Director of College Counseling
Davis Chicago · Chicago · $77,543–$137,099 (stated in the posting)
Full-Time Founding Leadership Position · Reports to the Principal · Master’s degree required; Counseling, Higher Education Administration, or Educational Leadership preferred · Illinois Professional Educator License with a School Counselor endorsement or university admissions experience preferred · 3+ years of college counseling, admissions, or educational leadership experience required (e.g. college counselor, admissions officer, school counselor) · College-preparatory, independent, Jewish day or faith-based school experience is a plus. Being Jewish is not a requirement for this role. Fewer years but exceptional craft? We hire for mastery, not seat time.
Are you a visionary educational leader who believes extraordinary schools are built by extraordinary people? Do you want the unique opportunity to design and launch a world-class college counseling program at a new Jewish college-preparatory high school from the ground up? Are you passionate about helping students discover purpose, pursue academic excellence, and access exceptional postsecondary opportunities? If so, Davis School Chicago wants to hear from you.
The Dream Team
Davis School Chicago is a proudly Jewish, college-preparatory high school opening in fall 2027 in downtown Chicago, in a state-of-the-art building at the heart of a great city for learning. Every adult at Davis Chicago is an educator and a culture-builder. We hold two expectations at the same time: deep human warmth and uncompromising intellectual excellence. High health and high results, never one at the cost of the other. This is a summary of the characteristics that describe our dream team. Please read the full Profile of the Ideal Davis Chicago Educator and more information about our opportunities before you apply.
To thrive here you are:
Warm and intellectually formidable. Genuinely kind and seriously bright. We hire for intellectual horsepower; only sharp minds grow students to their full potential.
You bring the room to life. Passion people feel, loud or quiet, with the range to teach, support, and lead.
A builder who owns it. Startup grit, a real growth mindset, open about mistakes, gives the gift of feedback, and the drive to create what doesn’t exist yet.
Teach how to think, not what to think. Rigor, evidence, and a love of hard questions, including the controversial ones. Students reach their own conclusions.
Rooted in tradition, built for what’s next. Ancient wisdom and modern tools, AI included, aimed at today's problems.
Unapologetically Jewish. Israel has a right to exist; that is not up for debate. Everything else is fair game, including spirited debate about Israel’s actions. You’re excited to help build a proudly Jewish, pro-Israel school.
What Davis Chicago Needs
Davis Chicago is hiring a trusted, expert Director of College Counseling to build the four-year counseling practice that walks every student, and their parents, from day one to a best-fit college offer.
Who Thrives in This Role
Warm, Relational, and High-Performing – Kind, emotionally intelligent, intellectually rigorous, and committed to excellence.
A Trusted Advisor – Calm, credible, and honest with students and parents in high-stakes moments.
A College-Network Connector – Known to admissions offices, or ready to become known fast.
An Entrepreneurial Builder – Thrives in ambiguity, solves problems, and creates programs, systems, and traditions from the ground up.
A Curious and Courageous Thinker – Embraces learning, evidence, critical thinking, and meaningful debate.
Rooted and Forward-Looking – Honors tradition while embracing innovation, technology, and AI.
Committed to Jewish Life and Community – Values Jewish identity, the diversity of Jewish thought, and meaningful engagement in Jewish life.
A Collaborative Culture-Builder – Balances accountability, care, and results while elevating everyone around them.
The Role
The Director of College Counseling is responsible for designing, building, and leading a comprehensive college counseling program that prepares students for success in higher education and beyond. Reporting to the Principal, this individual will establish a mission-aligned college counseling vision that supports academic excellence, student growth, and exceptional college placement outcomes. The successful candidate will serve as a trusted advisor, advocate, educator, and ambassador while helping shape the culture, traditions, and future success of Davis School Chicago.
1. The Four-Year Counseling Program
Design and deliver a four-year developmental counseling curriculum, grade by grade, consistent with the ASCA National Model.
Advise every student and family individually — regular one-on-one meetings, milestone checkpoints, and a personalized college list built around each student’s strengths and aspirations — teaching students to drive their own process.
Lead grade-level seminars and family programming that demystify admissions, financial aid, and standardized testing from 9th grade forward.
Own the college-knowledge strand of the schoolwide Advisory program — a grade-by-grade college curriculum delivered through Advisory, built with the Dean of Students & Student Activities.
Coordinate standardized testing strategy and preparation pathways with the academic departments.
Write the Davis Chicago college handbook (the family-facing guide to the whole journey).
Build the counseling program’s systems, communications, and traditions from the ground up as a founding leader.
2. Admissions Season Leadership & Ethical Advising
Own the application season end to end: school reports, counselor recommendation letters, transcript coordination, and application quality control for every senior — including a multi-round essay revision pipeline that puts faculty writing partners behind every essay.
