Open Space Stewardship Program Assistant – On-Call – Denver Parks and Recreation

The City and County of Denver is hiring an On-Call Open Space Stewardship Program Assistant to lead volunteer and youth projects in parks. This part-time position, with a pay of $22.01/hour, requires outdoor work and interaction with the community, focusing on ecological restoration and habitat maintenance. The role involves overseeing projects, ensuring safety, and providing tools and guidance. Work is citywide, primarily scheduled Monday-Friday, with evening and weekend hours as needed.
About Our Job

With competitive pay, great benefits, and endless opportunities, working for the City and County of Denver means seeing yourself working with purpose — for you, and those who benefit from your passion, skills and expertise. Join our diverse, inclusive and talented workforce of more than 11,000 team members who are at the heart of what makes Denver, Denver.

What We Offer

This is an on-call position, which means it is a part-time, hourly role. This position will work no more than 39 hours per week. The starting pay for this position is $22.01/hour and is eligible to enroll in the City and County of Denver’s 457b retirement plan. This position is not eligible for other additional benefits. On‐call positions may have routine or variable work schedules

Location

This position will be in the Denver metro area and work will be citywide. To see a map of the districts in Denver please

click here

. The work schedule will generally be Monday-Friday, 8:00AM-4:30PM with evening and weekend work required as needed.

What You’ll Do

Are you looking for a career in the green/sustainable jobs industry? Do you enjoy working outside and interacting with people? If so, Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) has a great opportunity for you!

We are looking for a Program Assistant to lead volunteer and youth crew projects in parks and open space. The Denver Parks Open Space Stewardship program engages with volunteers and youth to complete ecological restoration projects, maintain healthy habitats, and enhance native vegetation across the city while educating the public. The stewardship program works with paid youth corps crews, residents, corporate groups, non-profits, neighborhood organizations and other partners to complete Open Space projects in the parks. The Program Assistant will meet groups at the project site, provide tools and supplies needed to complete the project, and offer oversight and guidance on the project task as needed. Training and job shadowing opportunities will be provided to the Program Assistant for the first several weeks prior to leading projects solo.

DPR recognizes the importance of diversity in the representation of our organization to best serve our customers and community. To that end, DPR is committed to:
• Examining department policies and processes that value diverse perspectives and eliminate barriers to inclusion
• Identifying where inequities exist and implementing strategies to ensure equitable outcomes
• Strengthening diversity in Parks and Recreation services by transforming policies to institutionalize equity
• Reinvesting in resources aimed at ensuring DPR is an equitable and just organization

Specifically, you will have the opportunity to:
• Lead volunteers and youth crews in a variety of parks projects.
• Projects may involve, but are not limited to removing invasive weeds, installing native plants, constructing new trails, repairing existing trails, mulching trees, removing litter along/in waterways, wildlife mitigation, and community outreach
• Oversee work in progress to ensure quality, effectiveness, efficiency of crew activities and output.
• Implement safety standards, ensure compliance, and prepare work records and daily reports.
• Operate small gas and electric-powered equipment properly and safely such as backpack blowers, edgers, and string trimmers
• Assist with project identification, planning and coordination.
• Train volunteers and youth in the day-to-day procedures of the work unit and mastery of individual knowledge, skills, and abilities essential to work tasks.
• Develop or modify work plans, methods, and procedures; determine work priorities, and develop work schedules to provide adequate staff coverage.
• Provide work instruction and assist volunteers and youth with difficult and/or unusual assignments.
• Resolve problems encountered during daily operations and determine appropriate solutions, relay necessary information to supervisor.
• Keep tools clean and organized

What You’ll Bring

We value diversity of ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, sexual identity, gender, religion, language, ability, and experience and exemplify this through the makeup of our team at all levels. You’ll be right at home here if you cultivate strong relationships and push yourself, your work, the people around you and Denver to the next level.

Our ideal candidate will have some or all the following experience, skills, and characteristics:
• Reliable, organized, and patient
• Able to adapt quickly to changing situations
• Interested in teaching others
• Have a positive attitude and be able to motivate others
• Natural resources experience is a plus
• Willing and able to work outside in variety of weather conditions (i.e. heat, rain, sun exposure; in the case of unsafe weather conditions, work will be rescheduled or alternative/indoor tasks will be provided)
• Bilingual skills are a plus, but not a requirement
• Able to work in varied terrain and inclement weather with flexible schedules (availability on weekends as needed)
• Able (or willing to learn) to operate a variety of hand and power tools
• At least a 2-year degree in open space management, environmental studies, wildlife conservation, noxious weed and vegetation management, forestry, horticulture, natural resources, resilient landscapes or in lieu of a degree, 3 years of experience in a closely related field
• Competent computer skills in Microsoft Office applications

Required Minimum Qualifications
• Education: Graduation from high school or the possession of a GED, HiSET or TASC Certificate
• Experience: Three (3) years of experience in horticulture/ecological restoration OR leadership/community engagement role
• Licensures/Certification(s): Requires a valid Driver’s License at the time of application. Licenses and certifications must be kept current as a condition of employment
• Equivalency: Additional appropriate education may be substituted for the minimum experience requirement except for one year of experience in horticulture/ecological restoration OR leadership/community engagement role. For example, successful completion of a Master Gardener Program may substitute up to four semester hours of course work. Relevant Continuing Education Units (CEU) in horticulture or Naturalist Training Programs may substitute for three semester hours at the rate of forty-five contact classroom hours of seminars, workshops, etc. Additional appropriate experience in horticulture, botany, natural resources, range management, or horticultural/ecological restoration may be substituted for the education requirement.

Application Deadline

This position is expected to stay open until April 10th, 2025. Please submit your application as soon as possible and no later than April 10th, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. MST

About Everything Else

Job Profile

CJ2041 Utility Worker II

To view the full job profile including position specifications, physical demands, and probationary period, click

here

.

Position Type

Oncall

Position Salary Range

$22.01 – $33.02

Starting Pay

$22.01/hour

Agency

Parks and Recreation

The City and County of Denver provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, genetic information, age, or any other status protected under federal, state, and/or local law.

It is your right to access oral or written language assistance, sign language interpretation, real-time captioning via CART, or disability-related accommodations. To request any of these services at no cost to you, please contact

Jobs@Denvergov.org

with three business days’ notice.

Applicants for employment with the City and County of Denver must have valid work authorization that does not require sponsorship of a visa for employment authorization in the U.S.

For information about right to work, click

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for English or

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for Spanish.