site coordinator

student coordinator

campus manager

support specialist

student mentor

Communities In Schools

This is my first "real" job straight out of college, and overall I love what I do. There's a clear sense of purpose and direction with CIS, you're there to help and support your kids. The relationships you build with students are what really makes this job worth it, and getting to see them grow is such a treat. This job has made me realize I might want to become a teacher because I genuinely love the school environment. The work culture is also a plus. As an intern, you're part of a pool of other interns in your area and you're given a group of full-time employees whose main job is to support you. Even though this is 2020 and COVID is going on, I've still managed to make real friends in my cohort and I genuinely feel supported by staff. There are endless training opportunities and they're always focused on diversity and cultural sensitivity. You also work in a school so you get the same major holidays off that the kids and teachers get. (Two week Christmas vacation, spring break, Thanksgiving!!)
There are downsides though, and they're pretty big ones. Not enough to make this feel less worth it, but enough to make it hard. The first is the pay. As a full-time AmeriCorps member I make a little over 1k a month and work 45 hour weeks. Friends who work as servers/gas station clerks make about twice what I do. Every month is a struggle to get by on the stipend. I'm in the process of finding a weekend job just to have some extra financial security, knowing I'll probably be working 60 hour weeks. Finding affordable housing, getting on food stamps, and not having a bunch of debt to pay off can make life easier, but most members have to get second jobs. The second downside is the job security. As an AmeriCorps member, you're only around for one 10 month term. You always have the option to apply for a second term, but there's no guarantee you'll get it and there will be gap months between terms when you just don't have a job. Another reason why you need a second job, so you can start putting money aside for that limbo period/have a cushion to fall back on. Thirdly, you are paid a flat rate, which is great for budgeting since you know exactly how much you'll have each month, but you are required to have a certain number of hours by the end of your term. You can take time off if you get sick/have an emergency, but you still have to make up those hours, and there's virtually no way around that. It's very easy to get behind and constantly have to work extra hours to play catch-up, and you don't get paid extra for that time. 
Overall I'm glad this is my first experience out of college instead of some soul-crushing corporate job, and although I'd make more almost anywhere else, I love my kids and the people I work with, and I'm doing something I love. It's a great first step if you're looking at a career in education, social work, or counseling. I think of this as sort of like the internship phase in med school; you're underpaid and overworked but you're getting real, important experience and actually helping people, and it's temporary. 

Typical Day at Work - Talk to students about problems in school or at home. Provide supportive listening and a shoulder to cry on most of the time. 

What I learned - To be grateful for what I have and the experience that I've gained. Students come in from all walks of life. Be grateful for what you have. 

Management - This is my personal experience. They are not supportive. There are too many Indians in different cities and towns and only two Chiefs who never answer their phones or their email responses are two days late so good luck asking for help. Training was weak and confusing. Guidelines change monthly and when you think you have it down woops you did it wrong or it's not enough! They are quick to dock your pay if you leave early, but will not pay overtime if you stay til seven with a parent or student because it's part of your job duties even if you're scheduled 8am-4:30p. You are volun-told to participate in weekend events such as the Keys walk, CIS fundraising events, family night at a Farmer's Market place  etc. And no you won't get paid for that either. If you don't show they will definitely call you or expect a doctor's note - yes for a weekend event that you're volun-told to go. 

My co-workers - Some case managers are cool and others are spies and gossipers, but hey that's everywhere. Choose your friends carefully. 

The hardest part of the job - Not having a budget to help a kid with shoes, clothing, food, or place to stay for their families. It broke my heart every time a student asked me to help with food or shoes and I couldn't. Some students don't have running water at home so they come to school stinky and so personal hygiene products are most definitely needed. I even sponsored a kid and bought him his gym uniform for school, but as soon as the school found out I got four more requests for help and that killed me. I couldn't pay for all of them! And we didn't have a budget to buy them so what's a case manager to do??? 

The most enjoyable part of the job - Being told thank you for helping with whatever I could. To see a student's face light up every time they saw me. To know that my students told me they would miss me when I was leaving and to even hear them beg me not to go. At least I know I made a little difference. 

This place is good to start off if you have no experience, but once you have a year under your belt look for other options for yourself. There's no room for advancement as I've known case managers that have been there six to ten years and they are just that... case managers. There are never any openings for a supervisory position, so it'll be best to move on as soon as you can to advance yourself. Good luck.

I worked there for less than one a half years. I was excited when I first started. Just about a few weeks later, I started to feel anxious, and continued to feel that way until I decided to quit my job for four main reasons. 

