College Access, College Persistence, Student Success and Post-Secondary Manager

Payment 60,000-63,000/year

Job description:

Position Summary

College Access, College Persistence, Student Success and Post-Secondary Manager , full-year role that works with students across all four grade levels to create a culture of college ambition, academic excellence, and personal growth. Unlike traditional roles, this position emphasizes 
longitudinal support
—helping students build the habits, relationships, and vision they need to thrive from freshman year to college enrollment. The team being led is the Bridge to Success Team

This role blends academic coaching, family engagement, data-driven planning, and deep collaboration with schools, internal departments, and external partners. The ideal candidate is both a mentor and a systems thinker, someone who can guide individual students while also shaping the success strategy across cohorts.

Job Responsibilities

Managerial Responsibilities

• Supervise and support the Bridge to Success Team
  , including regular check-ins, coaching, and performance feedback.
• Develop and monitor team-wide goals
  , benchmarks, and workflows to ensure consistent delivery of student-facing supports.
• Lead weekly team meetings
   focused on alignment, data review, emerging student needs, and best-practice sharing.
• Support team members in caseload management
  , problem-solving complex student situations, and implementing intervention plans.
• Ensure fidelity to LYTE's student success model
   across all advisors and grade levels.
• Coordinate professional development
   through training, observations, and coaching in advising, family engagement, and college access supports.
• Foster a collaborative, student-centered team culture
   grounded in communication, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Develop relationships
• Develop relationships with higher educational institutions and postsecondary institutions

Strategic Student Success Planning

• Support students from 9th through 12th grade in setting goals, exploring career pathways, and navigating the college application process.
• Develop individualized success plans beginning in 9th grade, incorporating academic targets, personal growth, and postsecondary readiness. Follow up with students on these goals through completion of 12th grade
• Align each student's plan with rigorous academic choices, summer enrichment, extracurricular engagement, and scholarship planning.
• Review and refine these roadmaps annually to reflect students' evolving strengths and interests.
• Integrate risk mitigation strategies to ensure students remain on track academically and personally.

Mentoring and Advising

• Act as direct advisor for a caseload of students within the subset of all 9-12th graders, conducting regular check-ins
• Individual meetings and check ins with students
• Provide responsive, high-touch support that blends academic advising, motivational coaching, and crisis intervention as needed.
• Facilitate monthly small-group sessions focused on identity, progress in school, leadership, and career exploration
• Build strong, trusting relationships with a wide range of students, adapting approaches to meet their diverse needs.

Career Support

• Partner with the career team to prepare students for internship opportunities through workshops, exploration activities, and project-based learning.
• Facilitate monthly career-focused meetings and mentor students through resume development, application processes, and interview preparation.
• Support students in completing career-based projects that deepen real-world understanding.

College Access Leadership

• Oversee the strategic rollout of college prep across 11th and 12th grade years:
• FAFSA/CSS and financial aid workshops
• College list development and applications
• Interview prep, resume reviews, SAT prep and essay support
• Track student outcomes and application status, identifying and addressing common roadblocks.
• Collaborate with colleges and universities and other relevant stakeholders
• Host college access events for students and families and bring best practices in admissions to the team.
• Find scholarship opportunities for students

Family & Stakeholder Collaboration

• Develop proactive communication systems with families, including monthly touchpoints and info sessions.
• Partner with school counselors, teachers, and administrators to align academic plans and advocate for student needs.
• Cultivate relationships with scholarship providers, enrichment programs, and college admissions staff to create pathways for students' success.

Program Innovation and Data

• Contribute to the development of innovative programming and curriculum that reflects student needs and interests.
• Contribute to the evolution of LYTE's student success model by analyzing trends, piloting new strategies, and co-developing scalable tools and systems.
• Collect data on each student and log specific information this includes but is not limited to grades, standardized test scores, progress of applications, contact logs and attendance.
• Support recruitment of new students and guest speakers from diverse professional fields for career based group meetings.
• Identify and mitigate risks to student success, program sustainability, and community engagement.

Postsecondary Persistence & New Horizon Success (All 4 Years of College)

• Lead LYTE's long-term persistence strategy to support students from high school graduation through all years of college, ensuring continuous engagement and timely intervention.
• Build and manage a structured persistence framework that includes summer melt prevention, term-by-term check-ins, academic progress monitoring, and personalized support plans.
• Oversee the Bridge to Success Team's responsibilities related to college persistence, including outreach protocols, documentation standards, and coordinated follow-up for all enrolled alumni.
• Track key persistence data—such as enrollment status, credit completion, GPA trends, major changes, financial aid/FAFSA status, and leave-of-absence or transfer patterns—to identify systemic barriers and student-specific needs.
• Develop partnerships with college advisors, student success offices, multicultural centers, TRIO programs, and financial aid departments to ensure LYTE students are supported on campus.
• Provide guidance, coaching, and resources to LYTE alumni on topics including academic planning, major exploration, time management, financial aid renewal, budgeting, career readiness, and social/emotional adjustment.
• Create and oversee programming for college students (virtual meetups, resource guides, skill-building workshops, and alumni networking opportunities).
• Establish clear intervention pathways for students experiencing academic, financial, housing, or wellness challenges, ensuring advisors respond promptly and consistently.
• Train and support the Bridge to Success Team in best practices for long-term postsecondary persistence, including culturally responsive advising and strengths-based student support.
• Use longitudinal persistence data to refine LYTE's high school preparation model—ensuring the advising team continually strengthens student readiness before graduation.

Required for Successful Candidates:

• Bachelor's degree
• Knowledge, understanding, and ability to lead sessions on both the FAFSA and CSS Profile
• Understanding of the social, academic, and cultural factors that influence first-generation college student success
• Aptitude for expanding programs
• College access experience needed
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong organizational skills and comfort managing data, student records, tracking multiple deadlines, and operating within data systems like Salesforce and G-Suite.
• Background in assisting students through the college admissions and financial aid process.
• Independent and self-motivated with strong time management skills; able to prioritize multiple projects in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build rapport with both students and adults from a wide range of backgrounds.
• Able to develop curriculum, lead workshops, or design learning experiences for youth.
• Skilled at balancing student-facing work with administrative and programmatic responsibilities.
• Collaborative, team-oriented mindset with the ability to build effective relationships across departments and external partners.

Preferred Qualifications:

• 2+ years of experience in education, youth development, college access, or nonprofit programs.
• Experience designing or implementing student development frameworks, career development or college access programs
• Familiarity with school systems, college admissions, and financial aid processes
• Fluency in a second language
• Background as an AmeriCorps member in an education role, teacher, or school counselor is a strong bonus

Job Type: Full-time

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Wilmington, DE 19801

Payment 60,000-63,000/year