Environmental Educator

Hours: Full Time, 40 hours/week

Compensation: $35,000 – $40,000 Salary with Optional Benefits

Friends of John D. MacArthur Beach State Park (Friends) is seeking a full time Environmental Educator to join our education team and to continue to provide award-winning environmental education (EE) programs. With a barrier island state park for an outdoor classroom, our education team is able to provide outdoor learning opportunities to over 4,000 students annually. This position will play an essential role in leading educational programs at the park, maintaining the park’s education classroom and materials, and assisting the Director of Education.

About the Friends of MacArthur Beach:

Founded in 1990, “Friends” is a State of Florida Citizen Support Organization (CSO), and a 501(C)(3) non-profit corporation. Our mission is to generate supplemental resources to preserve, restore, and interpret the natural and cultural assets of the Park for present and future generations. With over 14 EE programs, our goal is to instill an understanding of and appreciation for coastal southeastern Florida’s plant and animal communities, natural resources, and foster good stewardship. Our EE programs include field trips at John D. MacArthur Beach State Park, Summer Camps, Junior Friends group for teens, and Professional Development Workshops for educators.

About John D. MacArthur Beach State Park:

John D. MacArthur Beach State Park was established in 1989, the only state park in Palm Beach County. The State Park was established to protect a diverse and undisturbed subtropical coastal habitat from development. The Park is named for John D. MacArthur, whose generosity allowed the State of Florida to secure the land. Developed in part with funds donated by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Park opened to the public in 1989. The purpose was, and is still today, to protect a very rare and spectacularly beautiful piece of Florida’s southeast coast.

Environmental Educator Position:

The Environmental Educator’s role at Friends of MacArthur Beach State Park will primarily focus on leading environmental education (EE) programs and assisting the Director of Education (DOE). EE programs at the park include: field trips for 1st – 12th grade, monthly virtual field trips, summer day camps for ages 6-17, professional development workshops, and monthly Junior Friends meetings. When not leading programs and activities, the environmental educator will prepare, set up, take down, and clean program materials. This position will also assist the DOE with training and supervision of interns and summer camp counselors. The Environmental Educator will also assist with office tasks that can include data entry, filing, research, communications, and creating education materials.

In addition to environmental education duties, the Environmental Educator will also assist with marketing and communications for the Friends of MacArthur Beach State Park and provide assistance in the gift shop as needed.

A successful candidate for this position must have a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, education, or a related field and one or more years working in the educational and/or environmental field(s). The majority of education programming takes place outdoors at MacArthur Beach State Park. The Environmental Educator must be experienced in leading and managing groups with a wide age range and range of abilities. They must also be able to lead groups year-round outside in all types of weather conditions, particularly hot and humid days. When working outdoors, and with groups of children, an environmental educator also needs to be able to adapt to unexpected situations and to be attentive to the group’s safety at all times.

Responsibilities:

• Lead field trip programs for students ages 6-18
• Lead Summer Camp programs for campers ages 6-17
• Lead monthly Junior Friends youth group meetings
• Set up, breakdown, and cleanup for programs and meetings
• Assist Director of Education (DOE) with Intern training
• Supervise seasonal interns as needed
• Maintain education materials and inventory
• Assist DOE with training and supervision of summer camp Counselors-in-Training
• Assist DOE with professional development workshop preparation and implementation
• Education programs data entry and filing
• Updating/Creating education materials
• Assist with state park and Friends events that are on and off-site, occasionally on weekends
• Gift Shop Sales and staff assistance
• Assist with creating communications and marketing materials

Position Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in education or an environmental science related field
• 1 or more years of experience working as a formal or non-formal educator
• Experience using Microsoft Office Suite, Google Suite, and Zoom
• Ability to work and lead groups on uneven terrain outside in hot, humid, windy, and rainy conditions
• Ability to comfortably swim in shallow and deep waters
• Must have or be able to obtain a valid Florida state driver’s license and/or reliable transportation to and from work
• CPR, First Aid, and/or Lifeguard certification (or willing to obtain)

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience working with students that are of different abilities, neurodivergent, ESL, and/or from different backgrounds than yourself
• In-depth knowledge of ecology and natural systems and being able to apply this knowledge to learn about the park’s ecosystems
• Experience in working with Microsoft Publisher or Canva
• Customer Service experience
• Ability to manage time effectively
• Organized and detail-oriented
• Fluent in Spanish
• Ability to adapt to situations as they arise