Family Empowerment Coach (Bilingual)- Indianapolis Metropolitan High School

This position is currently needed through the end of the school year (June 2024), has full benefits offered (below) and the starting salary range is $45K. Preferred candidates for this position are bilingual in both English and Spanish.

The Family Empowerment Coach serves as a member of the Student Services team at the Indianapolis Metropolitan High School and will be a member of a school community with an educational model that complements the acclaimed barrier removal work Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana does at The Excel Centers, Nurse-Family Partnership, and other award-winning programs.  The coach helps students achieve their academic and post-secondary goals by providing ongoing advising, support, and resource connections to the student, family, and other supportive adults around the student.  Each coach is responsible for a caseload, typically ranging from 65–90 students in grades 9-12 in a “best fit” environment for teenagers with significant barriers to education.  The coach builds relationships with students and families and provides resources to connect to opportunities and remove barriers to the student's educational progress.  Effective coaches understand how to triage their caseloads by managing their core responsibilities while also being responsive to student and family crises as they arise.  With our core values of Professional, Unstoppable, Motivated, Accountable, and Supportive, the school priorities include:

• High rigor, high support instruction to close academic gaps and prepare students for post-secondary opportunities.

• Trauma-informed social-emotional learning. 

• Student and family empowerment through coordination with a robust student services team of coaches, counselors, and more.

Example Duties and Activities

• Meets with students to set goals, creates action plans, connect to resources, and ensure all is met within a provided timeline.  Utilizes coaching strategies to build rapport with students to influence decision-making.

• Attends all team, student, family, and professional meetings to advocate on behalf of students.

• Engages actively with students’ families and support networks through all means necessary, including home visits.  Monitors attendance and intervenes when students are absent.

• Tracks, maintains, and reviews accurate, compliant student data related to academic progress.  Monitors student progress and adjusts plans based on ongoing data review.

• Develops class schedules.  Advises, directs, and supports students on a path that leads to graduation and postsecondary success.

• Initiates and maintains networks with key community partners including Goodwill Mission Initiatives community agencies, educational institutions, and employers, to enhance the menu of services offered and to connect students to wrap-around services to remove barriers and support academic and/or personal goals.

• Chaperones field trips and drives mini-bus to take students to community events and to help with the daily transportation of students.  As needed, travels on Indy Go buses with students and provides supervision at bus stops/stations to support student behavior and safety.  

• Maintains a visible presence and is active in the building during the school day.

• Partners with colleagues to refer and connect students to wraparound supports including internal and community resources, Social-Emotional Learning, Special Education, and more. 

• Develops deep and lasting relationships with staff, students, and families to create a positive student culture.

• Aids the school community by attending extracurricular events such as athletic contests and family nights. 

Required Competencies

• Degree and Credential Requirements - Bachelor’s degree in psychology, human relations, social work, rehabilitation counseling, education, academic advising, or related fields.

• Counseling Expertise - Provides academic, career, college/certification access, and social-emotional mentoring, counseling, or advising ideally to high school-age students in a high poverty, racially diverse education setting.

• Communication Skills - Articulates thoughts and expresses ideas effectively using oral, written, visual, and non-verbal communication skills, as well as listening skills to comprehend customers' needs. Delivers information in person, in writing, and in a digital world.

• Meeting Facilitation - Adept at scheduling, coordinating, and managing productive meetings of large and small groups; professionally manages conflict and commitment; ensures follow-through of participants.

• Academic Mindset - Possesses the essential mindset that all students can succeed. Is compelled to improve the outcomes and lives of students in and out of the classroom.  Is an outstanding role model for students.

• Student Engagement - Takes a strengths-based, student-centered approach to developing relationships at all levels while establishing appropriate boundaries. Adept at delivering feedback that is constructive and unbiased. Creates and maintains a safe environment for open discussions.

• Building Collaborative Relationships - Develops, maintains, and strengthens partnerships at all levels with others inside or outside the organization who can provide information, assistance, and support. Is able to receive as well as provide feedback to improve performance or processes.

• Technical Knowledge – Has working knowledge of G Suite, MS Office, and the Internet, as well as student information systems.

• Organizational Aptitude - Plans and attends to details and pursues quality in accomplishing multiple tasks in an organized and timely fashion. Exhibits careful attention to detail and follow-through.

• Informed Decision-Making - Identifies and comprehends issues, problems, and opportunities; compares data from different sources to draw conclusions; uses effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; takes action that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences.

• Adaptability - Maintains effectiveness when experiencing shifts in priorities; adjusts effectively while maintaining a positive learning environment.

Preferred Competencies 

• Bilingual- Fluency in both English and Spanish

• Diversity Awareness –  Works with diverse populations including people who have experienced barriers to their education. 

• Established Contacts - Maintains and grows a professional network of local community resources, health care providers, employers, and others as appropriate to the organization.

Other Requirements

• Background Screening - All candidates must pass a pre-employment background check.  Must have a valid driver’s license, a good driving record, and qualify under the district’s insurance carrier when driving a district vehicle. 

Benefits: Full-time employees may participate in a comprehensive benefits program that includes:

• Continuing education and leadership development as well as tuition reimbursement

• Comprehensive health plan

• Paid time off (PTO) and paid holidays

• Pay continuance during school break periods (spring, summer and fall)

• Life, dental and vision insurance

• Parenting and sabbatical leaves

• Short- and long-term disability plans

• Nationally recognized preventive health and wellness program

• Section 125 pre-tax health spending account, dependent care spending account, and premiums

• Retirement plan with generous match or contribution into Teachers’ Retirement Fund for eligible employees

• Eligible for the Public Student Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program

Goodwill Education Initiatives

Goodwill strongly believes it is essential to raise education attainment levels in Indiana. Not only are the lifetime earnings of high school graduates significantly higher than those of dropouts, children of high school graduates are 50% less likely to drop out of high school than the children of dropouts are. Goodwill provides opportunities for adults (The Excel Center) and youth (Indianapolis Metropolitan High School).

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Charter High School

Indianapolis Metropolitan High School is a free public school offering a high school education to students in grades 9-12. Indianapolis Met is a best-fit school for students experiencing circumstance that may present a barrier to education. Our school places an emphasis on ensuring students enroll in college or enter into a career that offers a living wage post-graduation.

Indianapolis Met is designed to serve students who are experiencing circumstances that may become barriers to their education.

https://gici.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/Careers/job/Indianapolis-IN/Family-Empowerment-Coach--Bilingual---Indianapolis-Metropolitan-High-School_2023-10011