[School Year 2026-2027] SEL Specialist

DREAM • New York, NY

19h • $65,000 - $79,000

About The Position

Reporting to the Dean of SEL and Community, the Social-Emotional Learning Specialist is a reliable team player with a commitment to youth development, social-emotional learning, and mental health. They will play a key role in implementing DREAM’s Grow the Whole Child model by driving student growth in social and emotional competencies.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree, required;
• One year of youth development or school experience, preferred;
• Experience providing small-group or individual supports for youth;
• Experience collecting data and implementing data-driven practices;
• Exhibit a strong belief that explicit and embedded SEL competency-building positively impacts academic achievement;
• Strong group facilitation skills and ability to manage behaviors using positive youth development principles (experience with restorative justice practices strongly preferred);
• Strong written and oral communication skills;
• Excellent organizational and problem solving skills;
• A strong belief in the mission and values of DREAM, including the desire to make a difference in the lives of our students, families, and community.

Nice To Haves

• Enrollment in, or Master’s degree from, MSW, MHC, or MSEd in Counseling, preferred;
• One year of youth development or school experience, preferred;
• Strong group facilitation skills and ability to manage behaviors using positive youth development principles (experience with restorative justice practices strongly preferred);

Responsibilities

• Implement social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum through explicit instruction and targeted small group SEL interventions to ensure student progress to targeted SEL goals and outcomes;
• Drive collection and analysis of data related to SEL intervention program and implement improvements based on data, feedback and observation;
• Collect and maintain student data related to informal behavior plans, in collaboration with School Leadership and Culture teams;
• Manage caseload of students receiving tier 2 SEL interventions; including data collection and documentation, teacher communication and collaboration, and family communication and collaboration;
• Supervise and manage individual youth behavior using positive student culture techniques and proactive interventions to ensure the physical and emotional safety and development of all youth;
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with families;
• Work with youth in positive and creative ways that encourage teamwork;
• Attend and participate in school culture, student life, and grade-level meetings;
• Additional duties related to the running of the school as assigned.

Benefits

• Flexible Medical Health Plans, subsidizing the majority of costs for the employee, their spouse/domestic partner and children;
• The ability to select between a variety of medical plans according to what best suits the employee’s needs;
• Dental and vision plans;
• Disability benefits;
• Life insurance;
• Up to 12 weeks fully paid of Parental Leave;
• Flexible spending account options;
• Pre-tax commuter benefits (parking and transit);
• Fitness and entertainment discounts;
• A variety of support through our employee assistance program (EAP);
• 403(b) retirement plan with employer match starting at 4% after one year, with increases tied to DREAM tenure;
• Referral, performance, and tenure milestone bonuses;
• Discounted school meals through our in-house Scratch Food Program;
• Tuition reimbursement support;
• Access to a professional development fund;
• School-based 12-month employees have approximately 48 days off throughout the school year including holidays, school breaks, personal days, and wellness days;
• MSW-LPs and MHC-LPs can receive clinical supervision toward NYSED licensure.
• Benefits are subject to change.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level