University Settlement partners with 40,000 New Yorkers on the Lower East Side and in Brooklyn every year to build on their strengths as they achieve healthy, stable, and remarkable lives. For over 135 years, we have collaborated with our neighbors to pioneer highly effective programs that fight poverty and systemic inequality. Established in 1886 as the first Settlement House in the United States, we bring the values of that movement into the 21st century by meeting New Yorkers where they live, listening deeply to all perspectives, engaging with every individual holistically, and creating space for people to organize. Joining together with our neighbors to advocate for justice and equality, we help build community strength.

We work with New Yorkers of all ages. We infuse a commitment to civic engagement, equity, and communal action into each of our programs, which include early childhood education, mental health and wellness, benefits assistance and eviction prevention, adult literacy and education, healthy aging, community, and recreation centers, performing and visual arts, and youth development.

What is a Success Mentor?

Success Mentors partner with severely chronically absent and chronically absent youth to address the barriers that keep them from attending school every day. They are caring adults that support students and help them reach their educational goals.

Rationale

One in five New York City students is chronically absent, missing more than 18+ days of school during the school year. Missing school drastically affects a student’s learning and outcomes in academics and connectedness with their community.

Research shows that chronically absent students who have been assigned a Success Mentor gain, on average, attend 13+ days of school compared to the year prior. The significant jump helps students exit chronic absenteeism. Students who attend school regularly and are not chronically absent are more likely to have higher GPAs, more likely to attend college, and feel more connected to their school community.

Responsibilities:

• Meet individually with assigned mentees for at least 5-10 minutes weekly
• Provide academic support during classroom push-ins
• Connect mentee and their family network to internal and external resources based on their individual needs
• Communicate with parents/guardians about mentees progress and challenges daily/weekly
• Communicate with teachers weekly; stay abreast of mentees major projects/assignments/testing dates
• Review weekly attendance reports with the Community School Director and Social Worker
• Work with mentee to define and establish goals that will address the reasons for their severely chronically absent and chronically absenteeism, as well as any SEL needs during the school day
• Support the Attendance team with making and monitoring referrals
• Support the school and students during transition between class
• De-escalate situations and work with students on SEL activities to help them return to class
• Collect and maintain comprehensive, up-to-date, and accurate records, including attendance

Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree in arts, education, counseling or a related field preferred (HS diploma or HSE required)
• At least 2 years previous experience working with youth from diverse backgrounds
• Experience in conflict resolution, crisis counseling, and de-escalation strategies
• Strong background in program development, arts, curriculum design, and lesson plan writing
• Demonstrated cultural sensitivity
• Strong organizational, written, and verbal skills
• Self-directed and able to work as part of a team
• Creativity, flexibility, and commitment
• Bi-lingual Spanish a plus

Work Schedule: Partial year (10 months), Part time, Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 3:00pm, 25 hours per week