The Senior Manager of Education and Community Conservation provides leadership for the National Wildlife Federation’s (NWF) PreK-12 and community programs in the Mid-Atlantic Region to foster the next generation of conservationists and protect, restore, and connect green spaces for the benefit of people and wildlife. The Senior Manager develops the core strategies and secures funding to design and deliver NWF’s suite of education and community conservation programs, including Eco-Schools USA and Garden for Wildlife, in the Mid-Atlantic with affiliates and other partner organizations in furtherance of the National Wildlife Federation’s strategic plan A Common Agenda for Wildlife and our Equity and Justice Strategic Plan.

The Senior Manager of Education and Community Conservation reports to the Regional Executive Director and works closely with the regional staff, the national Education & Engagement Team, and colleagues in other teams/departments in our highly matrixed organization. This position is based in the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center office in Annapolis, MD. Due to COVID-19 employees are working remotely until we make return to work decisions.

About the National Wildlife Federation:

Founded in 1936, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) has grown into America’s largest and most trusted  environmental conservation organization with more than six million members and supporters and 53 state and territorial affiliates—autonomous, nonprofit organizations that take the lead in state and local conservation efforts and collaborate with NWF to conduct advocacy activities on national issues. The mission of the National Wildlife Federation is to unite all Americans to ensure wildlife thrive in our rapidly changing world. In order to save wildlife and ourselves, the National Wildlife Federation believes that we need to ensure that everyone in the United States of America has clean air and water, safe communities, easy and equitable access to the daily benefits of nature, and protection from the ravages of climate change. These basic needs, equally necessary and urgent for all people, are foundational to bringing the conservation movement and ethos into the 21st century.

Your Principal Duties:

In this role you will provide the strategic direction and build authentic partnerships across the Mid-Atlantic region to:

  • promote a commitment to sustainable schools among school staff, districts, students, and community members
  • increase environmental literacy and stewardship by training and supporting educators and enabling meaningful engagement opportunities for youth
  • expand wildlife/pollinator habitat on school grounds and in communities, promoting connectivity/corridors and incorporating human needs and community benefits in the design of restoration projects
  • integrate water quality, climate and community resilience into education and conservation programming
  • contribute to national efforts to advance NWF’s education and community conservation strategies

The Senior Manager is responsible for supervising members of the Mid-Atlantic Education and Community Conservation team, including the Senior Coordinator of Conservation Programs and other staff/interns as needed.

Responsibilities include:

  • Facilitating, and creating content for, environmental education workshops aimed at formal and non-formal educators and community audiences
  • Driving implementation of innovative projects, particularly in urbanized/built environments that integrate environmental education, habitat restoration, and stormwater management
  • Collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to manage and execute a variety of events, including Baltimore Wildlife Week, teacher professional development workshops, habitat installations and maintenance, and other volunteer/community activities
  • Collaborating on fundraising strategy for education and conservation program priorities; developing, writing, and submitting grant proposals and reports for corporate, government, and foundation funders and cultivating relationships with individual donors, as appropriate
  • Providing oversight and partner, budget, and contract management for all related projects; developing and implementing plans to meet all grant deliverables, reporting outcomes and evaluating program impact
  • Engaging on regional, state and local environmental literacy, sustainable schools and conservation policy, as appropriate, including representing NWF on the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Education Workgroup and Maryland’s Project Green Classrooms Steering Committee
  • Generating awareness and interest in NWF’s programs through relevant conferences and/or forums, community events, and media and communications outlets

Required Qualifications:

Strong candidates for this position will have demonstrated proficiency in developing and managing strategic partnerships with a diverse range of stakeholders. Additionally, candidates should have:

  • a strong foundation in education, environmental studies, natural resources, science, public policy or other related field through their educational background and/or professional experience
  • significant experience working within nonprofit organizations and depth of understanding of nonprofit operations and fundraising principles, including expertise in grant writing and management
  • well-developed strategic thinking and prioritization skills and ability to balance multiple projects simultaneously and autonomously
  • experience designing and delivering educational workshops for an adult audience (primarily teachers and/or community members)
  • excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills

These proficiencies are typically consistent with at least five years of professional experience.

