Director of Student Wellness

St. Michaels Prep in Austin TX has engagedDovetailEDto lead a search for aDirector of Student Wellnessto start in January 2027 or sooner. Interested candidates should review theOpportunity Statementand submit a cover letter resume and list of references as a consolidated PDF to Zack Lehman President atDovetailED Talent Sourcing and Victoria Jones Recruiter

Position Type: Full-Time 12 month

Reports to: Head of Upper School

About St. Michaels Catholic Preparatory School

St. Michaels Catholic Preparatory School (SMP) is a Pre-K through Grade 12 independent Catholic

school in Austin Texas dedicated to forming young people intellectually spiritually and morally

within the Catholic tradition. Grounded in Catholic Social Teaching SMP cultivates a community

where academic excellence faith formation and the dignity of every student are held together as a

single mission. Guided by our Portrait of a Graduate we prepare students not only for college but for

lives of purpose service and integrity.

SMP seeks colleagues who share a commitment to the whole child mind body and spirit and

who bring both professional excellence and a genuine care for students and families to their work

each day.

About the Position

SMP is seeking an experienced Director of Student Wellness to join our administrative team. The

Director will be the senior administrator responsible for supporting student wellbeing and balance

within the Upper School (Grades 912). This is a role for every student not only those navigating a

specific challenge: the Director will champion a healthy rhythm of academic spiritual social and

personal life helping students build the habits and perspective to thrive under the ordinary

pressures of Upper School workload sleep activities relationships and expectations while also

ensuring thoughtful support is in place for students who need more. The Director will lead the

Upper Schools counseling team set the vision for proactive wellbeing programming and coordinate

closely with the Health Office on matters of physical health. This is a full-time exempt (salaried)

in-person 12-month (year-round) position reporting to the Head of Upper School or designee in

close partnership with Upper School faculty and staff.

Primary Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

Provide strategic leadership in support of student wellbeing and balance within the Upper

School (Grades 912) with programming designed to reach and benefit the entire student body.

Set the vision and long-range priorities for a healthy sustainable Upper School experience

helping students balance academics extracurriculars faith life rest and relationships while

ensuring appropriate support is available for students who need additional care.

Lead the Upper School counseling team and integrate wellbeing and student support services to

promote a sense of belonging balance and academic success in a manner consistent with

SMPs Catholic mission and Portrait of a Graduate.

Coordinate with the Health Office and school nurse on matters of physical health that intersect

with student wellbeing ensuring aligned whole-person support without duplicating clinical

medical oversight.

Build trusting collaborative relationships with all stakeholders demonstrating partnership across

counseling academics athletics and family life.

Collaborate regularly with Lower School and Middle School counselors to ensure a coherent

developmentally aligned continuum of student wellness programming across all divisions so

that the wellbeing language expectations and support students experience in the Upper School

build naturally on what came before.

Design implement and continuously improve wellbeing and balance curricula and

programming grounded in Catholic Social Teaching appropriate to each developmental stage

and intended for all students.

Attend weekly Upper School Educational Leadership Team meetings.

Student Care and Support

Serve as a visible approachable presence for the whole student body building rapport and

trust so that wellbeing is framed as a shared everyday priority.

Monitor school-wide patterns that affect student balance such as workload schedule and

extracurricular demands and partner with academic and activity leaders to make adjustments

that support healthier routines.

Provide direct support to students navigating more significant challenges including consultation

with families and where appropriate outside mental health providers while keeping such

support in proportion to the broader universal focus of the role.

Serve as a point of contact for elevated parent/guardian wellbeing concerns and when needed

more serious situations requiring additional care or outside referral.

Work closely with student support teams on individual student needs including consultation

regarding student learning plans and accommodations related to wellbeing factors.

Lead regular wellness team meetings with Upper School counselors to align on both universal

programming and support for students of concern; oversee re-entry plans for students returning

from a wellbeing-related absence.

Support and consult with the Director of Athletics and coaching staff on healthy balance for

student-athletes including workload rest and team dynamics.

Program and Operational Oversight

Oversee the Upper Schools counseling and wellness program including supervision of Upper

School counselors coordination of universal wellbeing programming and collaboration with

families and outside providers when additional support is needed.

Oversee counseling team scheduling and workload distribution to ensure both proactive

all-student programming and responsive individual support are appropriately staffed.

Develop and maintain a Student Wellness Program Manual and related operational

documentation including wellbeing programming plans referral pathways and support

protocols for students who need them.

Establish a regular cadence of cross-divisional meetings with Lower School and Middle School

counselors to share practices coordinate on students transitioning between divisions and

maintain a consistent school-wide approach to student wellness.

Own the oversight and ongoing development of a top-tier Upper School advisory program

ensuring every student has a trusted adult connection and a consistent structured space to

build balance belonging and reflection into their week.

Design and refine advisory curriculum and structure in partnership with school leadership

aligning advisory group activities with the broader wellbeing and balanced priorities of the

Upper School.

Plan and lead ongoing training and support for faculty advisors equipping them with practical

tools and confidence to guide meaningful advisory conversations recognize when a student may

need additional care and reinforce healthy routines.

Regularly gather feedback from advisors and students to evaluate the advisory programs

effectiveness and drive continuous improvement.

Policy and Communication

Develop review and maintain Upper School wellbeing-related policies and protocols in

consultation with counseling staff and school leadership in alignment with school-wide

practices.

Ensure compliance with applicable state and federal requirements related to student support

services mandated reporting and confidentiality of counseling and student records.

Ensure counseling and wellness records are accurate secure and maintained in accordance with

FERPA and professional confidentiality standards.

Communicate proactively with school leadership families and employees in support of student

wellbeing sharing practical guidance the whole community can use in addition to updates on

protocols when a situation warrants it.

Education Training and Professional Responsibilities

Conduct wellbeing-related training for employees as necessary including how to support healthy

balance for students day to day and how to recognize when a student may need additional care.

Maintain professional competencies through continuing education and engagement with

current trends and best practices in student wellbeing healthy development and balance.

Qualifications

Masters degree in Counseling School Psychology Social Work Education or a related field

required; doctoral degree preferred.

Licensed or certified in a relevant field (e.g. LPC LCSW LMFT Licensed Psychologist or School

Counselor certification) preferred.

710 years of experience in student support counseling or wellbeing programming with

substantial experience in a school-based setting; adolescent development expertise preferred.

Demonstrated experience designing or leading proactive wellbeing programming for a broad

student population not solely individual counseling caseloads.

Experience developing or leading an advisory or mentorship program including training and

supporting faculty in that role strongly preferred.

Prior leadership experience managing counseling or student support staff budgets and

program operations preferred.

Familiarity with school laws and regulations related to student support services including

mandated reporting and FERPA.

Collaborative leadership style consistent with SMPs mission and values.

Strong oral and written communication skills including the ability to engage warmly with

students families and colleagues on everyday wellbeing topics as well as more sensitive matters.

Ability to work with a diversity of constituents including students parents faculty staff and

administrators.

Awareness appreciation and comfort supporting the wellbeing and balance of a diverse student

body including racial ethnic and socioeconomic diversity with knowledge of best practices for

inclusive support consistent with Catholic teaching on the dignity of the human person.

Prior experience with student information and wellness platforms preferred.

St. Michaels Catholic Preparatory School is an Equal Opportunity Employer and offers equal

employment opportunity to all applicants for employment and all employees without regard to race

color religion sex gender national origin age physical or mental disability genetic information

veteran status military service application for military service or any other status protected by

applicable law.