Our Mission

Together with families and communities, we create joyful, academically excellent schools that prepare students with the skills and confidence to pursue the paths they choose—college, career, and beyond—so they can lead fulfilling lives and build a more just world. Our program is based on:

• A focus on high-quality instruction supported by rigorous professional development to ensure that our students develop the academic skills necessary to pursue the life they choose.

• High regard for character development to ensure that our students and staff celebrate and develop their character and identity strengths.

• An emphasis on family engagement, because we believe that our students are most likely to be able to maximize their potential when we work in partnership with our students and their families.

• A focus on college readiness for all students so that all students can make choices about their post-secondary education and future.

What We Do

We seek to provide a world-class education for students from educationally underserved communities in Lynn and Boston. Our student demographics mirror those of neighborhood schools in terms of race, socioeconomic status, English Language Learners, and students who receive special education services.

Our promise to families is that their children will enter college and the professional world able to thrive academically due to their literacy, numeracy, and core knowledge in science and social studies. We also promise that our students will develop the zest for learning and grit necessary to persevere as they climb the mountain to and through college and career. Our graduates will be prepared to return to their community as teachers, leaders, and architects of continued growth in Lynn and Boston.

Our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity Vision

At KIPP Massachusetts, we believe that Knowledge is Power. Every day, our team and family have the opportunity to either perpetuate systems of oppression or disrupt them. We are compelled by the ideals of diversity, equity, and inclusivity. Therefore, we continuously commit to operating as an anti-racist organization.  Read more at Diversity Equity Inclusivity Vision.

Who We Are

KIPP Massachusetts began enrolling students in 2004. We currently hold two charters, operating two “districts.” Our first district, KIPP Academy Lynn Charter School, is based in Lynn, MA.  Our second district, KIPP Academy Boston Charter School, is based in Mattapan, MA. Each district is housed on one or more “campuses,” which we use to refer to different grade spans, for example, elementary grades, middle school grades, or high school grades.

In Lynn, KIPP Academy Lynn Elementary (serving grades K-4), KIPP Academy Lynn Middle (serving grades 5-8), and KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate (serving grades 9-12), are all under our Lynn charter.  Admission to any grade in the Lynn district is admission to all remaining grades in the Lynn district K-12. 66% of our students in Lynn are Hispanic, 23% are Black, and 11% are other races/ethnicities.

KIPP Academy Boston(serving grades K-8) operates under our Boston charter. Admission to any grade in the Boston district is admission to all remaining grades in the Boston district, K-8. 68% of our students in Boston are Black, 30% are Hispanic and 2% are other races/ethnicities.

Across both districts, in the school year, 2020-2021 KIPP Massachusetts will serve over 2,100 students.

KIPP National

KIPP Massachusetts is part of the nation-wide KIPP non-profit network of 255 college-preparatory, public charter schools educating more than 100,000 early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students.

KIPP Massachusetts is committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for all of our students, families, teachers, staff, and community members.

KIPP Through College and Career

The KIPP Through College and Career (KTCC) department provides alumni and their families with the essential knowledge and preparation they will need to live out our departmental mission. Successfully climbing their mountains to varying post-secondary training opportunities that will position them to live sustainable lives of choice, we look forward to watching them thrive as educated, professional, and socially conscious citizens. Ultimately, we envision that these self-sustaining KIPPsters will transform communities and create systemic change thereby increasing equity of access, opportunities, and resources. Grounding our mission and vision are the following core values:

• Wholistic Development
• Strength’s Based Perspective
• Mentorship and Education
• Advocacy & Social Justice
• Community & Collaboration

Role

Reporting to the Managing Director of KIPP Through College and Career (KTCC), the Manager, Mental Health Counseling/Socio-Emotional Learning is an essential member of the KTCC team who will work directly with KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate (KALC) and KIPP Academy Boston (KAB) Middle School students, alumni, families, and stakeholders. They are responsible for managing and executing the socio-emotional component of the 12th grade KALC and 8th-grade KAB bridge programs as well as corresponding student support services and programming. There will also be a primary focus on supporting the mental health, crisis, and case management needs of both Lynn and Boston alumni. The manager of this role will be charged with ensuring that all direct service and programming is implemented with a holistic and critically conscious lens that helps drive comprehensive high school matriculation for 8th graders, postsecondary program enrollment for 12th graders, and postsecondary program persistence and completion for alumni. This position will ultimately promote KTCC’s mission of supporting students to and through all secondary and postsecondary pathways while developing students’ knowledge, skills, and character. All of their efforts will support the aspirational goal of reaching a 75% postsecondary program completion rate for all KIPP MA alumni. 

Responsibilities

The employee within this role is expected to meet the responsibilities as indicated below and other duties as assigned. 

Mental Health Counseling

• Implement trauma-sensitive and healing centered practice grounded in social justice and equity that aids in identifying and developing student and alumni individual strengths, interests, and opportunities as well as supports general departmental practice.
• Provide assessment, intervention, direct clinical counseling, and case management services while managing and maintaining the administrative components of the work (i.e., clinical progress notes, client files, etc).
• Provide crisis management and arrange for emergency service coverage and/or filing 51A reports as needed. 
• Provide counseling supervision for the KTCC department staff (i.e., high school placement, post-secondary match, persistence pathways, and career counselors and advisors) in order to further develop best fit practice in student support services.
• Invest in early relationship building through a strength’s based, empathic approach that promotes moderate to high levels of student and alumni engagement throughout the year.
• Ensure that all students, visitors, guests, as well as coworkers, receive personalized, prompt attention and are treated with receptiveness, dignity, and respect.

