Careers

Leah’s Pantry is a California non-profit organization that promotes healthier lives among low-income and food insecure populations throughout California. We work with CalFresh-eligible individuals to support healthy, sustained behavior changes through interactive, effective, and culturally relevant programs, both in person and online. We also provide staff training to organizations that serve low-income individuals in order to build their capacity around nutrition education programming. Last, we ensure that the right tools exist to make these programs effective. Examples of tools developed and maintained by Leah’s Pantry include Food Smarts curriculum, EatFresh.org, the EatFresh.org Mini Course, and cookbooks developed by community members.

Leah’s Pantry is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Open Positions

Leah’s Pantry is hiring!

School Garden Education & Maintenance Coordinator – San Diego

Job Type: Full-time or part-time

Position start dates: August/September 2021

Supervision & Reporting: Reports to the Garden Program Manager

Location: Travel required to school campuses located in the San Diego Promise Zone

Compensation: $50,000-$58,000/yr

ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW

Leah’s Pantry is a non-profit whose mission is to improve the health, wellness, and resilience of our communities through trauma-informed nutrition security.

We cultivate nourished communities through direct work with low-income individuals. We build resilience and healthy dietary behaviors through trauma-informed nutrition, cooking, and gardening programs that center diverse voices and experiences.
We catalyze organizational transformation and expand our reach by training program implementers from partner organizations across the country. Our innovative trauma-informed training and technical assistance models advance the understanding that nourishment is more than nutrition.
We promote trauma-informed nutrition security principles and policies at the county, state, and national level via collaboratives, working groups, and conferences.
We commit to building a compassionate, connected, and transparent organizational culture that prioritizes diverse perspectives, healthy relationships, innovation, and strengths-based models of professional development.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Leah’s Pantry School Garden Education Program brings learning gardens and garden education to schools in San Diego’s marginalized neighborhoods. Together with school staff, we will deliver an inclusive, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive garden-based STEM and nutrition education program that supports academic achievement, enhances environmental literacy and inspires lifelong health and wellness.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The School Garden Educator & Maintenance Coordinator will collaborate with school staff to develop and deliver garden-based programming in a range of curriculum areas to students both during and after school hours. Additional core responsibilities include school garden maintenance and supervision/coordination of part-time garden educators and volunteers.

TEACHING

Partner with school staff and content experts to plan and implement garden-based programming at Promise Zone elementary school sites
Teach a variety of subjects, including gardening, nutrition, cooking, ecology, nutrition, math, science, language arts and art, in outdoor classrooms and indoor nutrition labs.
Cultivate learning environments that are equitable and inclusive of students’ backgrounds, abilities and social identities
Build school capacity to conduct garden-based education by co-teaching with classroom teachers and developing teacher skills in outdoor classroom management techniques

GARDEN SITE STEWARDSHIP

Manage and maintain program facilities, equipment and supplies for outdoor classrooms and indoor nutrition lab
Engage students, teachers and volunteers in managing and maintaining the school gardens

III. COMMUNICATION, COORDINATION AND DOCUMENTATION

Coordinate educational activities, community events and teaching staff/volunteer schedules
Monitor, record and report on program activities
Build broad involvement in and support for our network of school gardens at each school site as well as in the outside community
Recruit, train, place, track and recognize program volunteers
Develop resilient systems, policies, procedures to optimize program effectiveness
Contribute to external communications including website copy, blog posts, etc.

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

College degree or relevant experience in garden, environmental or nutrition education.
Computer skills including
Exceptional organizational skills, with an ability to manage multiple projects and tasks simultaneously.
Strong oral and written communication skills
Minimum 1-2 years facilitation or teaching experience with children ages 5-12
Ability to manage elementary classroom students in a garden setting
Demonstrated ability to work with diverse populations, including youth and adults
Knowledge of or interest in topics including organic gardening, urban gardening, botany, environmental science, food systems, food access
Adaptability, flexibility, and ability to work under pressure
Available occasional weekends and evenings
Bilingual (Spanish) a plus

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Background check, including DMV report and Tuberculosis PPD skin test
Possession of a valid California Drivers’ License

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Ability to work with frequent interruption and to simultaneously supervise a variety of tasks.
Ability to stand, stoop, reach and bend. Mobility of arms to reach, dexterity of hands to grasp and manipulate large and small objects.
Ability to read small print.
Ability to stand for long periods.
Ability to lift, push and/or pull objects, which may weigh approximately 50 pounds.
Ability to work outdoors in a physically demanding environment.