Guide students and families through Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision strategy with accurate, transparent, student-first counsel.
Champion counseling practices that reflect the highest standards of the profession: ethical advising, accurate and transparent communication, informed decision-making, and student advocacy.
Build a faculty culture of substantive, on-time recommendation letters, and coach the colleagues who write them.
Ensure counseling services promote both student well-being and long-term success.
Reflect the field’s own standards: a four-year developmental arc consistent with the ASCA National Model, advising that follows NACAC’s Guide to Ethical Practice, and an active presence in NACAC and the ACCIS community.
3. College Partnerships & the Admission Network
Build and maintain relationships with admissions offices at colleges and universities nationwide, and make Davis Chicago known to them before our first senior applies.
Host college representative visits and put Davis Chicago on regional admissions rep travel schedules from the school’s first year.
Create Davis Chicago’s signature college events — college nights, fair trips, rep visit days, campus visit programs, and financial aid workshops for families.
Author and maintain the Davis Chicago school profile that travels with every transcript, and drive the founding policies behind it.
Support students in identifying institutions that align with their aspirations and strengths, with access to a broad range of postsecondary opportunities.
Build the Jewish and Israel pathway: working fluency in Israeli universities, U.S.–Israel joint programs (Columbia/JTS, Columbia–Tel Aviv, and peers), Yeshiva University, and Israel gap-year options.
Represent Davis Chicago in the college admissions community — NACAC nationally, IACAC regionally, and the ACCIS network.
4. Outcomes, Data, and Continuous Improvement
Establish systems for tracking applications, admission decisions, scholarships, and matriculation from the first graduating class forward.
Set published completion standards every senior meets: balanced application list, aid and scholarship files, every decision deadline — and track each senior to completion.
Analyze admissions trends and use the data to sharpen curriculum, advising, and college strategy every cycle.
Select and run the counseling platforms that students, families, and colleges will use.
Report outcomes honestly to school leadership, and position Davis School Chicago among the nation’s leading college-preparatory schools for college counseling, student outcomes, and family partnership.
5. Community, Culture, and Family Partnership
Contribute actively to the vibrant culture and mission of Davis Chicago.
Partner with families as a trusted, honest voice through the highest-stakes moments of their student’s journey.
Collaborate with faculty, advisors, and school leadership so college readiness lives in the whole program, not only the counseling office.
Participate in student activities, faculty meetings, professional development, and community events.
Qualifications
Education: Master’s degree required; Counseling, Higher Education Administration, or Educational Leadership preferred.
Experience: 3+ years in college counseling, admissions, or educational leadership; independent, college-preparatory, or faith-based school settings preferred.
Licensure: Illinois Professional Educator License with a School Counselor endorsement preferred.
Standards: Knowledge of and commitment to NACAC’s Guide to Ethical Practice; ASCA-informed program design; NACAC membership expected, with active ACCIS engagement.
Leadership: Evidence of building trusted relationships with students, families, and college admission offices.
Core Competencies
1. College Counseling Practice: a four-year developmental arc; ethical advising; family partnership.
2. College Knowledge and Networks: the admission landscape; institutional relationships; student advocacy.
3. Data and Outcomes: tracking, trends, and continuous improvement; deep focus on ensuring every student lands a best-fit college offer.
4. Program Building: systems, communications, and traditions; entrepreneurial with startup grit.
Compensation and Benefits
The anticipated annual salary range for this position is $77,543–$137,099, based on the school’s established Faculty Salary Schedule. In addition, this leadership role carries a leadership differential of $4,000–$8,000, determined by years of leadership experience. Placement within the salary range is determined by a combination of relevant leadership experience and educational attainment, including Bachelor's, Master's, Master's + additional graduate credits, Education Specialist (Ed.S.), and Doctoral (Ed.D./Ph.D.) degrees, in accordance with the school’s step-and-lane compensation structure. Final compensation will be determined consistent with the school’s compensation philosophy, internal equity, and established salary schedule. In addition to base salary, the position is eligible for a comprehensive benefits package that includes paid time off, holiday pay, medical insurance, and a 401(k) plan with employer match.
How We Hire
Our process is thorough and we believe that hiring is a dual decision-making process; you are vetting us as much as we are vetting you. Our process includes focused conversations with the people you would work with, a battery of assessments we use for your development as much as for selection, and interview rounds both in-person and virtually. We use artificial intelligence tools in our recruitment and hiring process to help review and organize applications and interviews; every hiring decision is made by a person. Davis School Chicago is an equal employment opportunity employer.
Is this you?
This isn’t for everyone. If it’s you, it may be the best work of your life. Read the full Profile of the Ideal Davis Chicago Educator, then apply.
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