Colorado Nonprofit Association

Community Outreach and Programs Manager

About Ekar

Located in the heart of the neighborhood of Lowry in Denver for the last 15 years, Ekar Farm is a 2-acre, organic production, education, and demonstration farm. Ekar is currently undergoing a move to Shalom Park in Aurora, Colorado and is actively developing the new site for work to continue in 2025. Rooted in the Jewish values of social equity, justice, and interconnectedness, Ekar serves as a model for connecting a multicultural community to the earth and as a catalyst for economic development, hunger relief, community pride, sustainability, and ecologically restorative agricultural practices. The food we cultivate is distributed to food pantries, early learning centers, a WIC immigrant CSA, hunger relief organizations, and a Native Elder food share program through Spirit of the Sun.

We are guided by our mission:

Ekar Farm and Community Gardens is a communal urban farm, inspired by Jewish values. We work to build community, provide experiential and environmental education, and grow sustainably produced fruits and vegetables, expanding access to those in need.

Job Description

Ekar’s Community Outreach and Programs Manager plays a critical leadership role in the organization, overseeing the implementation of mission-driven and creative programming, community outreach that responds to community needs, and network building that strengthens relationships within and between community partners and individuals.

Ideal Candidate
The successful candidate will bring strong community organizing, food and farming/gardening, and educational experience and seek to have a positive impact in relieving hunger in Denver/Aurora metro communities. They will use a ‘big picture’ mindset to advocate for local food justice and sustainable ways to live and conduct business. Working closely with Ekar’s partners, they will be a catalyst for engaging, educating, and enriching community life at Ekar, the Jewish community, and beyond. Most importantly, this individual should have a passion for collaboration and educating the public on issues of food, nutrition, and sustainability.

Areas of Responsibility

• Serve as a spokesperson for Ekar in the Jewish community and among our hunger relief partners.
• Advocate alongside local food systems, hunger relief groups, and food justice movements.
• Develop and nurture relationships with partners, including nonprofits, schools, congregations, government agencies, individuals, funders, donors and other stakeholders.
• Foster a work environment that is results-oriented, intellectually curious, community-driven, kind, and responsive to both equity and spiritually-inspired issues.
• Manage seasonal interns and volunteers.
• Contribute to social media and Ekar’s newsletter, respond to messages on social media and email. Assist with the creation and distribution of marketing materials for programs and events.
• Responsible for creating and implementing work plans for ongoing programs and researching funding opportunities in collaboration with the executive director and contracted grant writer.
• Assist with farm tasks as needed including the development of the new site.

Manage Ekar’s current programs and areas of work:

Community Engagement & Environmental Education

• Holidays and Events celebrating Shabbat, Jewish holidays, and other events that engage Ekar’s community partners and individuals interested in earth-centered experiences that connect people to community and community to the earth.
• Garden Educator Cohort supports a cohort of multiple organizational and school educators on their garden projects and includes teaching classes for early childhood.
• Ekar’s Intergenerational Garden will be a large piece of programming in our future at Shalom Park.
• Experiential Education initiatives throughout the community at schools, places of worship, businesses, and most importantly on the farm.

Food Justice & Hunger Relief:

• Cooperative Gardens supports community gardens in food-insecure neighborhoods by distributing seeds and seedlings throughout the Denver metro-area. In partnership with the Food Bank of the Rockies, Ekar works with 20+ organizations, facilitating the outreach and promotion of the program and connecting partners to garden support.
• Food Shares and Education at Academy 360, Monarch Montessori, and 2 locations of Hope Communities. Supported by Healthy Food for Denver Kids, this grant provides over 60 food shares of culturally relevant produce adapted to feed a family of 6, educational materials, nutrition programming, and garden support for these organizations.

Education & Experience

We welcome applicants with varying levels of experience provided you display the skills required to execute the job described above. Applicants do not need to have a Jewish background or identity.

Qualifications

• Leader and self-starter, with experience managing interns or volunteers and working with small teams.
• Organized and detail-oriented, able to execute on multiple projects and tasks.
• Experience developing and running educational opportunities appropriate for a wide range of age groups to learn about farming, food justice, the environment, spirituality, and community connection.
• Strong knowledge and experience in experiential education, gardening/farming with an interest in outdoor education and/or Jewish education.
• Experience writing grant proposals and reports and managing a grant schedule.
• Strong commitment to facilitating change in Denver’s food system. Experience in community organizing is a plus.
• A connection to Ekar’s mission and desire to work at the forefront of food and environmental equity issues and to assist and inspire others to do so.
• Strong interpersonal skills with an ability to collaborate well with a range of partners, teammates, and other stakeholders across economic, racial, and religious differences. Passion for connecting and building community.
• Comfortable and effective working independently and as a member of a team in both leadership and supporting roles. Confident giving and receiving feedback in the workplace.
• Proficient in Excel. Experience tracking budget expenses.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with a willingness to learn, teach, and grow.
• Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation.

Working Conditions

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable people with differing abilities:

• Typing, writing, reading, hearing, and speaking
• Standing and walking for several hours inside and outside in the summer, as well as sitting, squatting, crawling, climbing, and lifting up to 30 pounds
• Early morning or late evenings depending on programs, events, and farm needs

Compensation & Benefits

This is a full-time, exempt employee position at 40 hours/week. Salary range is $50,000 -$55,000 depending on experience. Farm provides ongoing professional development, DEIJ trainings, 15 days paid vacation (after 1 year of employment), 6 days per year sick time, and 18 paid Federal and Jewish holidays. Ekar does not at this time provide employer paid group health insurance but may do so in the future, although we do provide a $150 per month health benefits stipend. All full time staff members receive a COLA (cost of living adjustment) of 5% annually on August 1st.

Schedule
General hours are 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Monday – Friday. This position requires some evenings and weekend work, as well as a heavier workload during the growing season. During April through October average hours are 40 per week, in November – March average hours may be less than 40 per week.