First, the management was horrible. I was not properly trained. I was not well-informed. This happened to all of us. The management did not like feedback from the field staff. They talked like they knew everything; they thought they were always right. This sometimes happens in the staff meeting. As a result, some program managers were looking for new jobs. They did not orient you to the job. They let you figure out yourself. 

Second, the management and supervisors provided little support while you're on the job. For example, you have to figure out how to get your own data, and so on. This job deals mostly with getting information on the forms for your student assessments. That was challenging already but no sufficient support for me. 

Third, I had many students on my caseload. Your caseload is 100 students minimum but need to get more in case students drop out. Some end up having 120. You have to see students once a month and fill out paperwork and enter data every week and month. Too much. 

Finally, this agency tend to conduct itself unprofessionally on some tasks. For example, assigning brand new employees to a brand new project and let them struggle. They don't like employees who talk negatively about them, and this clearly shows incompetent skills in dealing with internal organizational conflict. They went this far to figure out which employees said what on the surveys, and of course it is easy to find out through demographic information part of the questionnaire. 

In summary, if you can avoid this agency, you would do yourself real good, especially if you're interested clinical aspect.

Working for Communities in Schools has been a wonderful experience! I have really enjoyed working with the staff as well as the students at the high school in which I currently work! While working with the Expecting and Parenting teen population, no two days resemble the other. There are days where it seems as though all of my students have a crisis and then others when all is well, and they only want to check in. One thing is for sure, no day is predictable. On the other hand, although I love the profession that I am in as a Counselor/ EHS Parenting Coordinator, the hardest thing about my job is seeing some of my students make the decision to drop out of school or get into unhealthy relationships despite all of the work that has been done and the progress that they have made. Even so, I have learned that I am only accountable for the effort made and not the outcome. On another note, the most enjoyable part of my job is the fact that not only do I get the chance to touch the lives of my teen parents and their familes by providing counseling and resources for my students that enable them to graduate, but I also get the chance to touch the lives of their children through our Early Headstart Program that has been developed to assist Expecting and Parenting teens graduate and promote babies that will be more prepared for school. When I see the progress of the students that I serve ,and hear of the great progress that their babies are making while attending the daycare centers that we partner with, it makes everything so worthwhile and reminds me of why I do the work that I do.

This job is high demand with low pay. If you are not comfortable with data collection and entry-you won't like this job. The explanations from management on scope and capacity are not consistent and often I have gotten and seen other Site Coordinators get runaround answers to important questions. They want us "All in for kids" but we are extremely limited in what they actually allow us to do at our sites. I've worked for several non-profit's prior to this and understand how they work, this has been the most frustrating position within the non-profit sector I've had. Management has a positive attitude-but it more often comes across as rose colored glasses and is very dismissive when there are legitimate grievances and challenges whether at your school site or with CIS. This is not a long term placement for me-yet they treat it like it is/should be. There is little to no incentive to stay and you are on your own at your site. If you are not a strong self starter and manager-this will be challenging for you. There are no clear pathways to advancement and turnover rate is high. These issues do not make an environment where qualified, experienced professionals want to stick around. Use this as a stepping stone if you're interested-but keep your expectation bar low. They sell the position HIGH-keep perspective that that is the rose-colored glasses non profit talking and pay and advancement as limited at best. It has "we're a family here" messaging and energy. 99% of the time you're on your own and you are going to get frustrating feedback or lack of feedback often. Use the site coordinator position as a resume builder and move to bigger and better places. 

Pros: school calendar & schedule

Cons: Pay, demand, limitations, management, opportunity for advancement, isolation

So I was a floater at Communities in Schools for only about 6 months so I'm not gonna review them as if I worked there for years. It's a basic, low-paying, in-between type of job that doesn't pay much but you also don't do all that much.

I would just say do not go for the "floater" position. I usually love jobs where I can switch it up, but this job relies heavily on the kids at the schools knowing you and respecting you enough to actually listen to you and when you're a floater that goes to a different school every single day that just doesn't happen, at least not fast enough. I was basically a backup babysitter who was just there to help corral kids and act as lunch lady.

The other big problem was planning on the part of the different schools you'd be expected at. There was no communication between Communities in Schools and the actual schools themselves on which floater would be showing up and which door we were supposed to enter. I spent a lot of time either waiting outside of schools for someone to let me inside or walking aimlessly around schools trying to find where I needed to be.

