Upward Bound Advisor

Position Title: Upward Bound Advisor

Department: Ctr Student Success and Retention

Advertised Pay: Upper $40,000's

Campus Location: Washburn University

Application Review:  Application review will begin as applications are received and will continue until the position is filled. 

Position Summary: Washburn University’s Upward Bound Program is directly sponsored by the Vice-President for Academic Affairs. This position is responsible for providing individual guidance to 60 low-income, first-generation, or at-risk students representing youth in underserved communities as they navigate graduation requirements and postsecondary entry and completion. This is a grant-funded position, contingent upon the continued availability of grant funding.

About Washburn University: Washburn University is a teaching-focused, student-centered, public institution located in the metropolitan setting of Topeka that has earned national recognition for its high-impact programs for first-generation students. Washburn has a student body of just over 7,000 students, a significant and growing number of whom are first-generation and Pell-Grant eligible. The University has created educational pathways for all students to be successful and achieve their educational goals.

Washburn is dedicated to recruiting and retaining a dynamic faculty, staff, and student body and cultivating a robust learning and working environment and curriculum. We employ more than one thousand faculty and staff on our campuses throughout Topeka and strive to offer competitive wages, an excellent benefits program, and a supportive culture and a healthy work/life balance. Washburn seeks to create an environment that reflects our core values for creating positive IMPACT: inclusion, modernization, partnership, achievement, community and transformation. In 2024, Washburn was recognized as one of the best colleges in the nation to work for, according to Great Colleges to Work For® program.

Essential Functions:
• Provide individual guidance to approximately 60 low-income, first-generation, or at-risk students as they navigate high school graduation, postsecondary education entry, and completion.
• Recruit eligible participants, design, and maintain individual success plans.
• Continually monitor and document participants’ academic progress.
• Plan and lead after-school tutoring for Washburn Upward Bound events and opportunities.
• Support participants enrolling in, remaining engaged with, and successfully completing a rigorous high school curriculum that prepares them for postsecondary education. Services include academic advising, course selection guidance, tutoring, progress monitoring, and encouragement to enroll in appropriately challenging coursework, such as honors, Advanced Placement (AP), dual-credit, and other college-preparatory classes.
• Plan and implement workshops and activities that support skills development, motivation, and College, Career, and Life Readiness.
• Meet regularly with counselors, teachers, social workers, and other staff to support student academic progress and project objectives.
• Meet regularly with parents/guardians; design/present at parent/guardian workshops; and assist with community referrals for parents as needed.
• The advisor regularly works with parents and participants who do not speak English fluently, and many are Spanish speakers; the ability to translate may be necessary.
• Establish and maintain required data records of project and participant activities, including student eligibility, progress, and academic performance; student, parent, and community partner engagement and referrals; and other project management record-keeping. Ensure documentation is collected at the time of service and participant records are entered promptly.
• Assist with planning and leading local and regional college visits.
• Perform additional job-related duties as assigned or as appropriate.

Required Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in liberal arts, education, behavioral/social sciences, social work, or a related field.
• Minimum of two years of experience advising, mentoring, or delivering academic support services to low-income, first-generation students.
• Experience with Microsoft Office.
• Demonstrated knowledge of high school graduation requirements.
• Demonstrated knowledge of college entrance requirements and processes.
• Proven ability to display sensitivity to issues affecting low-income, first-generation students.
• Proven ability to foster and maintain positive and collaborative relationships with internal and external partners, particularly parents/guardians.
• Proven ability to communicate and interact professionally with the public and co-workers.
• Proven ability to organize, communicate, and maintain documentation.
• Demonstrated attention to detail.
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.

Physical Requirements:
• Some early mornings, evenings, and weekend work is required.
• The position is primarily stationed at Topeka High School.
• Some travel is required, which may include overnight stays during the program, dependent on funding availability.

Preferred Qualifications:
• Master’s degree.
• Experience working in a TRIO program.
• Bilingual, Spanish.

Special Instructions to Applicants: 

Exempt, Full-time, Mon-Fri, 8am-4:30pm   
Background Check Required