Elementary School Counselor

Description

Thrive Education Partners is partnering with a growing independent school in Miami that believes exceptional education develops the whole child—not just academic achievement. Every aspect of the student experience is intentionally designed to foster intellectual curiosity, emotional intelligence, physical well-being, creativity, and personal responsibility.

As a School Counselor, you'll play an important role in supporting students and strengthening the overall school community across Preschool through 8th Grade. This is a highly collaborative role that combines student support, teacher coaching, conflict resolution, parent partnership, and thoughtful follow-through.

The ideal counselor brings a warm, loving, and clear presence while remaining composed and grounded in challenging situations. They understand that their responsibility extends beyond an individual student relationship to the well-being of the broader school community.

This is an especially exciting opportunity for someone who is highly organized, proactive, and comfortable managing their own communication, documentation, calendar, and follow-up while working closely with students, families, teachers, and school leadership.

About the School

The school's educational philosophy begins with a simple belief: children learn best when their academic, emotional, and physical development are intentionally supported together.

Students experience a challenging academic program enriched by social-emotional learning, entrepreneurship, project-based learning, wellness practices, and meaningful real-world experiences. The school places a strong emphasis on helping children develop not only academic skills, but also self-awareness, emotional regulation, resilience, creativity, initiative, and independence.

Families are viewed as trusted partners in their children's education, and educators are expected to build thoughtful, proactive relationships with parents.

The culture is both high-expectation and highly supportive. Educators work collaboratively to understand student needs, solve problems, and create a calm, cohesive school environment.

What You'll Do

As the School Counselor, you will:

• Support students across Preschool through 8th Grade with social-emotional, behavioral, and interpersonal needs.
• Provide limited individual student counseling on an as-needed basis and as appropriate within a school setting.
• Support students in developing conflict-resolution skills, executive functioning, assertive communication, healthy boundaries, and emotional regulation.
• Facilitate conflict resolution between students and help students develop strategies for navigating challenging social situations.
• Partner with teachers to problem-solve around students demonstrating challenging behaviors and identify proactive strategies for support.
• Coach and support teachers and teams in the use of Conscious Discipline and relationship-based approaches to student behavior and emotional regulation.
• Meet with parents to discuss student concerns and, when appropriate, recommend additional resources or evaluations such as occupational therapy, speech services, psychoeducational evaluations, or other outside supports.
• Maintain clear, accurate, and timely communication with families, teachers, and school leadership.
• Complete incident reports, communication logs, counseling notes, and follow-up documentation.
• Manage and follow through on action items resulting from parent meetings and student-support conversations.
• Collaborate closely with school leadership, teachers, and other members of the school community to support students and strengthen schoolwide practices.
• Contribute to schoolwide initiatives that support student well-being, character development, conflict resolution, and a positive school culture.
• Maintain an organized system for managing emails, tasks, documentation, calendar commitments, and follow-up.
• Participate actively in faculty meetings, professional development, and collaborative conversations about student support and school culture.

The Counselor We're Looking For

You'll likely thrive in this environment if you are:

• Composed and self-regulated. You remain calm, thoughtful, and grounded when navigating challenging student, parent, or staff situations.
• Warm, loving, and clear. You build genuine relationships while maintaining appropriate boundaries and communicating expectations clearly.
• Student-centered and community-minded. You care deeply about individual students while understanding that your primary responsibility is to the school and the broader school community.
• Highly organized. You can independently manage emails, tasks, documentation, meetings, and follow-up without needing an assistant to keep you on track.
• Collaborative. You enjoy working alongside teachers, families, and school leadership to solve problems and support students.
• Proactive. You identify concerns, communicate early, and follow through rather than waiting for problems to escalate.
• Solutions-oriented. You approach challenging behavior and student concerns with curiosity and a focus on teaching skills and building capacity.
• Growth-minded. You welcome feedback and are committed to continuing to develop your practice.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role means:

• The school community becomes calmer, more cohesive, and more proactive in addressing student needs.
• Students develop stronger skills in conflict resolution, executive functioning, assertive communication, emotional regulation, and setting healthy boundaries.
• Students, parents, and colleagues experience the counselor as a warm, trustworthy, professional, and consistent presence.
• Teachers feel supported and equipped to respond thoughtfully to challenging student behavior.
• Conscious Discipline principles are meaningfully supported and reinforced across the school community.
• Parent communication is thoughtful, professional, and followed through to completion.
• Communication logs, incident reports, counseling notes, and follow-up items are complete, accurate, and up to date.
• Student concerns and action items are handled proactively and collaboratively.
• The counselor is a dependable, organized, and trusted member of the school community.

Requirements

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in School Counseling, Counseling, Psychology, Education, or a related field.
• Appropriate school counseling certification, licensure, or credentials as required.
• Experience working with school-age children.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills.
• Excellent organizational and follow-through skills.
• Ability to successfully complete all required employment screenings and background checks.

Preferred Qualifications

• School counseling experience across multiple age groups.
• Experience supporting students with challenging behaviors or social-emotional needs.
• Training or experience in Conscious Discipline.
• Experience supporting executive functioning skills.
• Experience with conflict resolution and peer relationship support.
• Experience coaching or consulting with teachers around student behavior and classroom practices.
• Experience working with families to identify appropriate outside resources and services.
• Independent or private school experience.

Professional Standards

• Current background check and all required employment screenings; Thrive facilitates this process
• Verifiable references from prior school or counseling roles, including at least one direct supervisor or administrator
• Strong professionalism, discretion, and adaptability within a school community
• Comfort maintaining strict confidentiality in accordance with professional and school standards

Logistics & Compensation

• Location: Miami, Florida
• Setting: Full-time, on campus at an independent school
• Schedule: Monday–Friday, approximately 7:45 a.m. to 4:00p.m.
• Faculty meetings: Tuesdays until approximately 5:30 p.m.
• Compensation: $50,000–$69,000 annually, depending on experience, education, and overall fit
• Relocation: Relocation assistance may be available for an exceptional candidate
• Employment: Full-time employee of the school

Support from Thrive

• Dedicated Thrive support throughout the recruitment, interview, and placement process
• An initial conversation with Thrive to understand your experience, philosophy, and goals before any introduction to the school
• Detailed information about the school and its educational philosophy as you move through the interview process
• Access to Thrive's broader network of educators, specialists, and educational resources
• Ongoing partnership to support a strong, sustainable educator-school relationship

About Thrive

Thrive Education Partners connects exceptional educators with schools and families seeking highly personalized, values-driven education.

Our placements go beyond traditional tutoring and classroom teaching. We thoughtfully match educators with schools and families to create learning experiences built on strong relationships and instruction that responds to how each student learns. Students strengthen academic skills, build confidence, and make meaningful progress toward their goals.

Thrive Education Partners is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and make hiring decisions based on experience, skills, and business needs, without regard to any status protected by applicable law.