Seasonal Lead Environmental Educator

Reports to: Assistant Director of Youth Learning & Engagement

Classification:   Seasonal Contract 

Employment Dates: March 4, 2024- August 30, 2024

Salary range: $156-$168 per day based on experience. Exempt, $75 per night stipend for overnight programs 

About Portland Audubon

Portland Audubon has been a leading voice in conservation for over a century. Through conservation advocacy, environmental education, and wildlife rehabilitation, we promote the understanding, enjoyment, and protection of native birds, other wildlife and their habitats. We are located in a 172-acre wildlife sanctuary next to Forest Park, just minutes from downtown Portland.

The goal of Portland Audubon Education is to build inclusive flyways between joy, learning and advocacy in nature. Through school programs camps, adult classes, trips, youth leadership, free events and deep collaborations, we expand access to the outdoors; amplify connections between birds, people and place; and create opportunities for all people to love and care for the natural world in ways that are meaningful for them. In partnership, we strive to nurture just communities working together to make a difference.

Just as birds connect landscapes across an ecosystem, we understand our work in a rich context of cultural communities, neighborhoods and networks across our region. We seek to build connectivity, common purpose and collective impact through collaboration. We value the profound legacy of stewardship that people who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color have brought to this work for generations, and we see partnership and mutual aid as essential to everything we do. We’re grateful to spend our days exploring, laughing, and looking up in wonder, and we believe joy is a powerful driver of change, both personal and collective. Together, we hope to foster a lasting, resonant sense of place in the outdoors, and invite everyone to take action for conservation in their own community and throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Position Summary

Portland Audubon’s Lead Environmental Educators are passionate nature enthusiasts and relationship builders excited to facilitate joyful, curious and collaborative programs with children from all socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. As a Lead Educator, you’ll join a diverse team to lead onsite programs at Portland Audubon’s forest sanctuary, off-site field trips to local natural areas and school classrooms, and Outdoor School overnights at our cabin outside of Sandy. You’ll also work together to design and teach nature, adventure and science-based summer camps for children ranging from 1st-12th grade.

You’re someone with experience in outdoor education or teaching in an informal setting (e.g. camps, parks, museums, community centers or comparable spaces), especially in socioeconomically and racially diverse environments. Knowledge of ecology or natural history is vital, and familiarity with the Pacific Northwest is ideal. You’re excited to take a lead role imbuing our curriculum with creativity, exploration, humor, and culturally-responsive teaching strategies. You’re ready to assist the Education team in orienting and mentoring our summer seasonal educators. You have a passion for working with children and for cultivating each child’s personal connection to the natural world.

All of Portland Audubon’s camps are sliding scale, and we’re committed to building a community across our programs and in our team that mirrors the full diversity of our city. As a Lead Educator, you’ll also mentor a team of young adults from Portland Audubon’s Green Leaders program, a partnership with Hacienda Community Development Corporation. It’s essential that all educators have a strong comfort working in multiracial teams, a dedication to creating an anti-racist learning environment, and a commitment to advancing equity and inclusion through their practice. Candidates with lived experience working with youth of color, immigrants, and people from working class families are highly encouraged to apply.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Facilitate 3-5 day overnight Outdoor School programs at Marmot Cabin in Sandy, Oregon
• Lead tours, field trips and classroom workshops with school children from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds in grades K-12
• Develop culturally responsive curricula for week-long summer camp programs to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for all children
• Be responsive to various emotional and physical needs of students and campers with age-appropriate behavior management interventions
• Support equity and inclusion goals, including highlighting the work of people of color, LGBTQIA and other historically marginalized communities in our programs
• Support Education staff in the training and mentoring of summer educators and assistants
• Collaborate with other educators to lead camps for children and youth of all ages
• Collaborate with and mentor Green Leader youth throughout the spring and summer
• Arrange for program provisions such as transportation, food, and equipment

Preferred Skills and Experience

• 2+ years of experience leading programs with children of diverse ages and backgrounds
• 1+ years of experience leading programs in informal or outdoor settings
• 2 + years of experience facilitating positive behavior management with youth
• Demonstrated cultural competency and enthusiasm for working with diverse populations, including communities of color, immigrants, and underserved communities
• Knowledge of general forest ecology, Pacific Northwest natural history preferred
• Comfort leading programs in the field and in remote settings, including overnights
• Able to work weekdays which include multiple overnight programs 
• Second language abilities in addition to English (Spanish, Mandarin/Cantonese, Vietnamese, Somali, Russian) are desirable. Native speakers preferred
• Experience as a young adult participating in youth development programs with a focus on environmental fields a plus

Working Conditions

• Ability to hike 1.5 miles on uneven terrain
• Must possess a current driver’s license
• Must be able to transport Audubon teaching materials throughout the Greater Portland Area
• Ability to be certified in Basic First Aid and CPR
• Ability to follow COVID-19 safety procedures and guidelines
• Some positions, but not all, will require the ability to lift up to 40 pounds to waist level, lead programs in remote settings and/or overnight experiences
• Willingness to be trained and certified for CDL (Commercial Driver’s License) in order to drive a school bus is a plus for some but not all positions
• May require constant bending at times

Application

Portland Audubon does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion, marital status, national origin, political affiliation or mental or physical handicap. Candidates of color are strongly encouraged to apply. Portland Audubon is committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment, reflecting the diversity of our community in its board, staff, volunteers, and members; ensuring its internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and advancing its diversity goals; and empowering people to make positive changes in their community and environment. More background on our diversity efforts can be found at audubonportland.org/about.

Diversity Statement:

Portland Audubon believes that inspiring all people to love and protect nature is best achieved when we embrace diversity as a value and practice. In the same way an ecosystem needs many types of plants and wildlife, an organization thrives when it includes a diversity of people and perspectives. We recognize that inequities are widespread and create gaps between our present reality and our aspirations. Audubon is committed to:

• Reflecting the diversity of the community in our board, staff, volunteers, and members.
• Ensuring our internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and advance our diversity goals.
• Empowering people to make positive changes in their community and environment.

Portland Audubon is nearing the end of a five-year strategic plan. A core priority moving forward is to infuse equity, inclusion, and diversity (EID) into all of the goals and work of the organization. This position will play an important role in achieving the organization’s EID goals through engagement with staff, board members, donors, volunteers and the public. We recognize that in order to serve diverse communities we must also have diversity represented in our staff.