TRiO Student Success Navigator

Louisiana Community and Technical College System • Opelousas, LA

1d • Onsite

About The Position

South Louisiana Community College is seeking a TRiO Student Success Navigator for the Student Success Center within the Academic & Student Affairs department. This is an unclassified, grant-funded administrative/staff position. The Navigator will provide comprehensive advising services to TRIO SSS participants, focusing on academic, career, financial literacy, learning, and personal skills. The role involves developing individualized educational plans, coaching students on academic strategies, serving as an academic advisor, and facilitating program activities like workshops and campus visits. The position also supports the Director with tutoring services and peer academic coach training, and assists in evaluating and updating advising services to align with grant objectives and federal requirements. Additionally, the Navigator will conduct intake assessments, monitor student progress, promote student development and advocacy, provide holistic advising and career counseling, and ensure participants have access to federally required TRIO services. Data collection, analysis, and reporting, along with maintaining confidential student records, are also key responsibilities. The role requires representation of first-generation, low-income, and disabled students on college committees, support for recruitment efforts, and engagement in professional development to enhance advising skills and maintain compliance with federal TRIO expectations. Collaboration with various college departments and external partners is essential to ensure comprehensive support systems for TRIO students.

Requirements

• Associate’s degree required in education, counseling, student affairs, social sciences, or a related field.
• Two years of experience in an educational setting or similar, e.g., community engagement, social services.
• Demonstrated commitment to serving first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented students.
• Strong organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and the ability to learn student information and case management systems.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
• Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.
• Proven abilities of intellectual reasoning, power of persuasion, and consistent dedication to the position.
• Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.
• Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and to draw and interpret bar graphs.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office software (Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, and Word).
• Ability to learn to operate College-specific software and applications.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in counseling, higher education, or a related discipline.
• Previous experience working with TRIO or other federally funded programs.
• Knowledge of student development theory, academic advising models, and retention best practices.
• Bilingual or multilingual proficiency.

Responsibilities

• Provide academic, career, financial literacy, learning, and personal skills advising to a caseload of TRIO SSS participants.
• Develop individualized educational plans for participants, including measurable goals and milestones to support academic persistence and completion.
• Coach students in academic behavior modification, effective study habits, and college success strategies.
• Serve as academic advisor for TRIO participants, including those with documented disabilities; collaborate with Disability Services to ensure accommodations are appropriately utilized.
• Develop and facilitate program activities such as workshops, cultural enrichment events, campus visits, and college tours.
• Assist the Director with alignment of tutoring services and training of peer academic coaches.
• Help coordinate, evaluate, and update TRIO advising services, ensuring alignment with federally required services and grant objectives.
• Assist students in developing learning strategies and utilizing instructional technologies.
• Conduct comprehensive intake and assessment of SSS applicants using informal and formal assessment tools to determine eligibility and needs.
• Regularly monitor student progress and provide proactive interventions when challenges arise.
• Promote student development, advocacy, and engagement, helping students access institutional and community resources.
• Provide holistic advising and career counseling, including transfer planning, course selection, and preparation for postsecondary opportunities.
• Assure participants have access to federally required TRIO services as outlined in 34 CFR 646, including tutoring, financial aid information, financial literacy education, and transfer support.
• Collect, maintain, and analyze student data; assist with the preparation of the Annual Performance Report (APR) and other required reports.
• Keep accurate and confidential student records in Blumen, ConexED, and related student tracking systems.
• Assist with continuous quality improvement initiatives of the TRIO SSS program.
• Represent the needs of first-generation, low-income, and disabled students on college committees and workgroups.
• Support recruitment and outreach for SSS applicants.
• Promote a collaborative team environment supportive of TRIO program goals and the mission of SoLAcc.
• Engage in ongoing professional development to enhance advising skills and maintain compliance with federal TRIO expectations.
• Collaborate with Project Director, faculty, and staff to design and implement academic success, financial literacy, transfer, and career readiness programming tailored to the needs of TRIO participants across multiple campuses.
• Provide academic advising and success coaching to an assigned caseload of TRIO students, including course scheduling, transfer planning, and educational plan development.
• Build and maintain strong collaborative relationships with SoLAcc departments (Academic Affairs, Financial Aid, Disability Services, Counseling, and Career Services) to ensure TRIO students have access to comprehensive support systems.
• Support participants by connecting them to institutional and community resources, including tutoring, counseling, student organizations, and external partners.
• Represent TRIO SSS and SoLAcc at campus events, community activities, and professional TRIO conferences to promote program visibility and participant success.
• Other duties as assigned

Benefits

• Retirement
• Multiple medical insurance options
• Supplemental insurances (dental, term life, disability, accident, vision, etc.)
• Tax Saver Flexible Benefits Plan (saves tax dollars on some child care and medical expenses)
• Holidays (14 per year, typically includes longer break at Christmas)
• Generous annual (vacation) and sick leave benefits
• Employee Assistance Program

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Associate degree