Seasonal Naturalist

Under the guidance of nature center manager and a team of Naturalists, develops and conducts high quality environmental education activities, summer camps, and interpretive naturalist programs and works with staff in operation of Wood Lake Nature Center. This position is seasonal in nature and thus temporary.

HOURS

40 hours per week from April 7, 2025 – August 23, 2026.  Work week: Monday-Friday, possible weekends as needed.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

• Conducts high quality environmental education activities with groups of all ages and types of people, with a focus on K-5 age group.
• Plans and conducts 8-11 weeks of pre-school/kindergarten and/or 1st-6th grade day summer camps. Camps may be conducted 100% outdoors.
• Conducts weekend birthday parties, scout programs and occasional off-site programs as scheduled.
• Assists staff with administrative duties including group scheduling, purchasing, telephones, etc.
• Answers inquiries from the public about wildlife identification, habits, nuisance problems, etc.
• Assists in the training and supervision of interns and volunteers.
• Assists in building and grounds maintenance as needed i.e. resource management, tree watering, empty park trash cans.
• Assists with a variety of daily and position long projects such as prairie management, exotic species control, and trail maintenance.
• Assists the with the Urban Wildland Half Marathon and 5K races and must be available to work Saturday July 26, 2025.
• Coordinates efforts to ensure Richfield is an equitable, inclusive, and respectful organization and supports the City’s mission, vision, and core values.

COMPETENCIES

• Demonstrates knowledge and identification of flora and fauna prevalent in this area and its relevance to Wood Lake.
• Demonstrates knowledge of ecological concepts including succession, predation, population dynamics, etc. and ability to identify their occurrence at Wood Lake.
• Demonstrates ability to work as a team with staff in a dynamic nature center environment. 
• Demonstrates ability to communicate with the public in a friendly and professional manner.
• Demonstrates ability to work both independently and cooperatively with staff, interns and volunteers.
• Demonstrates ability to conduct a wide variety of classes in an outdoor setting. 
• Demonstrates ability to work scheduled shifts, to arrive on time ready to work.
• Demonstrates ability to understand and respect the diversity of customers and co-workers, effectively communicating with individuals whose first language may be one other than English. 

 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

 OR 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience working with the public in a fast-paced environment
• Strong familiarity with Wood Lake, its programs and policies.  An ability to conduct programs in a manner consistent with its philosophy.   

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL/EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER/MFD

The City of Richfield is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee, job applicant, or contractor on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, age, marital status, genetics, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, familial status, or membership on a local human rights commission.

 This statement applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

Salary : $37,003 - $41,246