Company description

LunchAssist is a startup that puts school nutrition directors’ most pressing challenges at the heart of its brand. We ease compliance and training-related pain points so school nutrition professionals can focus on feeding students. After seven years of serving more than 400 school districts, we are looking for a highly driven consultant to join our growing team. This Consultant will be dedicated specifically to a new project that includes LunchAssist as a key partner. Supporting Community Agriculture and Local Education Systems (Project SCALES) is funded by the USDA’s Healthy School Meals Initiative and is being led by the Center for School and Community Partnerships at Boise State University. LunchAssist is the implementation and technical assistance partner for this new 5-year project.

LunchAssist was launched in 2016 to help a handful of directors ace their Administrative Reviews. Since then, the company has expanded to offering consulting, online courses, short, bilingual training videos, and intuitive school nutrition resources. We also offer proprietary, industry-specific software designed around USDA’s professional standards training and tracking requirements.

Job description

Overview

As a Consultant, you will work with two cohorts of school food authorities (SFAs) to provide individualized training, guidance, mentorship, and technical assistance on all areas of USDA school nutrition program rules and regulations. Your goal will be to assist school nutrition directors nationwide with keeping their programs compliant and supporting them in achieving project-specific goals to increase local procurement. Over time you will become very familiar with the 35 SFAs in each of the Project SCALES cohorts and will take a great sense of pride in helping them increase their local procurement, partner with local farmers and growers, collect key indicators for the project, and to help them stay engaged in Project SCALES. As the LunchAssist Consultant for Project SCALES, your work will be a crucial part of this large collaborative project.

Working at LunchAssist is an opportunity to engage in a growing, California-certified small, women-owned business at the intersection of nutrition, compliance, and technology. Our virtual workplace is fast-paced, highly collaborative, and entrepreneurial. It is an excellent fit for individuals who feel energized when working and learning amongst a close-knit team of school nutrition nerds who love to debate policy and dig deep into program rules and regulations. You will also work closely with the team at Boise State University, as well as a number of other collaborators, consultants, and partners on this project, including USDA.

We encourage candidates with most of the listed qualifications to apply. We do not expect all candidates to fit this job description 100%.

Compensation

At LunchAssist, we ask a lot of our team, which is why we give so much in return:

• Generous Paid Time Off: Four weeks per year plus 10 holidays.
• Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, & Life
• Retirement: 401(k) matching (after one year)
• Remote Work: A home office stipend helps offset the cost of working from home. Occasional travel to visit clients, teach workshops, and attend conferences ensures you stay connected IRL (up to 20% travel).
• Flexibility: Our team works from various time zones, so staff set their own schedules, provided they are available until 6 p.m. Pacific.
• Competitive Salary: $80,000 - 85,000 per year

Requirements

We are looking for someone with a wide breadth of school nutrition experience and knowledge in the following areas:

• Administrative Reviews
• At-risk Afterschool Meals
• Cafeteria Fund Guidance
• Civil Rights
• Meal Components
• Eligibility and Benefit Issuance
• Farm-to-School
• Food Safety
• Kitchen Equipment
• Meal Counting & Claiming
• Menu Planning
• Procurement (the bidding/purchasing process & Procurement Reviews)
• Strategies to Increase Capacity for Scratch Cooking

LunchAssist Consultants must be comfortable advising school nutrition directors on program requirements, brainstorming areas for program improvement, preparing them for administrative reviews, and problem-solving with clients. This position builds lasting relationships by offering one-on-one coaching, training, mentoring, technical assistance, and support. Strong communication skills are essential, as is a friendly, open-minded, non-judgemental demeanor that puts clients at ease. Client support is provided virtually through Zoom meetings, phone calls, email, and occasional in-person visits to school districts. Collaboration with other project partners will also occur virtually, and there will be at least one in-person Project SCALES meeting each year.

This individual must be flexible, organized, resourceful, adaptable, adept at virtual workspaces, and willing to take the initiative needed to support clients in a way that resonates with each client's needs and unique learning style and aligns with LunchAssist consulting protocols. In addition to having subject-matter expertise, the ideal candidate is a self-driven, natural leader who will interact gracefully with colleagues, clients, and key partners and represent the brand and ethos of LunchAssist, as well as representing Project SCALES in a positive and professional manner.

Responsibilities

Serve as the primary Consultant for SFAs that are participating in Project SCALES; develop training, resources, and tools; and contribute to the success of Project SCALES:

• Advise school nutrition directors on USDA and State agency requirements.
• Manage communications and provide technical assistance.
• Lead the development of Project SCALES webinars, training videos, monthly learning sessions, newsletters, etc.
• Engage in development, design, and copyediting for LunchAssist’s products and services.
• Present about Project SCALES at meetings, conferences, events, and webinars.
• Collaborate frequently with the other members of the LunchAssist and Project SCALES teams.
• Other related duties as mutually agreed upon.

Experience, Abilities, & Attributes

• A minimum of 4 years working with school nutrition programs
• Registered Dietitian or comparable certification/degree in a related field
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Experience presenting educational content and providing training
• Experience with customer service and dedication to delivering excellent customer care
• Ability to manage work independently and also to work collaboratively with others
• Strong attention to detail
• Ability to problem solve and deal well with ambiguity
• Flexible/adaptable to changing conditions and to collaborating with a variety of people and partners across organizations
• Ability to work well under pressure and in a fast-paced environment
• Strong leadership skills
• Strong work ethic and dedication to LunchAssist’s core values

Schedule & Work Environment

• Full-time, salaried, exempt from overtime
• Must be available until 6 pm Pacific (preference for candidates based in Pacific or Mountain Time Zones)
• Provide your own office space, computer, printer, phone, and high-speed internet access. A home office stipend is provided.
• 80% remote / up to 20% travel

Compensation

this position is: salaried, $75,000 - $100,000

Location

job can be done remotely

Application instructions

Deadline

August 06, 2023