Company description

City Growers is an educational nonprofit based in NYC that uses Brooklyn Grange rooftop farms and other urban green spaces as learning laboratories where young people can explore the intersections of human and environmental health. Founded by Brooklyn Grange as the exclusive youth education partner of their farms, our mission is to use urban agriculture to engage young people in experiential and inquiry-based learning, nurturing a life-long relationship to food, their health, and the natural world. Our mission-driven work culture is fueled by a shared commitment to bring hands-on, outdoor education to as many NYC youth as possible.

Job description

About the Position

We are looking for the Director of Education to be a key contributor to our success and sustainability, helping City Growers into its next stage of growth.

City Growers’ Director of Education will be responsible for overseeing all City Growers programs through supervision, program development, implementation, and evaluation. The Director of Education leads City Growers’ Program Team which includes: 2 year-round Program Managers and a team of 6-10 part-time seasonal staff members during the farm growing season (approximately March through October). An ideal candidate will have experience teaching in a classroom setting and developing curriculum and programs from the ground up, an understanding of educational standards at NYC public schools, an understanding of metrics and reporting guidelines, a working knowledge of anti-biased and antiracist teaching practices when working with educators and pre-K-12 youth, and experience and comfort working with youth from a variety of backgrounds, cultures, experiences, and identities.

Supervision

The Director of Education reports directly to the Executive Director (ED) through regular weekly one-on-one supervision meetings, scheduled observations, and other ongoing support as needed.

City Growers’ Program Managers report directly to the Director of Education through individual and group supervisory support. One Program Manager oversees workshops on and off Brooklyn Grange farms, and the other oversees teen programs, community events, and beekeeping. The responsibilities of supervising these roles includes:

• Supporting Program Managers in growth and development as managers, facilitators and educators;
• Weekly individual and group supervision with Program Managers, and other meetings as needed;
• Implementing regular observation and debrief cycles with part time seasonal staff teams who report to the Program Managers;
• Leading the creation of rituals and structures for seasonal program transitions;
• Providing professional mentorship to Program Managers and supporting them in finding balance in their work through exploration of ongoing techniques for time and project management and self-care;

Collaborative Teamwork

• Collaborates with the Director of Development on program reports, metrics and program budget tracking;
• Collaborates with the Executive Director on strategic growth of program revenue;
• Collaborates with the ED and Strategic Planning Committee of the Board of Directors on goal setting and inter-organizational accountability to City Growers’ mission as it relates to our Educational Programs.

Program Development and Implementation

• Implements and evaluates pedagogical structures for new programs, partnerships, and/or curriculum by providing overarching structural support and ongoing curriculum development;
• Models to program staff a variety of teaching styles informed by practical classroom teaching experience while prioritizing experiential and inquiry-based learning with Educators as “Facilitators of Learning” and young people as “Explorers of Ideas”;
• Uses Anti-bias and Antiracist teaching approaches;
• Working knowledge of best practices for assessing and implementing inclusive and accessible teaching approaches for all learners;
• Leads equitable pricing evaluation and implementation efforts towards intentional outreach and engagement that prioritizes Title 1 and non-Title 1 public schools, while leveraging resources from Independent and P\private schools.

• Support program evaluation strategies and outcomes through data collection, surveying, and regular communication with City Growers’ Program Staff and Director of Development;
• Designs and facilitates all internal staff seasonal trainings and orientations as well as other professional development opportunities for full time and seasonal staff, both internally as well as outside opportunities.
• Comfort addressing difficult topics or conversations and providing language to model, with a knowledge base to draw from.
• Attends and seeks out regular trainings on STEM learning, Social Emotional Learning, DOE and DYCD best practices, Anti-bias and Antiracism, Trauma Informed Engagement and other relevant topics through external organizations.

Required Skills and Experience

• Highly collaborative and team oriented person;
• K-12 teaching experience in a classroom setting and/or experience working with young people in informal educational setting(s) including after school programs, camps, and/or youth drop-in centers;
• Experience providing training in Anti-bias and Antiracism practices with young people and the adults who work with them;
• Working knowledge of experiential and inquiry-based learning approaches;
• Skilled in pedagogical theory-based curriculum development;
• Professional development facilitation experience;
• Staff training experience in both planning and facilitating;
• Staff supervisory experience.

Preferred Skills

• American Sign Language, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, and/or Bengali conversational or fluent language ability;
• Experience working with young people with mental health illnesses or conditions, unique learning abilities, neurodivergence, and developmental disabilities, differences, or delays;
• Social work experience with young people.

Schedule

• Start Date: Immediate with some flexibility;
• Daily Schedule: 8 hour days with paid lunch, 5 days per week. Hourly schedule is approximately 9a-5p with some flexibility as needed;
• A hybrid schedule of both in-person and work from home days are an organizational norm. Anticipate one day in the office per week during the office season, and up to three days per week during the program season.

Compensation and Benefits

• Position Type: Full-time, year round
• Starting Salary: $54,000
• PTO: Accrual based Paid Time Off starts at 120 hours annually, plus 12 paid holidays per year
• Comprehensive Health Benefits
• Brooklyn Grange CSA membership

Compensation

this position is: salaried, $50,000 - $75,000

Application instructions

Deadline

no deadline