Job Description: Environmental Education Specialist
Location: San Diego, CA
Schedule: Full-time, evenings & weekends required
Reports to: Director of Youth Programs
Compensation: $19 - $22 per hour
Classification: Full-time Non-exempt
Benefits:
- Eligible for health benefits including medical, dental, vision, and life insurance.
- Vacation and sick pay, and 19 paid company holidays and office closure days
- Employer-sponsored 403(b) retirement plan
- Cell phone stipend
- Monthly and quarterly all staff professional development and team building opportunities
- Beautiful garden work environment
- Culture of learning, care, and community
Scope of Work: As part of the education team, the Environmental Education Specialist is responsible for delivering garden and environmental science lessons for youth programs including children’s field trips and high school internships. The Specialist is accountable to prepare and conduct hands-on lessons, update and develop curriculum as needed, and collaborate across multiple teams to support Olivewood’s mission and programs. As an organization rooted in community, this role requires active participation in anti-racist work and a commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Duties and Responsibilities (this does not include all tasks associated with position)
Program Delivery:
- Collaborate with the Youth Programs Team to develop and lead high quality garden-based education programs for youth
- Support the development and updating of garden and environmental science lesson plans according to Next Generation Standards and Common Core curriculum for elementary school programming
- Develop and update hands-on urban agriculture, environmental science, and community-based leadership lesson plans for high school youth
- Coordinate and lead the garden/environmental education lesson for children’s field trips including a three-part series for National School District 4th graders
- Coordinate and lead garden-focused high school internship program(s), including Sustainable Urban Agriculture and Garden 2 Kitchen Internship programs
- Develop and implement supplemental programs for youth including Garden Explorers program and Summer Day Camp
- Prepare materials for lessons
- Support interns and volunteers in the day-to-day operation of an interactive teaching garden
- Coordinate with Garden Support Specialist and Nutrition Education Specialist to coordinate planting and harvesting in line with educational activities
- Review goals, objectives, and indicators for garden education programs
- Enter evaluation data for analysis
- Review and analyze evaluation data to improve program curriculum
- Prepare reports as needed for funding and marketing efforts
- Provide additional programmatic support in any of our departments as needed
Communication and Outreach
- Participate in Olivewood program team and staff meetings and activities
- Collaborate with community partners
- Engage the use of marketing platforms and social media to create promotional material for youth programs
- Represent Olivewood Gardens in the community at professional and community events
- Provide support for annual Seedling Soiree fundraiser, community Day of Play, and other events and programs as needed.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Minimum two years’ experience and/or training in garden education, gardening or farming, environmental education, teaching children or equivalent combination of education and experience in an outdoor or classroom setting
- Proven ability to successfully design and deliver educational programs for children, including elementary and high school-aged youth
- Organized and detail-oriented with demonstrated ability to complete tasks on deadline
- Possess project management/organizational skills, including use of calendars and spreadsheets
- Strong group facilitation skills including the ability to educate a diversity of audiences and ages
- Commitment to healthy eating, garden education and nutrition education
- Savvy in Microsoft Suite and Google Workspace
- Must have basic knowledge of gardening safety
- Proven experience working with people of different cultures and backgrounds
- English/conversational Spanish preferred
- Acceptable DMV record and valid driver’s license required
- Upon hire must pass background check
- Ability to communicate professionally in front of groups of children and adults
Interpersonal Skills:
- Strong interpersonal and teamwork skills
- Works cooperatively in group situations and work actively to resolve conflicts
- Comfortable working with supervisor, staff, interns, and volunteers
- Flexible in fast-paced and unpredictable environments. Able to weigh multiple factors to act quickly, decisively, and diplomatically.
- Proven experience working with people of different cultures and backgrounds
Language Ability:
- Must be fluent in English and have at least conversational level of Spanish
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
- Ability to speak effectively before groups.
Reasoning Ability:
- Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagram form.
- Ability to deal with problems involving several variables in standardized situations.
Computer Skills:
- To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel), Google Workspace and basic social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram). Experience in Canva or other design platforms and virtual meeting platforms is a plus.
Certificates and Licenses:
- Acceptable DMV record and valid driver’s license required
Physical Demands:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.
- Ability to work with frequent interruption and to simultaneously supervise a variety of tasks
- Ability to stand, stoop, reach and bend. Mobility of arms to reach, dexterity of hands to grasp and manipulate large and small objects
- Ability to read small print
- Ability to stand for long period and walk long distances
- Ability to lift, push and/or pull objects, which may approximate 40 pounds
- Ability to work with and in the proximity of, equipment with moving mechanical parts
- Ability to work outdoors and tolerate varying weather conditions
- Frequent walking over uneven and unpaved areas, and/or standing is required
- Employee must talk and hear
About Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center: The mission of Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center is to inspire youth and adults to be healthy and active citizens through organic gardening, environmental stewardship and nutrition education. Once the home of the Walton family, the teaching gardens on the property have been cultivated for over 20 years. Now the site of our nutrition and garden education center, the unique 8-acre property is located in National City. Since 2010 Olivewood has received over 140,000 visits from children and family members from throughout San Diego County who are learning about food, health, and the natural environment.
Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, gender, sex, gender identity or expression, age, medical condition, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, military status, caregiver status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Olivewood, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experiences don't align perfectly with every qualification listed, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this position.
