BereaCorps: Farm Store Associate

Please note that references provided at the time of application for staff positions will not be contacted until the applicant has been offered the position.

Description:

BereaCorps positions are grant-funded, one-year contract positions from June 1, 2025 - May 31, 2026, with the possibility of a one-year extension. The positions are only available to 2024 and May 2025 Berea graduates that have completed all of their coursework by May 2025.

The BereaCorps candidate will work closely with the entire farm store staff and the Berea College Farm to process, market, merchandise and sell products derived from the oldest student educational farm in the United States. The position will sometimes include evening or possibly early morning work and Saturdays. Additionally, this position will play a key role in contributing to our customer satisfaction and acquisition goals. The BereaCorps position will assist in the preparation of food and set-up stations for the menu and assist the Farm Store Manager with daily tasks. This position plays a key role within the department of the Farm Store and reports directly to the Farm Store Manager.

Your Key Responsibilities:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Regular and predictable attendance is essential. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Communicate with customers, co-workers, students, faculty, staff, and contractors in a professional manner.
• Coordinate delivery of goods for the week’s menu
• Work with students and staff to identify and follow the inventory management
• Responsible for intake of orders via emails and phone calls
• Responsible for coordinating travel, drop-off and pick-up
• Works closely with the baker to determine the amount to be produced
• Will serve as a backup to the baker and line-cook
• Assist the farm store team in developing recipes
• Help develop menu items and coordinate recipes for back of the house
• Act in a supporting role to the Farm Store Manager throughout the year.
• This position will also be responsible for creating a more efficient inventory supply system, recipe analysis & accounting system for the Farm Store.
• In support of Berea College’s great commitments this position requires student supervision. The fourth great commitment is to promote learning and serving in community through the student labor program, honoring the dignity and utility of all work, mental and manual, and taking pride in work well done. The Supervision would include scheduling, assigning and approving work performed. Developing students about common workplace acumen and giving them tangible work experience is an expected outcome. To learn more about the student labor program and requirements on this position see: Labor Program Goals.

What You'll Bring:

Education required to ensure success in this position:

• Undergraduate degree from Berea College

• History of success in a higher education setting and/or working collaboratively with diverse faculty/staff, alumni, donors, and students.
• Experience in a kitchen and food preparation setting
• Experience in merchandising fresh food products
• Some knowledge of baking breads, pastries and other baked goods helpful but not required
• Experience communicating and practicing excellent customer service skills
• Knowledge of basic accounting, bookkeeping and inventory regarding the front of house point of sale systems

• Understanding and appreciation for the Berea College purpose and Great Commitments, including the tremendous impact philanthropy has on the ability of the College to achieve its mission.
• Ability to work independently and recognize opportunities and create effective strategies to engage prospects with Berea College resulting in increased support.
• Excellent communication (oral and written) and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to set priorities and meet deadlines.
• Demonstrated personal traits of initiative, integrity, discretion, patience, persistence, good judgment, and a strong sense of self.
• Attention to detail, creativity, and problem-solving skills, and the ability to work independently.
• Flexibility to learn and execute varied tasks is essential.
• The capacity to integrate disparate information and to organize and prioritize complex tasks.
• Ability to work with and supervise students.
• Availability to work weekends and evenings as required.
• A strong social media and/or digital media background is preferred.

• Valid driver’s license and good driving record

• Must be able to lift 25 pounds.
• Work long shifts, standing.

• Eatery/grocery setting, including full kitchen, bakery and butchery with interruptions and noise due to frequent visitors, students, staff, and faculty.
• Frequently entering and exiting walk in coolers and freezers to obtain ingredients for food preparation
• Must be flexible and willing to work throughout the eatery as needed.
• Weekend & Evening work as necessary.

• Ability to operate a vehicle
• Computer literacy and strong aptitude for the following tasks: use of internet and e-mail; Eventbrite, social media, navigating Banner, word processing; experience with Excel and PowerPoint, and graphics.
• Ability to assist in accounting with proper training.

Founded in 1855, Berea College is nationally recognized as the first coeducational and interracial college in the South. Berea has a longstanding commitment to interracial education and is one of the most racially diverse private liberal arts colleges in the United States. With an emphasis on service to Appalachia and beyond, Berea enrolls more than 1,500 students from 46 states and U.S. territories and more than 70 countries. Berea College admits students who are unable to afford tuition and provides all of them with a no-tuition promise, valued at more than $204,000. Berea’s students excel in the College’s supportive yet demanding academic environment, and most are the first in their families to attend college. As one of only nine federally recognized Work Colleges, all Berea students are expected to work 10-12 hours weekly in various positions across campus. Berea College is listed #20 in overall ranking in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal/College Pulse college rankings, 2023. The Washington Monthly ranks Berea College #2 Best Liberal Arts College and #1 in Social Mobility, 2023. Money Magazine ranks Berea #20 Best Overall College and #10 for Best in the South, 2023. Berea College is also the only institution in Kentucky to receive the 5-Star Rating from Money Magazine, 2023.

Located where the Bluegrass Region meets the Cumberland Mountains, the town of Berea (pop. 16,000) lies forty miles south of Lexington and is approximately two hours from Cincinnati, Louisville, and Knoxville. More information about Berea College is available at www.berea.edu.

Berea College, in light of its mission in the tradition of impartial love and social equality, welcomes all people of the earth to learn and work here.

Berea College is always looking for talented, self-motivated individuals to join our team.


Berea College is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.

Our Benefits:
Berea College offers a comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees and their families including health care, dental, vision, retirement, health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability and an Employee Assistance Program. The benefit package also includes access to the Child Development Laboratory for children of College Staff, ages 6 weeks to 6 years, Seabury Center Membership, Staff Development Funds and Tuition Reimbursement.

Eligible staff employees also receive paid holidays, vacation, and sick leave.

Part-time employees who work an average of 24 hours per week over the course of a year, receive benefits on a pro-rated basis.