Background
Kutztown University’s Providing Resources and Opportunities to Future Stars (PROFS) program will be the premier program to assist foster care youth to complete college. PROFS provides college access programs and services for high school students in the foster care system as well as retention programs for KU students transitioning from the foster care system. With regards to college access, PROFS provides college prep and financial literacy workshops. These workshops will be provided virtually (online) to ensure access to any student in the foster care system. Additionally, in-person assistance will be provided to those in the counties surrounding KU. Retention programs for KU students will include academic and personal coaching, financial literacy workshops, and peer mentoring services. PROFS students will also be connected to on-campus jobs many of which include work hours over semester breaks. Year round housing for students will be provided as well.
Duties
· Schedule and carry out recruitment activities on-campus and off-campus (i.e. group homes) including college prep, admissions application assistance, and financial literacy workshops including completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and scholarship applications.
· Coordinate, attend, and engage students in year round (including over winter, fall, spring and summer breaks) extracurricular and co-curricular activities for PROFS students.
o Topics for co-curricular activities include but are not limited to transitioning to college, financial aid, cultural awareness, career exploration, and leadership.
o Extracurricular activities include out-of-town trips, cultural excursions as well as on-campus events.
· Assist in the retention and graduation of PROFS students
o Provide coaching including meeting with students weekly
o Connect students to support services and resources on-campus and off-campus
· Track, document, and assess PROFS program
o Provide annual assessment data and report at the end of each academic year.
- Key performance indicators include academic performance (GPA), satisfactory academic progress (passing grades in at least 66.7% of coursework), and retention (persistence to the next academic year).
- Successful program outcomes after three years will be defined as: 1) aggregate annual average GPA of 2.25 or higher; 2) 70% of PROFS students passing at least 66.7% of coursework, and 3) 60% or higher retention rate (KU currently has a 73% retention rate from the first to second academic year).
- Additional assessment measures will include student satisfaction with program activities and their overall experience at KU.
o Document student interactions
o Track program activity attendance
· Other duties as assigned
Minimum Qualifications
· Student in Education, Student Affairs, Social Work or Counseling graduate program. Students in other graduate programs will be considered if they possess relevant work experience.
· Passion for assisting low-income and/or underrepresented populations achieve their goals
· Ability to work independently
· Experience with multi-tasking, and event planning
· Ability to travel off-campus including during winter, fall, spring and summer breaks
· Excellent communication skills
Preferred Qualifications
· Experience working with foster care students
· Case management experience
· Admissions experience
Supervision
The PROFS Graduate Assistant will dually report to the Special Assistant for Enrollment Management and Diversity Recruitment and the Student Assistance Coordinator.
