Seasonal Lead Partnership Educator

Reports to: Senior Educator, Youth & Family Partnerships Specialist 

Classification:   Seasonal Contract 

Employment Dates:  Mar 4, 2024- Jun 7, 2024 – 20 hrs/week  2pm-7pm Monday-Thursday

  June 10, 2024- August 30, 2024 – 40 hours/week Monday-Friday

Salary range:  $78-$84/ day (half day rate) $156-$168 / day (full day rate) 

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 Partnership Educator is a passionate nature enthusiast and relationship builder who is excited to facilitate joyful, curious, and collaborative programs with children from all socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds, with a particular interest in working with youth who are Black and Latino. As a Lead Partnership Educator, you will support a diverse team of educators facilitating an innovative collaboration with residents of Hacienda Community Development Corporation.

Hacienda Community Development Corporation (CDC) is Oregon’s largest Latino-led, Latino serving housing organization. In this role, you will collaborate with the Youth & Family Partnerships Specialist to listen directly to Hacienda residents, and develop and facilitate after-school programming for youth and families in response to their needs and interests. Additionally, you’ll work with the Youth & Family Partnerships Specialist to support participants in the Green Leader program. This program was designed in collaboration with Hacienda CDC and Cully-based non-profit Verde to empower adolescents within Hacienda to grow their knowledge and abilities as environmental educators and lead outdoor learning experiences for families within their own communities. Green Leaders transition to an Assistant Environmental Educator role for summer camp programs with Hacienda CDC and Portland Audubon.

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. 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 Green Leaders. You have a passion for working with children and teens to cultivate each participant’s personal connection to the natural world. 

Our partnership programs are designed to directly respond to the needs and interests of the community. It’s essential that all educators have a strong comfort working in multiracial teams, a history collaborating with partners, 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. Spanish or Somali language proficiency is preferred.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Mentor Green Leaders in developing and preparing for camp and afterschool programs

• Lead after school sessions independently with the Green Leaders
• Help lead occasional half-day Saturday outings
• Assist with developing and facilitating after school, summer camp and Family Day programs
• Assist with preparation and program logistics for after school, summer camp and Family Day programming. This includes food, transportation, materials, camper forms and rosters.
• Assist with the transportation of Green Leaders and program participants
• Attend and engage with members of the Hacienda Community Advisory Council. Attend sessions that are held during after school program hours.
• 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 the 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

• 1+ years of experience leading programs with children of diverse ages and backgrounds
• 1+ years of experience leading programs in informal or outdoor settings
• 1 + 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 outdoors
• Able to work weeknights and weekdays from 2-7pm, and the occasional half-day on a Saturday. Hours may be adjusted if needed for the right candidate
• 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 desirable
• Bus driving experience or willingness to learn desirable

Working Conditions

• Ability to hike up to 1.5-2 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
• Willingness to be trained and certified for CDL (Commercial Driver’s License) is desirable
• 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.