Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) — a world-renowned education and poverty-fighting organization based in New
York — seeks an enthusiastic, dedicated, and mission-aligned College Leadership Coordinator.
The Leadership Program Coordinator will demonstrate a deep passion for the mission of the Harlem
Children’s Zone—to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty through comprehensive, community-based
programs that create opportunities for children and families to thrive in school, work, and life.
This role will report to our College Success Office (CSO) while maintaining close alignment with the goals and
priorities of the Wealth Builds National Hub. The position serves as a participant-facing counselor and also
takes on coordinating and administrative responsibilities.
The program supports high-achieving college student-leaders through leadership development, tuition
assistance, and access to a strong network of stakeholders and resources. The role focuses on guiding
students as they transition to and persist through college, pursuing their post-secondary goals. Ideal
candidates have experience in high school and college counseling or college admissions and are passionate
about helping students complete college while fostering their career development and leadership growth.
Our mission is to ensure that our participants are provided with the resources and guidance needed to be
successful in college and beyond. The main components of our College Success support include student
outreach, academic support and guidance, financial aid advisement, college transfer assistance, summer
and winter internship opportunities, and community-building efforts within our program.
For more information, check out Want to work at Harlem Children's Zone? Here are 7 things you need to know.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s of Education, Counseling, or a related social services field preferred.
- A minimum of 2–3 years of proven experience in internship placement and student advising, with a strong track record of using data-driven strategies to boost student success and outcomes.
Who you are
- Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to complete tasks accurately and in a timely manner. You are a good project manager.
- Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment while maintaining a high level of professional acumen, sound judgment, and attention to detail in managing multiple priorities and stakeholder relationships.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and Outlook. Experience with Salesforce and Monday.com (or other project management platforms) is a plus.
- You are a detail-oriented coordinator with experience in college counseling and a proven ability to build strong, supportive relationships with students and stakeholders.
- Ability and willingness to work a flexible schedule to accommodate program needs, including evenings and some weekends, when necessary, as well as the ability and willingness to travel to execute campus visits and other program experiences.
- Passion for and commitment to the mission of the Harlem Children’s Zone
What You’ll Do
- Manage and maintain caseloads of multiple cohorts of the leadership program’s participants, using the appreciative advising model, focusing on college transition/persistence/completion and career readiness (based on the appreciative advising model)
- Assist students with class selection and registration, financial aid renewal and verification, academic appeals, and the college transfer process
- Monitor progress toward educational goals and meet with students to review academic (financial) eligibility and satisfactory progress toward graduation by meeting with students periodically
- Collaborate with Career Services and other Wealth Builds teams to ensure students are engaging and gaining career awareness, exposure, and other wealth-building supports, including but not limited to summer career opportunities, meaningful internships, and study abroad programs
- Collaborate with the Social Services team to solve socio-emotional issues
- Serve as a critical thought partner and offer support in the execution of programmatic priorities, special cohort events/gatherings, and more
- Collect and record college and career data for 100% of participants, including but not limited to transcripts, resumes, bills & schedules, financial aid: FAFSA, TAP, Pell, and others, graduate confirmation, etc.
- Develop and implement Appreciative Advising Action Plans twice a year for each student on your caseload, while maintaining up-to-date case files—including bursar bills, class schedules, degree audits, and syllabi—and regularly documenting student progress through daily and monthly case notes
- Maintain and record frequent and regular contact with students to monitor progress and to troubleshoot academic, financial, and socio-emotional issues
- Conduct productive college campus visits for all priority cohort members
- Establish and maintain strong relationships with campus liaisons through ongoing communication and campus visits, while also advocating on behalf of students to key college and university offices, including Financial Aid, Academic Support Centers, and Admissions.
- Perform any additional duties as assigned within the College Success Office (CSO) and the Wealth Builds National Hub
Schedule
- Monday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM, flexibility required
- Some weekends and evenings, depending on site needs and events
- 12 Months
- Approximately up to 15% travel required, may vary based on the program’s needs.
Benefits
As a member of the Harlem Children's Zone team, you will join a supportive and inclusive community
dedicated to helping children, families — and our staff — thrive. We offer highly competitive salaries, a
comprehensive benefits package, and opportunities for growth.
Our exceptional full-time benefits include:
- Highly competitive base salaries
- Paid time off
- Employee referral bonus
- Career Advancement
- No-cost health insurance
- Life Insurance
- Short-and long-term disability
- Additional voluntary benefits
- Wellness discounts
- Commuter benefits
- Financial wellness perks
- Additional Benefits (Discounts on flights, hotels, theme parks, concert tickets, and more.)
We offer competitive salaries and a comprehensive benefits package. The salary range is $70,000 to
$80,000. To be considered, interested applicants should submit their applications directly through the
posting. No telephone inquiries or recruiters, please. Replies will only be sent to qualified applicants. HCZ
is an EOE.