Student Achievement & Learning Advocate

Frederick, Maryland•Frederick, MD

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Hood College is focused on providing students with enhanced student experiences that empowers students to use their hearts, minds, and hands to meet personal, professional, and global challenges and to lead purposeful lives of responsibility, leadership, service, and civic engagement. The Student Success Center provides holistic support to empower our students to seek help, be resilient, and reach their goals to ease their transition to college. We promote accessibility, diversity, and belonging that fosters a safe and inclusive environment for all members of Hood College. Our vision is to be a leading unit in student success by supporting students through individualized advising and mentoring and co-curricular engagement to thrive academically, personally, and professionally. Under the direct supervision of the Associate Dean of Student Success, the Student Achievement & Learning Advocate is responsible for providing holistic, direct, and personalized support to all Hood College students to guide them through complex issues regarding academic progress, including students on academic probations and warning. This position has responsibility and accountability for increasing graduation and retention rates and decreasing the number of students placed on academic probation. The Student Achievement & Learning advocate will work closely with the Student Success team and the Office of Accessibility Services, when applicable, to support students in the Academic Success Program and oversee the tutoring program and testing center.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in counseling, education, social work, or related field.
Two years of relevant experience in an educational setting.
Demonstrate an understanding of diversity through success in working with multicultural, international, traditional, adult, and special student populations.
Must possess a holistic student-centered philosophy.
Ability to work a flexible schedule, including some evening and weekend hours.
Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with many interruptions.
Must be able to travel on occasion with students and/or for professional development.
Strong organizational, analytical & problem-solving skills.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to draft reports, correspondence, and/or manuals.
Proficient in MS Office tools (Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint), e-mail, and online resources.
Ability to learn new applications quickly including organization-wide information systems and department-specific software applications.
Strong verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to effectively provide information and positively respond to questions from both external and internal stakeholders both in person and by phone.
Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
Proficient with statistical and financial concepts.
Must have the ability to apply those concepts to tracking, projections, goal setting and interpreting reports.
Must be able to draw conclusions from reports and make cost-effective decisions regarding programs.
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a number of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, verbal, diagram, or schedule form.
Ability to work independently and as a member of a group in developing and executing project plans.
Ability to work in theoretical arena and apply logic as appropriate.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand; walk; use fingers, hands, reach with hands and arms; and talk and hear.
The employee is required to sit.
The employee may occasionally be required to stand and lift and move up to twenty-five pounds.
Specific vision abilities required include close vision.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree in counseling, education, social work, or related field.
Previous experience working with traditionally underserved students.
Previous academic advising/coaching experience.
Knowledge of student development & advising theory related to role.
Familiarity with student information systems and data management.
Mental Health First Aid Certification.
Bilingual (English/Spanish).
Understanding of student development, advising methods, academic policies & information, registration, and support resources.

Responsibilities

Assist with the coordination, development, and implementation of appropriate high engagement student success strategies and supporting technologies.
Provide comprehensive holistic support and proactive guidance for students from admission to degree completion.
Manage an assigned case list of up to 125 undergraduate students and other students needing support.
Monitor and track students' academic progress each semester.
Advise students on degree progress, transfer planning, wellness, and personal and career goal completion.
Develop, monitor, and review personal educational plans with students.
Employ intervention strategies to aid students in regaining good academic standing.
Provide and maintain ongoing outreach to students on assigned case list and students placed in the GPS (Guided Pathways for Success) program.
Keep accurate documentation of each advising session and services provided to students.
Assist the Associate Dean of Student Success to assess all aspects of the GPS program to identify opportunities for refinement and improvement.
Coordinate, develop, facilitate, and present workshops on assorted topics.
Refer students to appropriate on and off campus resources.
Support summer registration by registering and supporting new students and other student support retention initiatives.
Cultivate relationships with administrators, faculty, staff, and athletics to ensure accurate and timely communication and resolution of student needs, obstacles, and questions.
Provide support and reporting for the Blazer Navigate (retention/academic alert) system and serve as an achievement advocate to provide proactive outreach and individualized academic success coaching support.
Assist with summer advising for first-year and transfer students.
Support a caseload of advisees.
Assist the Director of Accessibility Services to select, hire, train, and supervise undergraduate student proctors.
Manage testing center operations to include activities like maintaining testing center database and associated email inboxes, scheduling student appointments, preparing tests, corresponding with professors and students, configuring student accommodations, scheduling and supervising proctors, & generating reports and data.
Maintain confidential student records.
Comply with and enforce all testing procedures, practices, and policies.
Resolve problems or testing issues that may arise during testing sessions.
Develop and facilitate executive functioning training sessions and other professional development opportunities for tutors and blazer academic coaches.
Serve as a direct point of contact for faculty, staff, and students regarding the testing center.
Supervise student workers in the testing center and in the student success center.
Provide training for student success staff and testing center staff.
Coordinate coverage for front desk staff and testing center staff.
Distribute staff schedules for testing center and student success center to all student success center staff.
May serve on the Students of Concern Committee and other College committees.
Partner with campus departments to participate in new student orientation, academic, career, cultural, recruitment, and student engagement events.
Participate in campus wide events, including commencement.
Represent the Office of Student Success at campus wide events.
Evening and weekend responsibilities may be required.
May travel with students on occasion.
Work collaboratively with other members of the student success team to advance the mission of the College and Student Success office.
May teach up to one Academic Success Seminar course (2 credits) once a semester/year.
Assess and report course learning outcomes and student success metrics.
Provide regular office hours for enrolled students.
Provide timely, consistent, and regular feedback to students; maintain advising documentation.
Submit academic alerts and/or kudos, and grades in a timely manner.