JOB ANNOUNCEMENT​: Piedmont Program Director

Location​:

Salisbury, NC. ​Muddy Sneakers’ new Piedmont NC Field Office will look to serve public schools in Rowan, Davidson, Randolph, Stanly and Montgomery Counties

Summary​:​

The position of Piedmont Program Director for Muddy Sneakers’ (MS) is a full­time (35 hours per week), salaried position. The Piedmont Program Director is responsible for overseeing the planning, delivery, and evaluation of all Piedmont programs; trainings, supervision, and evaluation of all field instructor staff; safety and quality of program delivery; coordination of and communication with local partners including school/district personnel, parents, and partners of the organization; and, in collaboration with MS’ Executive Director and Expansion Coordinator, community/regional outreach and development as necessary to benefit the Piedmont NC Field Office and its associated program area.

The Piedmont Program Director is expected to attract, recruit and maintain a highly trained and qualified staff of field instructors and administrative support; provide leadership to the organization in order to produce exceptional programs for students; lead the staff with integrity and provide a strong foundation for the organization’s future by maintaining excellent partner relations, implementing financially sound practices and delivering quality curriculum in a safe program environment.

The Piedmont Program Director reports directly to MS’ Executive Director.

Essential Functions:

• Effectively communicate in both verbal and written communications
• Listen to and comprehend oral communication
• Read written documentation both on paper and on screen
• Be comfortable and work effectively in an outdoor or natural setting
• Be comfortable and work effectively in an office setting
• Recognize and respond positively to social cues
• Comfortable making difficult decisions in stressful situations with full knowledge of organizational policy and procedure
• Utilize discretion when faced with sensitive issues that could impact individual parties involved in/with MS or the organization as a whole
• Work in a team, be comfortable in group settings and respect a chain of command

Experience and Attributes​:​

Ideal candidates will be committed to MS’ mission and possess relevant professional experience and key personal attributes including:

• ­  A minimum of a Bachelor's degree, ideally in a related field
• ­  At least 5 years experience in education or related field, including significant experience in experiential education, teaching, and program administration
• ­  Strong leadership capabilities
• Sound business judgment and demonstrated ability in financial management
• ­  Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• ­  Experience with networking
• ­  Experience with basic fundraising and grant writing
• ­  Experience managing staff and conducting workshops and trainings
• ­  Positive work ethic and attitude
• ­  Strong knowledge of computers and MS Office software, preferably Apple/Macintosh platform

Specific duties include​:

Administrative Tasks​:

• All administrative tasks necessary for successful implementation of PNC programming
• Purchase and distribute as necessary supplies/equipment related to PNC programing
• Report regularly as scheduled to Executive Director with programming updates and, as
• requested, present on programming­related topics before the Board of Directors
• Annual site permit coordination

Financial Tasks​:

• Coordinate annual programming budget and in coordination with Executive Director
• Work closely with the Executive Director in conducting periodic budget evaluations
• Coordinate staff payroll to ensure it is submitted to the Bookkeeper on time and with good

Record keeping:

• Close record keeping of all expenditures tied to grant funding for auditing and reporting purposes

Personnel and Staff support:​

• Foster strong communication and relationships throughout the staff
• Manage bi­annual staff evaluations both in the field and in­person, assist in establishing and monitoring employee goals and execute a bi­annual performance review process. Additionally, manage the instructor peer review process and teacher/administration program review, including feedback from the use of pre­ and post­expedition materials
• Organize all staff meetings as needed to successfully execute the organization’s initiatives ­ currently two, two­three day sessions in August and January each year, prior to the start of each semester’s programming
• Ensure exemplary safety practices in the field. Ensure that all instructors have current Wilderness First Aid (WFA) certification, CPR and anaphylaxis trainings and coordinate renewal for all staff each year
• Manage internal staff and third­party grievances, in coordination with Executive Director as necessary
• Hire and fire field staff, as needed, to fulfill/maintain program obligations

Fundraising and Public/Community Relations:

• Assist the Executive Director and the Board’s development efforts as necessary, primarily through occasional grant writing and community outreach efforts
• Build close relationships with school partners: superintendents, principals, teachers, parents, and students
• Serve as the public face and spokesperson for MS’ Piedmont Field Office through public speaking engagements, print media and online social media opportunities
• Manage the process for nominating/awarding an annual ‘Teacher of the Year’ for the Piedmont program area
• Help to facilitate field staff participation with MS’ social media and photography needs

Education and Program Monitoring​:

• Train, supervise, support and evaluate all field staff
• Oversee planning, delivery and evaluation of all Piedmont, school­year programs, specifically through personal field instruction, staff shadowing and structured evaluation
• Oversee safety and quality of program delivery (collaborate to ensure field office is meeting fidelity measures)
• Provide a written review of each instructor’s teaching each year to be included with bi­annual instructor evaluations for that instructor’s personal file. Provide field staff with written andin ­person feedback when appropriate.
• Keep up­to­date with NC DPI curriculum changes and the tracking of each partner school’s end-­of-­grade (EOG) scoring
• Collaborate in the management of the multi­year NC State University (NCSU)/MS research project(s) serving as a voice and ear to the participating schools/districts/field instructors
• Annually or bi­annually collect qualitative feedback from teachers, parents, and students
• Ensure programs are delivered at the highest possible quality
• Keep detailed records of all incident reports and work with field staff to minimize risk.

Education Requirements​:

Applicant must have at a minimum a Bachelor’s Degree in a related field, preferably with prior school/professional experience in the field of education, administration, marketing & communications, business management and/or another related field; prior experience in starting or expanding non­profit operations will be given strong consideration.

Term of Position​:

The Piedmont Program Director position is a year­round position with an annual commitment of 35 hours per week.

Salary​:

Starting salary range for the position is $38,000­$44,000 which includes a 10% benefit stipend. Applications are due no later than 5:00pm EST on Friday September 30.​ Applications are to be submitted to Expansion Coordinator Lindsay Green at l​ indsay@muddysneakers.org​ or can be mailed to MS’ home office, c/o Lindsay Green, at the following mailing address: P.O Box 146 Brevard, NC 28712.