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Guidance Counselor, BEAM Discovery

Los Angeles or New York

About BEAM

The mission of BEAM is to create pathways for students from low-income and historically marginalized communities to become scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and computer scientists. Led by staff with these same technical backgrounds, BEAM believes that pathways to STEM careers are created through community, individual support, and access to advanced work that typically lies outside most school curricula. We work to directly support students and to transition them to other supportive enrichment programs that enable their future success.

BEAM's model provides continuous support from middle school through college graduation, including intense academic summer programs for middle school students (after 6th and 7th grade), weekend classes and mentoring, and STEM-focused support through college. Our program includes not just access to learning advanced math but also support finding and applying to other opportunities, including support with college admissions and financial aid. In addition to our academic content, bringing students into community is a key part of our mission and all of our work is designed to support that goal.

BEAM has grown from a small summer program serving 17 students in the summer of 2011 to a year-round, national program, serving 420+ students at six summer program sites and 600+ students in year-round programming in New York City and Los Angeles this school year. In addition, our BEAM National pilot program now reaches over 500 elementary-aged students in seven different states, working to create a new nationwide pathway modeled on our local work.

With our recent strategic plan, our team has committed to transforming the organization from a successful startup to a more mature and scalable organization that can drive change across the country.

GUIDANCE COUNSELOR, BEAM DISCOVERY

 

Join the BEAM team this summer and make a difference!  We are seeking passionate leaders to join our Discovery summer programs in Los Angeles or New York City as Guidance Counselors. This is more than a summer role - it’s an opportunity to lead, mentor and inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians!

Why Join BEAM?

At BEAM, we foster a vibrant community of educators and students who are actively engaged in problem-solving, critical thinking, and mathematical exploration. We empower students by making them the leaders of their own learning while fostering a supportive and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive. 

DESCRIPTION OF THE POSITION

Embark on a life-changing summer as a Guidance Counselor with Bridge to Enter Advanced Mathematics (BEAM), a program dedicated to empowering bright, underserved students to discover the world of enrichment math. Whether in Los Angeles or in New York City, you’ll play a vital role in creating a supportive, inspiring, and transformative environment for middle schoolers exploring their love of learning.

This is a chance to make a lasting impact on students as they navigate an exciting yet challenging new chapter. By fostering connections, addressing emotional needs, and helping build a thriving community, you’ll be instrumental in ensuring students flourish both socially and academically.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Support Staff Training

  • Attend the leadership retreat day, 1 day before the arrival of other staff
  • Facilitate team-building activities
  • Run a training of your design to prepare staff for working with middle school students

During the summer: (24 Days)

Counsel Students

  • Build relationships with students from the start of the program, opening lines of trust with them during non-academic activities.  
  • Support students in addressing common challenges (especially those who experience shyness or anxiety). 

Support Individual Student Needs and Community Needs

  • Assess student needs and recommend next steps. 
  • When necessary, run mediation (student/student or student/staff). 
  • When called for, implement restorative justice processes. 
  • Occasionally, implement behavior contracts. 
  • With other leadership staff, make calls home to keep families informed. 

Program Leadership

  • Serve on a 5-person leadership team (along with the Site Director, Associate Site Director, Academic Director, and Director of Student Life) to ensure the program runs smoothly. Provide advice to this group and handle next steps that you are best suited to handle. 
  • Provide guidance to other staff (both residential counselors and also faculty) as they work to address and support mental health and other student needs.

Attendance Communication

  • Review daily attendance records.
  • Implement attendance next steps (including calls home by you or office staff for unexpected absences). 

Support Community of Students

  • Run an activity of your choice daily with students (such as sports, arts & crafts, board games).
  • Staff the main office and answer student questions. 
  • Eat breakfast and lunch with students (except when this is the best time to meet with a student one-on-one). 
  • Organize daily afternoon snack distribution. 
  • (Occasionally) cover the responsibilities of one of our high school or college student counselors due to staff absences, including covering additional activities or supporting Open Math Time. 
  • Accompany students on field trips. 

Finally, while your role is not mathematical in nature, in order to cultivate a positive learning environment we expect all staff to foster a supportive attitude towards students learning mathematics, which you could do by visiting students in classes, inquiring about their learning or growth, or simply displaying curiosity about the math at the program. 

 

QUALIFICATIONS

We understand that there are many paths to acquiring experience and therefore welcome candidates from diverse and nontraditional backgrounds for this role who have demonstrated equivalent transferable skills to carry out the major duties outlined in this job description. 

Above all, we're looking for people who are passionate about the work and impact of BEAM. It is much more important to us that we hire someone with the right approach than someone with a particular background.  

That said, because you would be leading the socioemotional response team over the summer, we’re looking for someone with formal and/or extensive training, which could be demonstrated through:

  • Having an MSW degree and/or a social work license. 
  • Having a degree in counseling and/or counseling certification. 
  • In the absence of such formal training, 3+ years of counseling work history. 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Prior work experience with middle school students. 
  • Prior work experience with students in LA or NYC public schools or serving students from a comparable background. 
  • Fluency in Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic, Korean or another language commonly spoken by BEAM’s LA families or NYC families.
  • Experience running training workshops for adults. 
  • Mediation training and/or experience. 
  • Restorative justice training and/or experience. 
  • Interest in mathematics and/or broader curiosity about learning new things.

Details:

Los Angeles

  • Campus: Rise Kohyang Middle School
  • Camp Dates: 06/23 - 07/25, 07/04 Holiday 

Upstate New York:

  • Campus: (Uptown and Downtown locations, pending)
  • Camp Dates: Camp: 07/07 - 08/07

Salary: $5,650 for Camp and wrap-up

Schedule

  • During training/set-up (Wednesday-Friday) for three full days to participate in staff training and set up the campus. 
  • Monday-Friday 9:00am-4:30pm for the five weeks students are at the program (note that exact program hours may shift as final contracts are signed with host locations) 
  • One Saturday (exact date to be determined) for six hours to attend a field trip 
  • During wrap-up (Monday-Tuesday) for two full days to reflect on the summer and support final packing 

This job is ideal for someone who enjoys working with kids and wants to be part of their transformative summer, a first summer exploring enrichment math for most of them!

Benefits

BEAM provides a number of benefits including:

  • Lunch and snacks, with options for dietary restrictions
  • 2–4 staff dinners during camp to relax, connect, and celebrate together

Commitment to Diversity

BEAM believes that our staff, at all levels and across all roles, should represent the backgrounds of the students we serve. We are committed to creating a supportive and inclusive environment. Beyond a commitment to nondiscrimination, we strongly encourage applications from underrepresented and marginalized communities.

Hiring Process

We ask all applicants to submit an application, including their resume and answers to a few short questions. After reviewing your materials, we will contact you regarding next steps. We believe in the importance of demonstrated ability. Some applicants will proceed to an interview to allow our hiring team to learn more about their skills and experiences. We work hard to recognize the time you put into the process and we won't load you down with any unnecessary bureaucracy.

For accommodation requests related to the job application process, please contact HR at accommodations@beammath.org.

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