Food, Agriculture, and Resilient Ecosystems Grant Program Coordinator - County of Marin
SALARY
$77,376 - $92,137/ Annually
APPLY HERE
RECRUITMENT CLOSING DATE
Wednesday, December 5, 2024
ABOUT US:
At the County of Marin, our employees overwhelmingly report feeling their work is meaningful, they like the work they do, and they are proud to tell people “I work for the County of Marin.” This position will coordinate funding and other types of support toward equitable food-access, environmental, and agricultural priorities in partnership with leaders across county government and Marin’s communities.
We currently have opportunities for Program Coordinators with Marin County Parks and the Community Development Agency. Please read below for more information about each position.
FOOD, AGRICULTURE, AND RESILIENT ECOSYSTEMS GRANT PROGRAM COORDINATOR
MARIN COUNTY PARKS*
Marin County Parks manages 40 public parks and pathways, and 18,500 acres of open space. These public lands, which include McNears Beach, Paradise Beach, Roy’s Redwoods, Bolinas Lagoon, Mount Burdell, and Ring Mountain, reflect the rich variety of ecosystems in coastal northern California.
A department of the County of Marin , our mission is to educate, inspire, and engage the people of Marin in the shared commitment of preserving, protecting, and enriching the natural beauty of Marin’s parks and open spaces, and providing recreational opportunities for the enjoyment of all generations. Marin County Parks promotes a collaborative and supportive team-oriented work culture based on a shared mission, personal integrity, and positive attitude.
As the stewards of their public lands, we are committed to ongoing engagement and relationship-building with the people and communities we serve. Parks’ priorities are guided by this communitydialogue.
These include:
• Park facilities maintenance and improvements
• Open space road and trail management and improvements
• Vegetation management for wildfire risk reduction and ecosystem health, in partnership with regional fire departments, the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority, and natural resourcescientists
• Climate change and sea-level rise resilience
• Equity
ABOUT THE POSITION:
Marin County Parks administers several grant programs funding local communities to provide equitable outdoor access, maintain local park infrastructure, strengthen agriculture and food systems, acquire park and natural lands, and steward and protect working lands. Through these programs and other partnerships under One Tam, with local libraries, equity and environmental roundtables, and others we constantly strive to provide excellent outdoor access and public services that meet the needs of all community members and Marin County as a whole.
This position will be responsible for a combination of grant program coordination tasks and Program coordinaton through direct services to Marin communities.
• Coordinate the grant program including leading day to day program communications and administrative activities under the general supervision of the Government and External Affairs Manager.
• Evaluate program goals and outcomes to determine performance and impact over time.
• Support Government and External Affairs Manager to respond to information requests from the Measure A Oversight Committee, Parks and Open Space Commission, Marin County Board of Supervisors, and auditors as needed. Prepare reports about the program.
• Lead culturally competent communications and community centered outreach efforts to build program awareness and understand community needs and priorities. Build trusted relationships with and among partners. Advise other County departments, public agencies and community groups of the needs and concerns of communities.
• Co-develop partner and community-based approaches to developing a countywide plan linking together the food systems areas under this FARE program, and to identifying strategic resources that can efficiently address the top needs of community and school gardens.
• Provide technical assistance to improve access to program funds, complete projects, enhance access to sustainable agriculture opportunities, improve social equity, and remove any barriers to program goals.
An additional role of this program is providing Direct Services-
• Provide technical assistance to all partners working to advance areas that fall under this program; including tracking and sharing funding and capacity building opportunities through email updates, connecting partners to support one another, and coordinating with other funders to address shared goals and community needs.
• Meet with partners, including the Marin Food Policy Council and other networks of agricultural partners, to monitor their conversations and build a bridge with this program and related work.
• Lead and/or support programs that provide direct services in the community that complement this grant program and help remove barriers to achieving successful outcomes.
• Collaborate to implement policy changes that complement and advance the work of the grant program and its partners.
• May provide direction and training to volunteers and project staff.
ABOUT YOU:
Our Highly Qualified Candidate:
A highly qualified candidate will be able to demonstrate a history of grantmaking and administration with strong attention to detail, skilled trust and relationship building with a wide range of public agency and community partners, specific examples of using data and community input to identify
equitable community priorities and orient funding and other systems to measurably address those priorities, managing large, complicated programs, and effectively balance multiple competing community and employer priorities while achieving shared outcomes.
*Bilingual skills in Spanish is highly desirable.
Specific desired qualifications include:
Knowledge of:
• Contract and grant agreement development and monitoring.
• Strategic planning, budgeting, utilization projections and cost analysis.
• Background in any and all topic areas able to be funded by this grant program, including but not limited to community and school gardens, commercial kitchens, farmers markets, food waste recovery, agriculture, carbon farming, food pantries, restoration on agricultural lands,developing new agricultural sites, leases to support small or new farming opportunities, and more.
• Principles and practices of administering and evaluating public funds, grant programs, and community-serving programs with a goal of overseeing this unique local grant program and its financial and other requirements
• Experience working with and responding to the needs of low-income communities, communities of color, agricultural workers and operators, community organizers, and others working in agriculture, conservation, and food systems.
• Data collection and data analysis.
• Awareness of Federal, state, and local community resources and policies supporting food systems and food access, agricultural and environmental sustainability, and equitable farming programs.
Ability to:
• Closely monitor grantee work to ensure compliance with grant guidelines, grant agreement, scope and budget, and Measure A Ordinance 3760.
• Evaluate feasibility of grant requests and ability of grant applicants to deliver on proposed scope.
• Work with individuals, groups, and communities to promote program objectives using culturally competent approaches. This may include working out of the offices of program partners, and on teams with staff from other organizations.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with program participants, co-workers, community organizations and leaders, Marin residents, and public agencies.
• Identify technical assistance needs of grant applicants and coordinate support to meet those needs.
• Interpret, explain, and apply rules and regulations.
• Prepare clear and concise written and oral reports as needed.
• Coordinate, facilitate, and conduct public and stakeholder meetings.
• Communicate effectively.
• Drive to meet partners where they live and work.
• Diffuse challenging or difficult situations.
• Meet weekly or more frequently with the Government and External Affairs Manager and prepare program recommendations for approval.
• Pivot and remain flexible to respond to emerging needs under this program.