*While our preference would be to fill this role with one full-timer, we’re also open to hiring several part-timers to each cover a piece of this work. If you don’t have every skill listed but would be open to part-time work, please apply and note that in your cover letter.

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Leah’s Pantry Training Specialist – California

Job Type: Full-time
Apply for this position on Indeed

Salary: $60,000 – $65,000/year + PTO, sick leave, and health/dental benefits

Location: California (work from home). Local travel to nearby partner sites. Travel within California and nationally as needed, approximately 6-9 times per year (may change in future).

Organization Overview

Leah’s Pantry is a non-profit whose mission is to improve the health, wellness, and resilience of our communities through trauma-informed nutrition security.

We cultivate nourished communities through direct work with low-income individuals. We build resilience and healthy dietary behaviors through trauma-informed nutrition, cooking, and gardening programs that center diverse voices and experiences.
We catalyze organizational transformation and expand our reach by training program implementers from partner organizations across the country. Our innovative trauma-informed training and technical assistance models advance the understanding that nourishment is more than nutrition.
We promote trauma-informed nutrition security principles and policies at the county, state, and national level via collaboratives, working groups, and conferences.
We commit to building a compassionate, connected, and transparent organizational culture that prioritizes diverse perspectives, healthy relationships, innovation, and strengths-based models of professional development.

Roles and Responsibilities

Leah’s Pantry is hiring a full-time Training Specialist, located in California, to lead our in-person and virtual trainings. The specialist must:

Work with the team to run virtual and in-person training for Leah’s Pantry’s partners. Training topics include general capacity building around nutrition security and trauma-informed approaches as well as how to implement specific Leah’s Pantry programs and curricula (e.g., Around the Table, Food Smarts, the Learning Collaborative, Trauma-Informed Garden Program, etc.). Some travel may be required.
Work with the team to create and enhance existing training materials to improve participants’ learning and overall experience. Training materials will be used in both “self-paced” online work and live sessions and include: instructional videos, individual activities, interactive activities, presentation slides, speaker notes, etc.
Work with the team to develop new training strategies, approaches, and processes that are in alignment with a trauma-informed approach.
Use collaborative platforms when appropriate to enhance training outcomes (e.g., Miro, Mentimeter).
Complete all project management duties needed to support trainings.
Provide support to other programs and projects at Leah’s Pantry as needed, which may include leading nutrition classes or cooking workshops or contributing to the development of new programs.
Engage in ongoing learning and professional capacity building to develop a strong understanding of trauma-informed nutrition security and programs.

Qualifications

College degree and at least three years of relevant work experience that includes facilitating training or group sessions, ideally in a non-profit or public health setting, preferred. **Please explain in your cover letter.
Candidates with experience leading nutrition education and/or cooking workshops may be prioritized. **Please explain in your cover letter.
Candidates with experience working in trauma-informed environments/programs or with prior training on trauma-informed practices may be prioritized. **Please explain in your cover letter.
Proven ability to work collaboratively and build relationships in a virtual and/or remote setting.
A shared passion for the work and mission of Leah’s Pantry.
Ability to work on your own with little guidance and to push projects forward, but also ask for help when needed.
Experience with or ability to learn new technology platforms such as TalentLMS, Trello, and Slack.
High level of proficiency with Google Suite, MS Office, and Zoom. Ability to stay digitally organized.

In addition, the person who will be successful in this role can likely describe themself in these ways:

You have a presence. You can take control of a situation and make decisions.
You generally find it easy to put your thoughts into words.
You have contagious enthusiasm and can get others excited as well.
You energize others with your vision of the future.
You can quickly adapt or creatively problem solve when there are setbacks or barriers.
You enjoy transforming something strong into something superb.
You make things happen by turning thoughts into action; you want to do things now, rather than simply talk about them
You are fascinated by ideas and find connections between seemingly disparate phenomena.
You enjoy learning new things, and working with different kinds of people excites you.

Application Notes

Include a cover letter outlining:

your interest in Leah’s Pantry and our mission
relevant work experience

APPLICATIONS WITH A COVER LETTER outlining your interest in Leah’s Pantry and relevant experience will be prioritized over those without.

**Candidates who are not local to California will not be considered.