About the Position
The Director of Youth Engagement supports the mission of Bartram’s Garden by creating equitable relationships among young people and nature through immersive community-driven experiences.
Bartram’s Garden has a successful history connecting young people to the natural world. Tens of thousands of students during the school day visit, explore and connected to the history, land and water on field trips, immersive home school experiences, and library and classroom lessons. Hundreds of Southwest Philadelphia teens have engaged in paid internship programs, through Denkyem River Crew, Roots Tree Crew, and the B.I.G. Crew at Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. These high school programs support youth in their professional and personal growth as well as support their academic and career goals.
In this role, the Director of Youth Engagement both supports and strengthens the existing successful programs while helping grow youth initiatives that are integrated in all stewardship and management aspects of the 50 acre ecosystem. Leading a team of educators, the Director will give support and strengthen site-wide youth programming that spans all age groups from pre-kindergarten toddlers to post-secondary adults and focuses on youth development and educational experiences connected to nature, the environment, and climate resilience.
Reporting to the Chief Campus and Operations Officer, the Director of Youth Engagement will have up to six direct reports consisting of educators, and contracted support for the youth programs.
Core Responsibilities
- Direct the development and implementation of all youth education programming at Bartram’s Garden in support of the institution’s local population and the neighborhood’s climate change resilience.
- Create policies and procedures to meet highest-level industry standards for youth education, safety, supervision, case management, and trauma informed social emotional learning.
- Lead the education team toward the execution of year-round youth programming in the areas of agriculture, horticulture, river ecology, urban forestry, and early learning ages pre-K through middle school.
- Manage the relationship of the City of Philadelphia’s workforce development intermediary including all communications, planning, worksite compliance, and reporting to ensure well-resourced programmatic growth.
- Manage outcomes and deliverables for Registered Apprenticeship programs; coordinate consistent communication with state apprenticeship office.
- Develop organizational relationships with local educational institutions and educators such as local public and charter schools, libraries, early education centers, and institutions of higher learning toward long-term programmatic connections.
- Lead education-related workshops or trainings for staff, youth and other stakeholders as needed.
- Implement curriculum and evaluation frameworks and supports, providing professional development where needed.
- Grow youth programming to ensure alignment with coming capital improvements such as FloatLab, and Education Center.
- Coordinate with the Senior Director of Finance to administer all aspects of the departmental budget including creation, execution, oversight, and projections.
- Collaborate with the Senior Director of Human Resources to maintain secure files for all youth records and manage onboarding of youth workers.
- Support the Director of Development in developing funding requests, participating in funder meetings, and reporting on deliverables.
Preferred Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in education plus 5 years’ relevant experience or master’s degree plus 3 years’ experience.
- 3 to 5 years’ experience delivering or developing environmental education programming.
- Previous experience managing a team or supervising staff required.
- Strong leadership and communication skills.
- Personal or professional familiarity with Southwest Philadelphia preferred.
- Able to work collaboratively with people from diverse backgrounds in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class, and religion.
- Experience working in communities of color, commitment to racial, economic, environmental, and social justice.
- Strong computer skills (Excel, Word, Outlook, and web-based work platforms).
- Physical requirements include: a combination of sitting, standing, and walking; lifting modest weights (up to 30 pounds).
Schedule and Benefits
This is a full-time, exempt, year-round position within a range of $80,000-85,000. Benefits include healthcare and dental coverage, short and long-term disability coverage, paid holidays, vacation, and sick time.
As this position involves routine contact with minors, the Director of Youth Engagement will be required to submit and renew at least every 5 years the following:
- Pennsylvania Criminal History Check through the Pennsylvania State Police (PATCH)
- Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Check through the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services
- FBI Criminal History Check
To Apply
Email cover letter with resume and three professional references to jobs@bartramsgarden.org, with subject line “Director of Youth Engagement”. No phone calls or visits, please. Deadline to apply – October 20, 2026
ABOUT BARTRAM’S GARDEN
Bartram’s Garden is a 50-acre public park and National Historic Landmark in Southwest Philadelphia, situated on Lenape territory on the banks of the Tidal Schuylkill River. Welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually, it is a venue for art, and access to the tidal river and wetlands, an outdoor classroom, and a living laboratory. Bartram’s Garden attempts to hold the colonial legacy of the land with a commitment to learn and share the whole truth about the plants of Southwest Philadelphia and the people who grow them. The site encompasses the Bartram family’s 18th-century house and farm buildings, the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden, a reclaimed meadow, tidal wetlands, the Sankofa Community Farm, recreational trails, and the riverfront with an accessible public boat dock and community boathouse.
The Garden is operated and maintained by the non-profit John Bartram Association in cooperation with the City of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. The mission of the John Bartram Association is to co-create equitable relationships among people and nature through immersive, community-centered experiences that activate the Bartram legacy, Garden, and House, on land and on the Schuylkill River, in Southwest Philadelphia.
Bartram’s Garden has been working to build its local Southwest-focused programs and activities and strengthen its community partnerships with nearby families, schools, and neighborhood groups. Thanks to plans for significant upcoming site investments, including major construction projects and expanded partnerships, the Garden is in the midst of transformation, with unprecedented opportunities for growth and renewal.