Middle School Counselor

Description

School Overview

The International Community School of Addis Ababa (ICS Addis) is a world-leading international school serving families from more than 70 nations. ICS offers a holistic, inclusive, and innovative educational experience to children from Early Years to Grade 12. Our school is an International Baccalaureate World School, offering the Primary Years, Middle Years (Candidate), and Diploma Programmes, as well as unique and flexible offerings. ICS is accredited in the United States and by several international organizations, and we value personalization, global citizenship, and community wellness. Located on a green, beautiful campus in the heart of Ethiopia, ICS offers its students and families state-of-the-art learning spaces and resources with a commitment to innovation and life-long learning.
Our Mission is to nurture the talents, character, and intellect of all learners, challenging them to be a positive influence and empowering them to excel in their world.

ICS is committed to ensuring that all students learn and engage at the highest levels. By providing a Highly Effective and Learning Progressive education, ICS ensures that students achieve their highest academic potential and experience opportunities to apply their learning in authentic ways.

ICS is a model Professional Learning Community School, using PLCs to ask our students four critical questions:
• Q1: What do we want our students to know, understand, and be able to do?

• Q2: How will we know they know it?
• Q3: What will we do if they don’t know it?
• Q4: What will we do if they already know it?

ICS Addis has a thriving community, with exceptionally supportive leadership, led by Head of School Earl Chamberlin. We firmly believe in the importance of continuous professional development of our teachers, with a variety of professional development opportunities, individually and as a PLC team.

For more information, please check out our website at www.icsaddis.org

Middle School Program

The ICS Middle School program is grounded in our school’s Foundational Principles and is an IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) candidate school. The IB Learner Profile and The ICS Way encourage us to engage as a community by being internationally minded and caring for ourselves, each other, and this place. As a school that is Highly Effective and Learning Progressive, we base the middle school program on high levels of collaboration, personalization, and social-emotional learning.

The middle school includes around 220 students in grades 6–8. Our multicultural student body learns through inquiry-based learning experiences using the learning process of inquiry, action, and reflection. Each grade level currently includes about 70 students, and each student is supported by a core group of teachers who use targeted interventions to ensure all students are learning at high levels. Students develop a sense of community and belonging through our daily advisory and service programs.

The middle school years present great opportunities and challenges for our students. Parents are viewed as partners in the learning process and communication between teachers and parents facilitates this relationship with the goal to support and guide our students to be their best.

Position Description: Middle School Counselor

ICS Addis is seeking an experienced, highly collaborative, creative, and forward-leaning comprehensive school counselor who has experience working within a Professional Learning Community (PLC) to join our Middle School team. School counselors are responsible for delivering effective counseling programs that help improve the outcomes of students. They are advocates for equity and access for all learners by connecting the counseling programs to the school's overall academic strategy and improvement plan. The primary goal of this position is to help students develop their Social-emotional skills and elements of the IB Learner Profile. This individual will also provide targeted and direct assistance to educators, families, and students who require support due to various social and emotional challenges. The successful candidate for this position should have strong interpersonal skills, be able to work independently and be capable of planning and communicating with others. This individual should also have the necessary knowledge and skills in implementing an advisory program to include lessons for SEL, Safeguarding, and child protection and well-being for our students.
At ICS Addis we believe that learning is an ongoing process in which learners acquire, develop, and apply knowledge, skills, and dispositions essential to thrive in, and contribute to, an ever-changing world.

At ICS Addis, we believe that learning is optimized when: Meaningful, Authentic, Reflective, Collaborative, Conceptual, Transdisciplinary, Active, Personalized

Successful candidates will meet the criteria listed below.

Expected Qualifications:

• At minimum a Master’s degree and certificate in counseling
• Minimum of three years experience in counseling with at least two years full-time experience in counseling.

Expected Experience, Skills & Dispositions:

• Having more than three years of experience working as a middle school counselor
• Using the ISCA standards to support Advisory program development
• Advocating for students, both socially emotionally, and academically, based on their needs
• Supporting students one-on-one and in small groups
• Coordinating the middle school Advisory program
• Working as a member of a Child Protection Team
• Facilitating staff meetings focusing on student wellness and connection
• Collaborating with other divisional counselors
• Working within a Multi-Tiered system of support, through academic and behavioral interventions
• Supporting student transitions between divisions, into and out of the school
• Facilitating and honoring student agency through Peer Council/Ambassador Service Leadership Group
• Being self-motivated, self-directed, and detail-oriented
• Being flexible and adaptable
• Being a creative thinker with a growth mindset
• Having excellent communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills

Desired Experience:
• Working within an IB program
• Working in a setting with limited outside referral services

​How to apply

As part of the online application, please upload a single PDF packet that includes the following:

• A letter of interest explaining your strengths and why you think you are a good match for the position and our school.
• A current résumé.
• A list of at least four recent referees should be submitted. Contact information should include name, position, current email address, Zoom address, mobile/office numbers, and current (anticipated) time zone. 

ICS Addis will respond briefly to all applications received via this portal. Highly qualified candidates may be interviewed as applications are received. ICS reserves the right to make an appointment before the deadline if an outstanding applicant is identified early in the search process. 

Are you a returning applicant?

If you have applied to ICS before through our Taleo online portal, please log in to your account before completing a new application.

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