, an employee benefits hub with access to discounts and services
• CalSTRS contribution for CalSTRS-eligible positions

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Upon receiving an offer of employment:

• Must pass a criminal background check (Live Scan) with the Department of Justice (DOJ)
• Must provide a Tuberculosis skin test (Mantoux) clearance within 60 days of employment
• Will be assigned mandated state training to be completed prior to the first day of employment

Vaughn Next Century Learning Center does not discriminate on the basis of race, religious creed, color, ethnic or national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, uniformed service member status, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, marital status, sex, pregnancy, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected basis under the law. Equal opportunity shall be provided to all employees and applicants in every aspect of personnel policy and practice. Vaughn does not discriminate against persons with disabilities who, with reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the job in question.

DISCLAIMER

This job description is not intended to be a complete statement of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications associated with this position. VNCLC reserves the right to modify or change the duties of this position at any time