Program and Design Specialist II

About the California Academy of Sciences

The California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, research center, and natural history museum—all under one living roof—our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.

Our extensive collections span plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. We are a diverse team of leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who work collaboratively to advance knowledge and inspire action through science and storytelling.

When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation. Whether you're working behind the scenes in research or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.

About the Opportunity

Reporting to the Associate Director of Paid Museum-based Education Experiences, the Design Specialist is a versatile educator and curriculum developer responsible for creating and delivering high-impact learning experiences across the Academy’s afterschool), customized field trip, and summer camp  programs. This on-site role balances high-level instructional design with hands-on teaching and staff supervision, focusing on biodiversity and climate change through play-based, experiential learning. By maintaining strong relationships with families and internal stakeholders, the Specialist ensures the delivery of inclusive, high-quality educational programming that aligns with the Academy’s mission.

• Afterschool programming (45%)
• Customized field trip programming (40%)
• Academy’s Summer Camp (10%)
• Non-customized field trip programming (5%), 

Afterschool programming:

• Develops courses that support biodiversity and climate change education for afterschool programs at CAS
• Teaches the courses 
• Collaborates with program coordinator to understand the profiles and backgrounds of the students that will be attending each course

Customized field trip programming:

• Develops fee-based,customized field trip opportunities for Bay Area schools 
• Communicates with teachers and school administrators (customers) to understand their unique academic and learning goals and design customized learning experiences.

Summer Camp:

Oversees a team of education instructors in charge of writing and implementing the daily programming for the summer camp. This position interacts directly with children as an informal educator. The Design Specialist will also interact with their parents/legal guardian mainly during drop off and pick up times. This position is responsible for guiding the team of educators who will be working daily with the enrolled campers and for implementing the daily activities that will be part of the summer camp’s schedule, with the team’s support. In addition, the Design Specialist will be responsible for designing the curriculum that will be used each day and for each of the weeks offered as part of the Academy’s summer camp. They will work in close collaboration with the Director and the Chief of Education and Learning to produce play-based, hands-on, outdoor and experiential learning activities for each day of the summer camp. 

Non-customized field trip programming:

• Supports the creation of open-source resources accessible to schools visiting the Academy through paid non-customized field trips.

As programming will happen daily at the Academy, the Design Specialist will be available before, during, and after program hours. The expectation is for the Specialist to be on-site for 5 days a week.

Organizational Culture
Join a team dedicated to the Academy’s mission, vision and values! Currently, the Academy has a new strategic plan including three initiatives – Hope for Reefs, Thriving California, and Islands 2030 – that leverage biodiversity science, environmental learning, and collaborative engagement to regenerate fragile ecosystems around the world. Learn more at https://www.calacademy.org/about-us/major-initiatives.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are excited to contribute to our mission. The mission of the California Academy of Sciences is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.

This position is based in San Francisco, California. The specific onsite/hybrid schedule for this position is listed below. This position is part of a bargaining unit represented by Cal Academy Workers United, and will be subject to the terms and conditions of that contract.

Key Responsibilities

• Design  after school courses, offered at the Academy during 8 months of the academic school year.
• Produce all instructional resources and learning materials for each after school course.
• Lead the instruction of 3 after school courses per week, across 8 months.
• Coordinate with the Director of School and Youth programs and the Associate Director of Paid Museum Education Experiences to ensure a diverse, state of the art portfolio of after school courses is created per academic year.
• Collaborate with the program coordinator to receive all relevant information to connect with school leaders, parents, and/or teachers that have required a customized field trip.
•  Design customized field trips by using foundational elements provided by the Director of School and Youth programs and the Associate Director of Paid Museum Education Experiences.
• Design  summer camp curriculum, structured across 4 weeks and built for each week’s specific theme. Each week will include age appropriate (9-11 years old), play-based, hands-on, outdoor and experiential learning activities to be implemented throughout a 9am-4pm camp schedule.
• Create all learning resources required for each of the summer camp programs
• Coordinate with internal partners that will be involved as guest speakers for summer camp sessions.
• Identify, evaluate, and source equipment, tools, technology, and other resources required for daily summer camp programming; anticipate and troubleshoot issues.
• Coordinate with relevant teams to ensure that physical spaces will be available for daily summer camp programming across the museum floor.
• Communicate effectively with students, families, and team members involved in summer camps and after school courses..
• Communicate with Education leadership if there are concerns around a camper’s behavioral and/or emotional well-being.
• Supervise team of summer camp instructors.
• Create a welcoming, inclusive environment where students of all backgrounds feel empowered and supported.
• Oversee the team of summer camp instructors to ensure all activities are delivered as intended; and that all students are receiving the highest quality level of support and instruction.
• Coordinate summer camp program logistics, maintain records, and support Leadership with program evaluation.
• Collaborate with other Education Division and Academy efforts, as appropriate.
• Follow all Academy safety regulations.
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned.

Qualifications: A successful candidate will have the following:

EXPERIENCE and/or EDUCATION:

• Bachelor's degree (or equivalent experience) in Education, Environmental Studies, Child Development, Recreation, Outdoor Education, or a related field.
• Two years of experience teaching groups of students in a classroom or informal learning environment (such as a museum, zoo, aquarium, library, summer camp, afterschool, summer camp,  or outdoor school)
• Experience developing and leading hands-on science and nature activities for students
• Experience working with English Language Learners preferred
• CPR/First Aid certification (or willingness to obtain).
• Background check clearance required.

SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Ability to develop purposeful curricula, programs, and systems that support the divisional goals;
• Proven ability to lead, mentor, and support a team of instructors or camp counselors.
• Experience in behavior management, team-building, and fostering a positive culture.
• Conflict resolution and emotional intelligence when supporting both students and fellow team members.
• Ability to manage schedules, delegate tasks, and problem-solve in a dynamic, fast-paced environment.
• Familiarity with environmental education, regenerative practices, or outdoor learning (especially for programs with a nature or sustainability focus).
• Positive collaboration skills and enthusiasm for working with diverse audiences
• Awareness of social, racial, and environmental justice issues; sensitivity to the lived experiences of others and commitment to modifying working environment to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and access
• Ability to engage learners in the scientific process and environmental exploration
• Comfort with public speaking and group facilitation
• Ability to work independently and cooperatively with staff, youth, families, volunteers, and guests
• Ability to exercise professionalism, good judgment, and problem solving skills
• Strong organizational skills, time management, and attention to detail
• Comfort using basic computer and cloud-based software, including Google Suite and Zoom

Physical Environment:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

• Ability to transport 40 lbs of scientific equipment and program materials 
• Ability to participate in outdoor, park-based activities as well as on the museum floor.

This is a mandated reporter-designated position. Academy employees whose duties include direct contact and supervision of children are deemed mandated reporters under California Law. Mandated reporters have certain specific reporting obligations in the event that they know of, observe or reasonably suspect that a child has been the victim of child abuse or neglect. The Academy provides mandated reporters with training on their rights and obligations under the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act.

Compensation and Benefits:
The hourly range for this position is $33.16 - $33.82. Actual compensation will be commensurate with the final candidate's qualifications and experience, including skills, knowledge, relevant education, certifications and aligned with the internal peer group. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.

Schedule: Full-time, 40 hours per week, Monday - Friday

How to Apply:

Interested candidates should submit a resume and application through our Careers Page portal.

The California Academy of Sciences will give full consideration for employment to all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (SF Police Code, Article 49).