Farm Education Manager

Red Hook Initiative•Brooklyn, NY

4d•$61,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Farm Education Manager oversees all youth-focused educational programming at our two farm sites: the 2.75 acre Columbia Street Farm and the 1.1 acre Wolcott Street Farm. The Manager develops and leads hands-on programming for youth aged 5-18. The majority of the time is focused on the Youth Farmers teen apprenticeship, while also supervising our school workshop and middle school programming. The position recruits, hires, mentors, and supervises 12-24 youth farmers. In addition, the Manager is responsible for maintaining the education-focused beds on the farms, as well as leading curriculum development, program planning, strategic visioning, and evaluation. This position also supervises seasonal community education work such as culinary workshops, depending on overall staffing and funding. Regular data entry, email correspondence with participants, teachers, and colleagues, and other weekly admin work are critical responsibilities of this position. Other tasks may include communications work and educational signage development. Spring and Fall schedule: Tuesdays and Fridays (8am - 4pm) are used for in-person school workshops, maintaining education beds, program planning, and occasionally supporting Friday volunteer sessions. Wednesday/Thursdays (11am-7pm) are for morning office work and in-person after-school (early evening) work sessions with the youth farmers. Saturdays are for in-person work sessions with the youth farmers; summer and fall Saturdays also include supervising youth at farm stands. Summer schedule: Tuesdays are office/admin hours; Wednesday - Friday are in-person sessions with the youth farmers. Saturdays are for in-person work sessions with the youth farmers running Farm Stand. Winter schedule: Fridays are rotated in person to support with the year round compost operation and volunteering. Otherwise 2 days work from home and 3 days in-person doing admin, curriculum planning, applications. Also encouraged to take vacations (bulk of vacation time should be taken in winter);

Requirements

Organized, detail-oriented - sets strong example for staff, volunteers, and youth
Ability to work collaboratively with those from various racial, ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds
Able to balance being an educator, mentor, and supervisor for youth staff; understanding the unique opportunities and challenges of running educational programs within the context of a production-oriented farm
Comfortable using Google Drive
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Commitment to social justice
Able to lift up to 25 pounds
3-5 years experience working with youth in an outdoor setting
2-4 years in urban growing, vegetable production, or gardening
Demonstrated ability to collaborate with colleagues towards shared goals
Versed in anti-oppression trainings and inquiry-based education
Experience working outside, in all types of weather

Nice To Haves

Proficiency in spoken Spanish and/or Mandarin or Cantonese
Carpentry and other building skills
Has a valid Driver's License and able to drive a cargo/passenger van
Familiar with the Red Hook community as well as NYC urban agriculture community

Responsibilities

Work with the team to meet the needs of all youth-focused educational programming at the farms
Recruit, train, and supervise 12-24 teen apprentices
Supervise 1-3 young adult interns (youth farmer alum), focused on leadership and individual projects
Supervise 1-2 seasonal staff, focused on school workshops and culinary education
Build cohesive education team - schedule regular collaboration meetings with colleagues and seasonal educators, provide ongoing feedback and support development of action plans, identify strengths and challenges of team and strategize collaboratively for areas of growth and leadership
Develop and execute curriculum re: best practices in agriculture, foundational topics such as botany and compost, as well as meta topics such as food sovereignty, race and farming, and explorations of identity in the field
Design and conduct ongoing evaluation of all youth educational programming
Engage in a variety of farm tasks alongside the youth, including seeding, planting, composting, weeding, mowing, mulching, harvesting, processing, building, and repair
Maintain education-focused areas on the farms through regular weeding, planting, etc
Organize and lead off-site (and potentially overnight) team building trip(s) with youth
Develop and execute annual strategic plan to build an engaged cohort of primarily Red Hook youth trained in urban agricultural best practices
Serve as primary liaisons with other programmatic teams at Red Hook Initiative
Collaborate with peer organizations around the city for conferences, trips, learning opportunities, advocacy campaigns, and other public events or related activities
Support with grant proposals and reporting, site visits from funders, elected officials, peer programs, and others
Email, data entry, record-keeping, and other administrative tasks
Collaborate on special events on the farms such as fundraisers and community festivals
Participate in staff meetings, social media outreach, and program planning
Serve as primary staff supervising Youth Farmers on the operation of Saturday Farm Stand and CSA
Plan and lead afterschool and summer programming in collaboration with RHI's middle school program
Plan and lead in-person school visits for k-8th graders
Outreach to local schools and coordinate seasonal curriculum based on teacher input

Benefits

medical, dental, and vision coverage
an Employee Assistance Program with 12 counseling sessions per year
a 403(b) retirement plan
flexible spending accounts
life insurance
20 PTO days of paid time off
Summer Fridays when possible
RHI is closed for one week in August and November, and during the last week of the year for a holiday break, ensuring employees have time to rest and recharge

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