Student Engagement Specialist, Student Outreach

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Location:

Central-42 West Madison Street (CW Student Supprt and Engageme)

CPS Non-Union Job Grade : S05

Estimated Annual Salary Range: 50,000.

Position Type :
Non-Union Position

Overtime Status:
Exempt

JOB DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is one of the largest school districts in the United States, serving over 320,000 students in 600+ schools and employing approximately 40,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life.

In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families, and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability, and integrity. Six core values are embedded within these commitments – student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.

Located within the Office of Student Support and Engagement (OSSE), the Student Outreach and Re-engagement (SOAR) Center is a cross-agency collaborative focused on the re-engagement and re-enrollment of chronically truant and out-of-school youth. The SOAR program is intended to ensure the successful transition and graduation of students who have dropped out of school and desire to re-enroll in a program that will assist them in developing their path to graduation.

The SOAR teams work closely with District and Options Schools, which offer additional supports and services for students who need a new pathway toward high school graduation, who have been out of school and seek to return, or who may need opportunities to earn credits in an accelerated program.

The Student Engagement Specialist will be responsible for facilitating the reconnection of disengaged students to school via the appropriate academic and social-emotional interventions. Student Engagement Specialists play multiple roles in locating and reconnecting students who are chronically truant, including working with community partners to locate and engage out-of-school students, and completing comprehensive intake interviews and assessments of each individual student’s needs.

This position will build and maintain strong relationships with the student, family, and school community to support successful placement in the learning environment and ensure the interventions are effective. This position will also monitor students’ progress while receiving services, and after re-enrolling into school. The Student Engagement Specialist will report to the SOAR Center Re-Engagement Program Coordinator.

The Student Engagement Specialist will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

• Develop a supportive and trusting relationship with at-risk students
• Conduct a comprehensive intake interview to identify the student’s interests, strengths, and specific barriers or challenges impeding successful engagement in school and academic performance
• Review student transcripts, records, and historical school data to guide student conversations, school placement recommendations, and transition/support plans
• Utilize active listening, motivational interviewing, and empathetic, non-judgmental conversation to deeply engage with and learn about students
• Work with students to establish academic and career interests and goals, and to utilize those in the determination of the best school fit
• Work with the school counselor, social service workers, and community partners to develop individualized intervention and graduation plans to address social/emotional issues impacting performance
• Monitor student academic progress, attendance, and behavior and provide personalized interventions as needed to keep the student enrolled in the school and on-track for…