18 Reasons is a nonprofit community cooking school based in the Mission District of San Francisco. Our mission is to empower our community with the confidence and creativity needed to buy, cook, and eat good food every day. We are a tight-knit team and love to cook, eat, and work hard together. Our service area includes San Francisco County, Alameda County, and Contra Costa County in California.

18 Reasons, in partnership with AmeriCorps, is seeking a full-time Program Coordinator. The Program Coordinator will serve with 18 Reasons for 1700 hours over 8 months.

The Program Coordinator will coordinate our Cooking Matters program. Cooking Matters is a free, 6-week series of hands-on healthy cooking and nutrition education classes that meet for 2 hours each week. Cooking Matters helps over 3,500 low-income families each year learn the skills they need to make healthy food choices on a budget. We also work to expand access to CalFresh (food stamps), offer a peer educator training program that expands our pool of instructors, and engage hundreds of volunteers each year in our programs.

We are hiring a Program Coordinator through the Bay Area Youth Agency Consortium (BAYAC) AmeriCorps program to support our Cooking Matters program.

Responsibilities may include the following tasks:  

• Cooking Matters series and store tour coordination
• Manage communications with Cooking Matters host site agency staff
• Work with host site agency staff to schedule classes and carry out shared expectations and responsibilities for hosting Cooking Matters classes 
• Identify, recruit, and train peer educators 
• Identify, recruit, and train volunteers
• Manage Cooking Matters instructors, including peer educators and volunteers, in their roles as chef educators, nutrition educators, and class assistants 
• Collect and prepare materials for classes and tours, including food, cooking equipment, and course paperwork
• Administer participant and volunteer course evaluations
• Teach cooking and nutrition lessons as needed
• Community outreach to recruit new host site agencies and increase community support

Minimum qualifications:

• Must have a valid driver’s license and a car you can use for work
• Passionate about food
• Excited about working with youth (3rd grade to young adult) and their families in high-need communities
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written, including the ability to speak in front of a class
• Ability to work individually in a self-directed manner and as part of a team in group projects
• Excellent organizational skills, proven ability to handle and prioritize multiple tasks, and to meet deadlines 
• Willingness and ability to work with people from a variety of racial, cultural, and economic backgrounds, with various lifestyles, sexual orientations, and of all ages, including professional chefs, social service providers, volunteers, and low-income participants
• Ability and willingness to work occasional evenings and weekends for the purposes of conducting classes and attending community meetings
• Not required, but helpful: Fluent or conversant in Spanish

Physical requirements:

This position requires being in the field 65% of the time, driving 15% of the time, and working in an office setting 20% of the time.  While in the field, frequent lifting, moving, or carrying supplies up to 50 pounds, including use of stairs, is required.  General office duties include: computer work, filing, phone communication, copying.  Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable any qualified person to perform the essential job duties.  

Time commitment:

This is an 8-month, full-time position. You are expected to work 40 hours per week. Some part-time school or side gig schedules can be accommodated. 

Note: You must be a US citizen or permanent legal resident of the US to accept an AmeriCorps position.

Gain experience and skills:

• Work full time in diverse and vibrant Bay Area communities
• Work within the education and nonprofit sectors
• Develop basic teaching skills, including curriculum development, behavior management practices and public speaking/facilitation
• Make lasting connections with fellow service minded community members
• Build confidence in public speaking
• Acquire concrete workplace skills
• Develop personal and professional goals with guidance and support
• Promote meaningful community partnerships
• Become part of a large alumni network

Benefits include:

• $1,430 monthly living stipend
• Segal Education Award ($10,000) at the end of your 1700-hour term of service 
• Health benefits
• Opportunity to forbear student loans while in service 
• Relocation assistance (if applicable) 
• Child care assistance (if applicable) 
• Optional life insurance 
• One-year non-competitive status for federal government positions 
• A network of over 180,000 AmeriCorps members and alums