Required Competencies:

The individual selected for this role is expected to exemplify the National Wildlife Federation’s core values (collaboration, mindfulness, empowerment, inclusivity, and mission focus) and demonstrate leadership competencies including:

Self-Awareness & Learning

  • Exhibits a commitment to continuous learning and growth, especially related to the development of strong equity competencies and models this approach with others
  • Dedicated to deepening understanding of cultural and systemic racism and the intersectionality of multiple forms of social inequality and how this impacts our work on environmental issues
  • Demonstrates awareness of positional power and privilege (both personally and professionally) and its attendant impacts on colleagues, team, and on oneself
  • Consistently brings a high level of empathy and social skills to work and interpersonal interactions

 Authentic Relationships & Community Partnerships

  • Maintains a sophisticated understanding of how group dynamics impact supervisory relationships, organizational culture, partnerships, campaigns and coalition work
  • Demonstrates capacity to maintain relationships across difference
  • Openly holds space, and invites others into conversations during sensitive engagements, exhibiting a responsible and respectful demeanor with colleagues and partners
  • Acknowledges when mistakes are made and harm is done; works to repair breaches in relationships
  • Models and encourages commitment to community care and selfcare in order to bring best self to relationships and interactions

 Direct Communication

  • Exhibits strong interpersonal skills rooted in teamwork, diplomacy, respect and an awareness of how diverse identity and communication styles intersect
  • Provides clear and direct communication with and feedback to colleagues, with an understanding of communicating respectfully across different identities
  • Strives to match intent and impact in all interactions
  • Works proactively to resolve conflicts and misunderstandings toward restorative solutions; attends to conflicts as opportunities for learning and growth

Supervision & Power Sharing 

  • Supports the leadership, success, and professional development of staff members, with a commitment to utilizing power to ensure equitable access and opportunities for staff of color and with other marginalized identities
  • Consistently provides positive and developmental feedback to support growth of team members
  • Actively seeks feedback, direction, and guidance from all team members and works to integrate and lead with this guidance in mind
  • Strives for transparency and timeliness, keeping staff informed of decisions that impact them
  • Intentionally shares power through decision-making, clear definition of roles and responsibilities, effective delegation, and equitable access to resources

 Innovation

  • Actively seeks new solutions to persistent problems by engaging a diversity of perspectives and experiences
  • Practices both/and thinking and the ability to accept ambiguity
  • Demonstrates willingness to take risks, pilot new approaches, bring in new partners, learn from failure, and continually improve efforts

Equity Analysis & Action:

  • Motivated by values of equity and responsibility to those most marginalized
  • Committed to deepening an environmental justice approach in policy priorities, program development and partner engagement
  • Demonstrates awareness of the attributes associated with a white dominant culture, especially as it manifests within the National Wildlife Federation and partner organizations, and takes actions to dismantle hierarchies of oppression within that culture
  • Dedicated to advancing NWF’s internal equity transformation and compelling partners and allies to incorporate equity into their work

Travel:

Once safe travel resumes, this role will require travel throughout the NWF Mid-Atlantic region (DC, DE, KY, MD, NC, PA, TN, VA, and WV) with a significant emphasis on Baltimore, MD, Wilmington, DE, and Lancaster and Philadelphia, PA. Travel will primarily be day trips, with some overnights as needed.

Compensation and Benefits:

The starting salary for this position is $75,000 and is based upon a wage analysis across the organization. The National Wildlife Federation values work-life balance and a family-friendly atmosphere. Our paid time-off includes 3 weeks of vacation leave, open wellbeing leave, 10 paid holidays, 3 floating holidays, a week-long winter break, and additional leave options.  In addition, our benefits package includes medical, dental, and vision insurance, company paid life insurance, AD&D, short and long-term disability, 16 weeks of paid FMLA leave, 403b retirement plan with employer matching and annual contribution, adoption benefits, and flexible work options including telecommuting, non-traditional work hours, and compressed work weeks. Applicants are invited to learn more about National Wildlife Federation’s benefits package at https://www.nwf.org/About-Us/Careers.

Application:

Candidates must submit a cover letter and resume. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and will be accepted through October 29, 2021.

We strive to increase diversity, equity, inclusion and justice (DEIJ) in all elements of our work and with our partners to support the interdependent needs of wildlife and people in a rapidly changing world. We recruit, employ, train compensate, and promote regardless of race, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity (including gender nonconformity and status as a transgender individual), age, physical or mental disability, citizenship, genetic information, past, current, or prospective service in the uniformed services, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Applicants are invited to learn more about National Wildlife Federation’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion at nwf.org/equity.

If you have a disability and require an accommodation or assistance with our online application process, please tell us how we can help by calling us at 703-438-6244.

The requirements listed in our job descriptions are guidelines, not hard and fast rules, and if you have 75% of the qualifications listed we encourage you to apply.  Applying gives you the opportunity to be considered.

If selected for this position, a background check will be conducted.