Management themselves were always nice to me, one tagged along on my first day and helped me learn the ropes which was much needed. I never felt talked down to by my bosses and I felt respected. Sometimes the other women can gossip or try to start drama, but it never weighed on me nor did I feel it affected the way anyone did their jobs. It's just that frankly kids just don't take well to floaters when they have the teachers they've known all year already there. I didn't love it here, but it was a job and I didn't hate it so.

Working here was an eye-opening experience about how poorly a nonprofit can be managed. While the organization provides valuable services to the community, internal operations and leadership need serious attention. The workplace culture feels very cliquish, especially within the main office and among supervisors. Unfortunately, favoritism is common — support and opportunities often go to those who constantly flatter management rather than those who simply do their jobs well.
The job duties themselves were not difficult, but the lack of professionalism from supervisors made the environment toxic. Many supervisors seem more focused on appearances and maintaining their inner circle than on fostering a healthy, inclusive, or supportive workplace. If you don’t fit their preferred “look” or personality type, expect to be treated differently.
HR and upper management provide little to no support during conflicts. Instead of resolving issues, they often choose to replace employees quickly. Pay is low, and despite being a nonprofit, the organization’s internal culture does not reflect the values it promotes publicly.
The only real positive was the consistent biweekly pay — but that alone doesn’t make up for the lack of respect, professionalism, or fairness.
I do not recommend working here unless you enjoy constant workplace drama and favoritism.

A typical day at work includes completing the necessary data entry, meeting with other Site Coordinators, and meeting with school staff and administrators to improve the program until Program starts at 2:45 PM. Once Program starts, the duties include assisting the Activity Coordinators with students and keeping parents updated on student growth. 

In this job, I learned how to manage up to 10 staff members, how to work with students in an after school setting, and how to work with school staff and administrators to improve the program. 

I worked under little or no supervision and completed self-managed projects. This type of management worked well for the ACE Program. 

The other four Site Coordinators worked at different sites, so we did not work directly with one another on a regular basis. When we did meet with one another, it was always to improve the program and was very effective. 

The hardest part of the job was being witness to what some of the students had gone through in their young lives. I worked closely with the school counselor to ensure that we were doing everything we could to make ACE at least one safe space for them. 

The most enjoyable part of the job was managing and working closely with my staff members to make the students' lives better. Creating relationships with each student and seeing their academic and behavioral improvements was extremely rewarding.

Let’s start with how you need a Bachelor’s degree to work there and the pay in horrible. They do not pay a living wage. The job is full time and you would need a 2nd full time job to survive if you work here. It was hard working for a company that didn’t have my back. I wanted to work for this company long before they hired me. I was very disappointed in what I saw when I began my tenure with them. They do not provide half the services that they said they did. Everything we did was marked in several categories so it would be on paper that we were doing much more than we were. In my personal experience I think a school would be better served if they hired a person directly on each campus to address the needs of the school and individual needs of certain groups of students. Also, they complained of funding for everything that was asked of them. Anything that was requested for my campus in particular the answer was no because they couldn’t afford it. It made me look bad on the campus because I couldn’t provide anything I was told that we could. Finally, what has stuck with me over the years was how little the supervisors there had my back. When the school I was placed at complain about things I had no control of they just threw me under the bus and allowed me to be rolled over. Everything there is about keeping the guise of “helping students” going. I felt so dispensable. I left with a sense of disappointment and a feeling that I was the only one there that genuinely wanted to help children. Overall, this was a very disappointing experience.

A typical day starts with checking with staff to review the previous day and any needs they may have, providing supplies, resources, programming, and communication to the learning center staff and communication with all the family members who attend our learning centers. Scheduling and providing programming for each learning center. Training, serving staff, giving feedback, and guidance to make this the most successful experience for all. Working with staff, children, and families during stressful or crisis situations. 

I continue to learn that people are people and we all are coping and make the best of every situation. - Guiding others to build on their healthy behaviors and attributes is significant to change and growth. 

My co-workers are hard-worker, intelligent, passionate, caring individuals that believe in our mission and continue to carry it out with dignity and honor. 

The hardest part of the job is that there are not enough hours in a day to do all I want to do. Yet, I enjoy the time I have, to do what I can do. 

The most enjoyable part of my job is connecting and building relationships with our many wonderful families and developing a strong, creative, caring team of people who work with these families.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Site coordinator 88 salaries reported	$38,312 per year
Student coordinator 37 salaries reported	$42,392 per year
Campus manager 38 salaries reported	$3,760 per month
Support specialist 7 salaries reported	$43,643 per year
Student mentor 3 salaries reported	$1,687 per month

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