Program Management

• Manage BREATHE, a comprehensive counseling program that addresses the socio-emotional and mental health challenges and non-cognitive skills development for 8th and 12th-grade students as well as alumni.
• Manage the KAB 8th grade and KALC 12th grade bridge wrap-around program model supporting students with socio-emotional and differentiated ability needs.
• Manage the development and implementation of strand annual and strategic program goals. 
• Support regional initiatives that pertain to the k-16 Healing & Well-being Community of Practice. 
• Develop and maintain long-term and short-term (i.e., annual) strategic plans for the BREATHE program model.
• Develop and facilitate workshops to educate parents on how best to support their child’s respective, developmentally appropriate socio-emotional and essential life needs. 
• Maintain strand program and personal professional development budgets. 

Partnerships and Collaboration

• Work collaboratively with KTCC department strand leads to develop and support students’ strong transitions, persistence, and success through planning and executing collective workshops as well as individual collaboration.
• Serve as a liaison between students, their families, and KIPP MA school personnel as needed.
• Provide ongoing communication and collaboration with community providers and collateral contacts. 
• Establish partnerships and maintain a referral network with outside agencies and university counseling departments for students with coordinated access of said services.
• Collaborate with KALC and KAB school counseling teams to support holistic student transitions program models and tiering based on their skill levels and socio-emotional statuses.
• Attend KIPP Foundation-KTCC network professional development opportunities including pilots via virtual learning communities, retreats, and webinars as opportunities present themselves. 

Data Management

• Maintain both quantitative and qualitative data that tracks clinical support provided by BREATHE via Salesforce
• Support the completion of the Strong Transition Tracker for KAB 8th grade and KALC 12th grade.
• Utilize Salesforce, the KTCC Alumni Database, to track and report on student data throughout the year.
• Manage and facilitate the development of meetings with critical, internal stakeholders that engage strategic program discussion informed by comprehensive data report cards.
• Collaborate with the Data Manager to generate reports on various metrics and milestones pertaining to the BREATHE program model.
• Regularly progress monitor student caseload to maintain clarity on which students are at greatest risk and leverage insights to intervene. 
• Work with the KTCC Managing Director and KIPP MA Data team to liaise KIPP Foundation, KIPP MA, and KTCC @ KIPP MA data needs.

At KIPP MA, we believe that an excellent staff member does the following:

• Believes that all of us can and will learn
• Upholds high expectations for their students, self, and team 
• Has a strong work ethic and commits to doing whatever it takes for students to excel
• Thrives as part of a team-oriented, mission-driven culture
• Constantly assesses progress, communicates results clearly, and uses data to inform decisions and set ambitious goals
• Demonstrates a growth mindset and a desire to continually improve through actively seeking feedback, coaching, and professional development
• Demonstrates resilience and flexibility when facing familiar and unfamiliar challenges
• Focuses efforts on achieving both short-term and long-term results
• Prioritizes attention to detail/effective execution and follows through on commitments 
• Takes a holistic, student development approach to their work
• Demonstrates an embodiment of KIPP MA’s values –including grit, community, zest, enthusiasm, and love of learning
• Demonstrates unquestioned integrity and commitment to the KIPP Through College and Career mission, vision, and values (see above)

Desired Qualifications

• Master’s degree is required. Degree programs include Mental Health Counseling, Social Work, or a related field. Note: If the applicant is license eligible, they must have a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling.
• 4-6 years of working with youth from diverse populations, underserved urban communities, and/or first-generation college students in educational and/or non-profit youth development programs.
• Has knowledge of community mental health and school and/or university level counseling models.
• Detail and process-oriented, able to develop and implement internal programming necessary to build capacity and organizational structure.
• Experience evaluating programs and developing innovative strategies to meet challenges with flexibility and creativity.
• A driven self-starter with a demonstrated track record of success in developing and executing on a long-term, multi-tiered strategy with accountability and reliability.
• Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills with attention to detail, a sense of humor, and a humble/growth mindset.
• Ability to connect with people from diverse ethnic, socio-economic, and professional backgrounds.
• Has outstanding project management skills, with an ability to manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously.
• Flexibility to multi-task within a fast-moving, entrepreneurial environment while driving toward clarity and strengths-based solutions.
• Ability to facilitate workshops for a range of age groups.
• A proven ability to collaborate and build relationships with stakeholders across functional and organizational lines.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and Google Suite. Note: Salesforce a plus.
• Bilingual Haitian, Cape Verdean Creole, and Spanish speakers highly encouraged to apply.

Specifications

• Ideal start date: Immediately
• This position is full-time (1.0 FTE)
• This position will function primarily from the Lynn, MA campus (20 Wheeler Street, Lynn MA 01902); however, there may be meetings held at our Boston Campus (37 Babson, Mattapan, MA 02126) 

Essential Duties

• The ability to travel by car or public transportation is required. 
• For safety during the COVID pandemic, employment will remain remote and the employee will be asked to work from home until further notice. 
• Experience with program management and development required. 
• There may be commitments that require early mornings, late evenings, and some Saturdays (roughly 10% of the time)

Compensation

Compensation is commensurate with experience and includes a comprehensive benefits package.

Application process:

1. Submit your resume and application through our online job board  at https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/KIPP/massachusetts

2. The KIPP MA Recruitment Team will select candidates to move forward to the phone interview stage.

3. Following the phone interview, the KIPP MA team will invite qualified candidates to interview with KIPP MA School or Regional Office Teams. 

KIPP Massachusetts, KIPP Academy Lynn, and KIPP Academy Boston are equal opportunity employers. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, gender identity, religion, creed, ethnicity, sexual orientation, mental or physical disability, age, ancestry, special need, proficiency in the English language, or a foreign language. We are committed to hiring a diverse and multicultural staff and encourage applications from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds.