Hiring: Education Director – NOFA Mass

NOFA/Mass Education Director

Part-time, 15-20 hours per week

Remote position with generally self-directed and flexible schedule. Applicants must live in Massachusetts or neighboring state. Occasional travel within Massachusetts and occasional evening and weekend availability is required.

Application deadline: March 21, 2021

Opportunity

NOFA/Mass (Northeast Organic Farming Association, Massachusetts Chapter) seeks an Education Director to provide leadership and oversight for the organization’s education department, which includes two annual conferences, twenty on-farm events (currently virtual), a bi-monthly webinar series, an annual bulk order, a food access program, a podcast and occasional special events.

The Education Director is responsible for providing framework and inspiration around the organization’s mission of educating farmers, gardeners and consumers on the production and availability of nutritious food from living soil. The Education Director supports and leads department staff in achieving individual program goals in a timely, efficient and financially sustainable manner. Additionally, the Education Director keeps an eye out for possible grants to fund department initiatives and works closely with the Development Director in this area.

The Education Director reports directly to the NOFA/Mass Executive Director and receives guidance from the NOFA/Mass Board of Directors and the NOFA/Mass Education Committee.

Responsibilities

Staff and Volunteer Oversight (40%, ~8 hours/week)

• Manage a dynamic team of program coordinators within the education department, including the Education Events Coordinator, Webinar Coordinator, Conference Coordinator, Podcast Coordinator, Bulk Order Coordinator, Food Access Coordinator, Soil Health Projects Manager and other developing or temporary educational programs.
• Meet regularly with each member of the education department to monitor program success and provide support.
• Develop and oversee the NOFA/Mass internship program, including maintenance of the NOFA/Mass Handshake account and serving as a point of contact for colleges and universities seeking to place interns
• Manage best practices and workflow within the education department

Creative Thinking and Content Creation (25%, ~4 hours/week)

• Write and report on educational content for the NOFA/Mass newsletter
• Assist education department staff in the creation of program collaterals
• Think innovatively about models and formats for public and smaller-group education
• Continually strive to seek out and predict emerging trends in organic, regenerative, and ecological farming practices
• Ensure that education department staff is keeping up to date with current trends and is providing content to the public on those topics
• Be a thought partner and sounding board for the NOFA/Mass Winter Conference Coordinator and NOFA Summer Conference Coordinator
• Envision and develop new educational programming

Internal Collaboration (15%, ~ 2 hours/week)

• Work collaboratively with other Department Directors to support an efficient and effective workflow between departments
• Support the Development Director when writing grant proposals and/or reports for education projects, programs and initiatives

Administrative (20%, ~3 hours/week)

• Report regularly to the NOFA/Mass Board on department accomplishments
• Submit weekly staff reports to the Executive Director, participate in peer reviews of other centrally-hired NOFA/Mass staff and maintain monthly timesheets and reimbursement records
• Meet regularly with Executive Director and other Department Directors
• Along with the Education Committee Board Chair, lead Education Committee meetings
• Attend other committee meetings as applicable

Qualifications

The successful candidate will offer:

• Experience in project management and/or program coordination
• A passion for organic and regenerative farming and gardening practices, challenges and the needs of growers at all levels
• Intellect around the relationship between climate change, soil, agriculture, and social justice
• Strong writing, clear communication and people skills
• Reliability, punctuality and ability to meet deadlines
• Self-motivation, efficiency and ability to work independently from home with minimal supervision while maintaining a collaborative nature as a remote team member
• Familiarity with NOFA programming, events, and with the local organic farming community in Massachusetts
• Computer software skills; including Microsoft Office 365 and Zoom

Ideal candidate may also have:

• Farming or gardening experience
• Staff/crew/team management experience
• A background in experiential and/or outdoor education

Other position information

• Hours very flexible with some onsite and virtual organizational meeting attendance required (including occasional evening and weekend meetings)
• This job can generally be accomplished from home. Employee must provide appropriate basic office equipment to facilitate working remotely and must have access to a vehicle for on-farm events.
• Employee must attend NOFA/Mass retreats and staff meetings, the winter and summer conferences, virtual department meetings, and other staff responsibilities.

Compensation

$18-$22/hour dependent on experience.  No health insurance available at this time. Monthly stipend for internet & phone.  One week of paid vacation time after one year of employment.

About NOFA/Mass

NOFA/Mass is the Massachusetts state chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Association.

NOFA/Mass is a non-profit organization with 1100 members, focusing on education and advocacy around organic agriculture in Massachusetts.  Our members include farmers, gardeners, homesteaders, consumers, land care professionals, and food activists.

NOFA/Mass staff are allowed and encouraged to exercise self-motivation and in large part to be their own boss.

Our Mission:

Through education and advocacy NOFA/Mass promotes organic agriculture to expand the production and availability of nutritious food from living soil for the health of individuals, communities and the planet.

Our Vision:

NOFA/Mass envisions a commonwealth of people working together to create healthy landscapes that feed our communities and restore our environment.

How to apply

Please complete a job application form here. The application will require you to upload a resume, cover letter and three references as attachments. Interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis.

NOFA/Mass encourages candidates from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds to apply. Please familiarize yourself with our Racial Equity Statement before applying.

NOTE: NOFA/Mass will be hiring for various part-time positions this month. If you are interested in a position with more hours, we encourage you to apply for more than one position. Keep an eye on our website for additional postings.

All staff members are required to be active members of NOFA/Mass.  Become a member here.

Contact Barrie Anderson, Administrative Director, with questions about this position at barrett@nofamass.org.

NOFA/Mass is an equal opportunity employer who does do not discriminate in employment and contracting practices based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, or disability.