Coordinator, ACES Career Readiness

Position Summary: Achieving Collegiate Excellence and Success (ACES) is a partnership between the Universities at Shady Grove (USG), Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), and Montgomery College (MC) to increase baccalaureate degree attainment and career-readiness among underrepresented students, especially African American and Hispanic youth. This position is necessary to provide career readiness programming and support for students along the Montgomery County ACES educational pipeline. The coach will facilitate programming and assist ACES students at Montgomery County Public high schools in integrating classroom studies with continuous and progressive career-related workshops (based on NACE career competencies) and work experiences such as job shadowing, internships, mentoring, and apprenticeships. The coordinator will also manage resources provided from each of the partner institutions, employers, and the community that are designed to specifically assist ACES high school-level students.

Minimum Qualifications:

Required Education/
Experience

 Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher education required.
 Minimum 3 years of professional, full-time equivalent experience related to the coaching/counseling of diverse youth/young adult populations providing career- readiness related programming and career exploration guidance.

Preference:  Preferred
Education

 Master’s degree preferred in Higher Educational Administration, Counseling, Student Services, Human Resources, Business or a closely related field.

Preferred Experience

 Previous experience with and understanding of employment law preferred. Previous professional experience and understanding of the Montgomery County and State of Maryland regional business communities preferred. Professional experience with the University System of Maryland, its partner institutions, and/or regional higher education centers highly preferred.

Preferred Certifications:

 Career Coaching certification by NACE, PARW/CC, NCDA or other professionally recognized certifying agency.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
 Knowledge of the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) career competencies and experience in programmatic development using those competencies.

 Direct service delivery experience working with youth populations.  Experience working with students, faculty, employers and community organizations in

identifying available job opportunities, internships and career experiences and in facilitating workshops on all aspects of the job search process including resume and cover letter writing.

 Career development theory, effective job search strategies, and ability to incorporate labor market information into career decision making process.

 Career Assessment tools and on-line career planning tools and resources.

 Reporting and data analysis tools.

 Strong written and oral communication skills.

 Strong interpersonal skills and the ability build relationships in order to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community.

Physical Demands:

Professional working environment. Light lifting, event set up, and the ability to transport and set up of materials to and from various events (outreach events, employer events, community events, etc.) both on and off-campus required. Regional travel to partner institutions, employer sites, workforce and community events, and other meetings required. Limited travel to regional and national conferences also required. Ability to work some evenings and occasional Saturday hours also required.

Additional Information:

The positon is located in Rockville, MD at the Shady Grove Campus. This is a contractual, Contingent II exempt positon.