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Program Instructor I - Ecology Center

Employer
The City of Evanston Parks and Recreation Department
Location
Evanston, IL
Closing date
Oct 15, 2021

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Sector
Science, Life Sciences, Ecology
Organization Type
Corporate
Job Description
General Task Statement:

This position is responsible for assisting in the planning, development, and facilitation of the environmental education programs at the Evanston Ecology Center. Programs may include in-person camps to support remote learners, day-off school camps, special events, school field trips, scout groups, canoe trips, summer camps, and youth and adult programming. Additional duties include assisting with animal care, garden maintenance, office assistance, and serving customers as needed. At this time, the Program Instructor Is main responsibility will be assisting with our Ecology Enrichment Camp, held Monday-Friday 3-6pm.

Supervision:

Under the supervision of the Ecology Center Program Coordinator

Essential Function(s) Task Statements:

1. Leads, and instructs participants in various in-person activities. Classes are located at the three Ecology Center sites as well as at the various community sites (as pandemic regulations allow).

2. Develop and prepare class materials that will foster a participants knowledge of the

environment and natural world.

3. Provide pre- and post- class/ camp organization, including taking attendance, and set-up and take down

of equipment.

4. Recommend purchases of necessary supplies.

5. Provide animal care including feeding, cleaning and recommending supplies and food for ordering, as needed.

6. Attend staff meetings

8. Encourage and demonstrate safe work habits through use of established safety program guidelines.

9. Complete necessary forms for accidents and incidents.

11. Adhere to and enforce staff compliance with organizational policies, procedures and the strategic

plan.

12. Represent Ecology Center positively and ethically to patrons, guests, and staff.

13. Develop and maintain effective internal and external oral and written communications.

14. Be at work station, ready for center defined duties at required times.

15. Be available for daytime, evening, and weekend programs when assigned in advance

16. Diligently implement COVID-19 protocols, such as temperature and symptom checks and increased sanitation practices.

17. Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Educational and Experience Requirements:

1. Bachelors degree or actively seeking a Bachelors degree in Biology, environmental education, outdoor education or related field preferred.

2. 1 year experience developing and leading education programs.

3. Canoeing experience preferred.

4. Current CPR and AED certification, or willingness to obtain and maintain certification.

5. Valid Illinois drivers license preferred.

6. Good oral and written communication skills.

7. Good external and internal customer service skills.

8. Good planning, organizational and problem solving skills.

Specifications:
  • Minimum Reasoning ability usually associated with this classification:
  • Minimum Language ability usually associated with this classification:
  • Amount of training, either on-the-job or formal education, usually associated with this occupation in addition to the Reasoning, Math and Language abilities detailed above:
  • Degree of Physical Demands (strength) usually associated with the essential functions of this classification:
  • Type of physical demands usually associated with the essential functions of this classification:
  • Working conditions usually associated with this classification:
  • Environmental conditions (physical surroundings) usually associated with this classification:
  • Environmental conditions (hazards) usually associated with this classification:
  • Machines, Tools, equipment, and work aids which may be representative, but not all-inclusive, of those commonly associated with this type of work:

Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagrammatic form; to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in or from standardized situations.

Read: Ability to read staff manuals, memoranda, and attendance sheets.

Write: Ability to complete attendance sheets, accident reports, incident reports and camper behavior reports using prescribed format and conforming to all rules of punctuation, grammar, and style.

Speak: Ability to give verbal direction to subordinates, communicate effectively with co-workers, supervisors, citizens, and the public as well as other employees; speaking extemporaneously on a variety of subjects.
  • At least 1-3 years experience
  • Bachelors degree in or its equivalent in Environmental or Outdoor Education, Biology, the Natural Sciences, or a related field

Light work: Exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. Physical demand requirements are in excess of those for sedentary work. Light work usually requires walking or standing to a significant degree. However, if the use of arm and/or leg controls requires exertion of forces greater than that for sedentary work and the worker sits most of the time, the job is rated for light work.

Reaching: extending hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction

Handling: seizing, holding, grasping, turning, or otherwise working with

hands.

Talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word.

Hearing: perceiving the nature of sounds.

Feeling: perceiving attributes of objects such as size, shape, temperature or texture.

Tasting/Smelling: distinguishing, with a degree of accuracy, differences or

similarities in intensity or quality of flavors and/or odors, or recognizing particular flavors and/or odors, using tongue and/or nose.

Climbing: Ascending or descending ladders, stairs, ramps, embankments, and the like using feet and legs and/or hands and arms.

Balancing: Maintaining body equilibrium to prevent falling when walking, standing, crouching, or running on narrow, slippery, or erratically moving surfaces.

Stooping: bending body downward or forward by bending spine at the waist.

Kneeling: bending legs at knees to come to a rest on knee(s)

Crouching: bending the body downward and forward by bending leg(s) and spine.

Crawling: moving about on hands and knees or hands and feet

Seeing: The ability to perceive the nature of objects by the eye. The important aspects of vision are:
  • acuity-far: clarity of vision at 20 feet or more
  • acuity-near: clarity of vision at 20 inches or less
  • depth perception: ability to judge distance and space relationships so as to see objects where and as they actually are
  • field of vision- observing an area that can be seen up and in a given point
  • accommodation- adjustment of the lens of the eyes to bring an object into a sharp focus, especially important when doing near-point work at varying distances from the eye
  • color vision- ability to identify and distinguish colors

The worker is subject to working on feet while conducting programs. Occasional

heavy lifting of program equipment may be necessary.

Work environment includes recreation centers, gymnasiums, multipurpose rooms,

kitchens, swimming pools, athletic fields, parks, playgrounds, office space,

conference rooms, beaches, and field trip sites.

The worker is subject to inside environmental conditions approximately 25% of

the time and outside work 75% of the time, no effective protection from the

weather conditions or temperature changes.
  • pen, pencil, ruler, blueprints, charts, contracts, diagrams, directives, documents, forms, manuals, publications, reference books, schedules, and specifications.


The City of Evanston is an equal opportunity employer and ensures against discrimination in employment on the basis of a persons race, color, sex, age, religion, disability, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, military discharge status, source of income, housing status, or gender identity. The City of Evanston is also committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. Any person needing mobility or communications access assistance should contact Human Resources at 847-448-8204 (voice) or 847-866-5095(TTY).

Benefits

$14.75 per hour

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