Position Description
Director of College Counseling
For the
April 20 , 2015
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The Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund
The Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund (DMSF) gives high school scholarship and educational
support to bright Chicago students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. DMSF
makes a life-altering difference in the lives of
its Scholars by providing them with a fourDMSF Mission
year scholarship to a private college
preparatory high school and, along with it,
The mission of the Daniel Murphy
access to the best opportunities to succeed
Scholarship Fund is to give high school
in high school, college and beyond.
scholarship assistance and educational
support to Chicago students from
DMSF has been serving Chicago’s most
economically disadvantaged
vulnerable students and their families for 25
backgrounds. DMSF seeks to make a
years. The first four DMSF Scholars began
life-altering difference in the lives of its
high school in 1990; in the fall of 2014 the
Scholars by providing them with the best
2,100th DMSF Scholar entered high school.
opportunity to succeed in high school
DMSF now awards 125 new scholarships
and college.
each year with great results. Nearly all of the
Scholars complete high school and virtually
100% of these high school graduates go on to
college. Three hundred and fifty DMSF Scholars are currently enrolled in independent and
parochial college preparatory day schools in the Chicago-area, as well as in boarding schools
around the country. DMSF plans to increase its number of Scholars to 500 by the year 2020.
DMSF Scholars face far more obstacles to success than their peers who come from middle and
upper class backgrounds. Over the course of its 25 years of scholarship management, DMSF has
learned that its Scholars need significant support beyond financial aid in order to succeed. This
has led the organization to implement, oversee and continually adjust programming to respond
to the academic and social challenge its Scholars face while attending demanding college prep
high schools. DMSF’s supportive programming begins before its Scholars enter high school and
continues until they graduate. It features five core programs: the Bridge to Excellence summer
session, mentoring, tutoring, the summer opportunities program, and college counseling.
DMSF’s objective is to do everything possible to support the success of its Scholars.
DMSF works strategically with bright and talented students who would not otherwise have
access to the resources necessary to attend a high performing high school. DMSF’s Scholars live
in Cook County, and more than 90% reside in the City of Chicago. The current classes of DMSF
Scholars reflect the diversity of the City: 49% are Hispanic, 37% are African American, 5% are
Caucasian and the balance are of mixed race, Asian or other ethnicities. The average DMSF
Scholar comes from a family of five with an income of $33,000. Approximately two-thirds of
the Scholars come from single-parent households. The vast majority of DMSF Scholars will be
among the first generation in their families to graduate from college.
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College Counseling at DMSF
DMSF begins talking to its Scholars about attending college even before their first day of high
school. Every DMSF Scholar is expected not only to attend, but to graduate from college. We
want every DMSF Scholar positioned to secure the financial aid he or she will need to succeed
in college. To help DMSF Scholars achieve this goal, DMSF has implemented a four-year college
counseling curriculum designed to ensure that its Scholars are familiar with the college
application and financial aid process, will be eligible to attend a selective college, and are
ultimately well-positioned to attend a college which is an appropriate match. We also strive to
ensure that the parents and guardians of our Scholars, many of whom have not attended
college, are well versed in the college selection and application process and are able to support
their sons and daughters throughout that process.
Director of College Counseling
DMSF seeks a dynamic and accomplished college counseling professional to join its team as the
Director of College Counseling. Reporting to the Director of Education, the Director of College
Counseling is a full-time, year-round role. This individual, in collaboration with DMSF’s Director
of Education and the Education Department staff, as well as with oversight from DMSF’s
College Counseling Committee, will be responsible for the continued development and
implementation of DMSF’s college counseling curriculum. In addition, the Director of College
Counseling will be responsible for managing partnerships and programming designed to help
DMSF graduates persist in college. In completing his or her work the Director of College
Counseling will expand and deepen DMSF’s existing relationships with colleges, universities,
scholarship providers and others.
The Director of College Counseling’s work will focus on the following essential responsibilities:

Implementation and continued enhancement of DMSF’s four year college counseling
curriculum.

Creation of handbooks and other materials for DMSF Scholars, as well as their parents and
guardians.

Provide one on one college counseling to DMSF Scholars during their junior and senior years
of high school, working hand in hand with Scholars, their families and the college counselors
at their high schools.

Plan and chaperone college visits to local colleges for members of the freshman and
sophomore classes, as well as college visits throughout the Midwest for second semester
juniors, and coordinate fly-in opportunities for juniors and seniors.
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
Facilitate a variety of workshops for current Scholars, such as common application
workshops, essay writing workshops and FASFA workshops for parents and guardians.

Devise and implement events for parents to help them better understand the college
counseling process and the value of their children attending selective colleges and
universities across the country.

Arrange for and oversee ACT test prep classes.

Expand DMSF’s relationships with organizations which provide financial aid to students
attending college, and strengthen DMSF’s relationships with organizations which are
already providing financial support to DMSF Scholars who are in college.

Collect, store and evaluate data on college applications, test scores, admissions, financial
aid and college persistence.

Work with the members of the DMSF Education Department, as well as the College
Counseling Committee, to devise and implement tools to evaluate DMSF’s college
counseling efforts.

Represent DMSF before NACAC, IACAC and other similar organizations.

Manage DMSF’s efforts to increase the college persistence rates of its alumni, including
helping implement partnerships with other nonprofits who are involved in working with
students at the college level.

Be an eager member of the DMSF team and participate as needed in the organization’s
activities, including education-related events, donor-related events and alumni activities.

Attend Board meetings and make presentations to the Board, as appropriate.
Ideal Candidate Qualifications
DMSF seeks candidates who bring strong leadership and relationship skills, balanced by
analytics, detail orientation and the willingness to work as part a team. The role of the Director
of College Counseling is a dynamic one, and activities will vary significantly from day to day, as
the position requires careful program planning and management as well as significant time
spent nurturing external relationships. Candidates must be self-motivated, innovative and
flexible, and able to effortlessly switch from driving planning and execution efforts to face-toface meetings with Scholars and parents. Candidates must possess a broad knowledge of U.S.
colleges and universities, and be proficient at identifying schools that could be a potential fit for
individual Scholars. Excellent writing, presentation, interpersonal and organizational skills are
essential.
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Professional experiences and the skill set of top candidates will include:

A minimum of 5 years of college counseling and /or college admissions experience.
Bachelor’s degree required.

A passion for the mission of DMSF and for the population of students that DMSF serves.

The ability to foster relationships with college admissions officers and senior level college
administrators, scholarship providers and high schools college counselors.

A high level of understanding of the college counseling process, including sensitivity to the
obstacles faced by first generation families.

Being a strategic thinker and inspiring communicator.

Adept at engaging participants in large group discussions.

Shows perseverance in the face of significant challenges and a willingness to think outside
the box.

A high degree of initiative, confidence and energy to achieve and exceed goals.

Excellent writing, organizational and presentation skills, as well as strong technology skills.
To Apply
Interested applicants should send a cover letter and resume to the attention of DMSF’s Director
of Education, Meghann Sandak, at Meghann@dmsf.org. For more information about DMSF,
please visit our website at www.dmsf.org.