Kite’s Nest is a center for liberatory education in Hudson, NY. It is our mission to build the collective capacity of young people in our community to bring about healing, personal transformation, social connection, and systemic change. We work in a deeply collaborative environment that is committed to embodying the values that we seek to foster in the world. Everyone who joins our staff is part of a family of educators, activists, thinkers and artists who are committed both to our work with young people and to nurturing a healthy and supportive organizational culture.

Administrative Assistant: A new part-time 1-year position supporting administration, fundraising, operations, and storytelling.
Director of Youth Power: A full-time position leading our youth organizing and social justice arts programs.
SJLA Lead Educator (Summer): A seasonal position co-planning and co-leading our 5-week SJLA summer teen intensive.
ReGen Coordinator: A new part-time year-round role supporting our ReGen Teens program and River City Community Garden.

Note: Kite’s Nest is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages Black, Indigenous, and people of color, people identifying as LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, formerly incarcerated people, immigrants, and people with working class backgrounds to apply. If you’re excited about a role, but not sure if you meet all the qualifications, apply anyway! We look forward to learning about you.

If you’re interested in volunteering with us, please fill out our volunteer application form and we’ll be in touch as volunteer opportunities arise. We also have several paid teen employment positions open each season, which you can learn about here. Join our mailing list to be the first to know about future opportunities.

Administrative Assistant

Location: Hudson, NY
Begins: Flexible start date, June 2024
Position: Part-time, one year
Schedule: approx 32 hours/week
Application Deadline: Applications for this position are currently being accepted

Kite’s Nest is a center for liberatory education in Hudson, NY. We are a small organization, currently run by a core team of 7 full-time staff members; each semester we are joined by a crew of contract educators and volunteers. We are looking for a part-time Administrative Assistant to join our team for a year, with the possibility to continue when the contract ends. We are looking for someone with excellent organizational skills and strong written and verbal communication skills. The role requires working independently while also engaging in a deeply collaborative environment. The person stepping into this role must be adaptable, positive, and comfortable interacting with children, teens, families, and other members of the Kite’s Nest community.

The Kite’s Nest Administrative Assistant will support essential day-to-day tasks associated with organization administration, fundraising, operations, and storytelling. The person in this role will work closely with the Operations Director, Development & Grants Manager, Executive Director, and Director of Liberatory Education, and will report to the Operations Director. This role may require some collaboration with youth staff. This is a new role at Kite’s Nest and does not directly supervise any positions.

Responsibilities include:

Supporting with communications, including communicating with youth and families; helping to manage our general inquiry email inbox, website contact form submissions, and social media messages; generating content and posting to social media and collaboratively maintaining content schedules; updating and maintaining elements of our Squarespace website
Coordinating volunteers and visitors through digital and phone communications, maintaining our volunteer database, providing hospitality towards volunteers including sending thank you notes, and gathering and organizing materials to support volunteer efforts and visitor inquiries
Supporting with outreach including program and event outreach (fliering, tabling at school and other events, calls and emails to families, and more), and outreach and coordination with volunteers and organizational partners
Performing administrative-level fundraising tasks, including writing and sending donor acknowledgment letters and thank you’s, coordinating donor databases and mailing lists, communicating with donors to ensure their payment info is up to date, gathering materials and information for grant applications and reports, helping with fundraising event logistics, and doing basic grant-related research and info-gathering
Supporting fundraising outreach, including cultivating relationships with existing and potential business partners, reaching out to donors for updated information, participating in email/phone/text banking, posting campaign fliers, etc
Participating in the capital campaign fundraising committee by helping with event planning, donor and fundraising team communications, preparing materials for events and outreach, documentation, etc
Contributing to daily health and function of the team and programs by making sure supplies are well-stocked, our space is clean and organized, and our systems are clear and accessible
Regularly maintaining site inventory, ordering and purchasing supplies as needed, and helping to identify and coordinate solutions and responses to site needs
Supporting our bookkeeper with financial systems upkeep by managing receipts, gathering or generating and submitting invoices, occasionally cleaning up financial and donor databases, basic Quickbooks tasks including generating spending reports, and doing research to minimize costs and meet our values across all categories of spending
Supporting with basic HR tasks, including organizing new hire paperwork, contracts, and invoices
Supporting with events including food and supply purchasing, planning and organizing, generating cost comparisons, gathering vendor info for hiring, event set-up and breakdown, tech support, and outreach; occasionally working weekend events including community expos and plant sales
Supporting with compost program administration for the ReGen Teens compost business including onboarding new customers, setting up and maintaining online billing systems, coordinating work-trade volunteer days
Performing other program administration tasks as needed including taking attendance, contacting guardians or the school during check-in time, maintaining program records, and more; occasionally supporting with youth transportation and field trip transportation when available
Maintaining archival systems by keeping physical and digital files, photos, and other media labeled and organized
Assisting with special projects including research for site improvements, earned revenue ideas, community-guided campus design process, community build projects, and more
Assisting with occasional merch sales and shipments
Participating in reflection cycles and occasional staff celebrations, planning and visioning sessions

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

Alignment with Kite’s Nest core values
A personal commitment to anti-oppression and social justice work
A love of and respect for young people
Experience building healthy relationships and communication within multiracial teams
Interest in cultivating workplace dynamics of care, healing, joy, and creativity
Ability to work both independently and as part of a collaborative team
Attentiveness to detail and love for organizing resources in support of a group
Strong written and verbal communication skills including being a timely, respectful, and consistent communicator within a team
Willingness to help with a range of tasks and a shifting workflow throughout the year
Creative problem-solving skills and energy for learning, researching, experimenting
Comfort asking for help as needed
Comfort with technology and learning how to use new tools and platforms. Kite’s Nest regularly uses: Google Suite, Slack, Airtable, Mailchimp, Canva, Nationbuilder, Squarespace, Square, Instagram and Facebook, Adobe design suite tools, and more. The person in this role will regularly create and maintain spreadsheets and databases, maintain computers and printers, use social media and other digital communications platforms, set up projectors and digital meeting systems, etc.
A valid driver’s license and clean driving record. This role requires running errands and occasionally supporting with things like driving for field trips or transporting youth home when our program driver is unavailable

Preferred qualifications include:

Personal connection to/lived experience within the Hudson community
Fluency in languages other than English (especially Spanish or Bengali)
Skills in graphic design, photography, and/or social media storytelling
Experience with collaborative decision making processes and transformative justice practices
Experience with fundraising, communications, finance, operations, education, admissions or billing
Experience with HR, including contracts and policies

Compensation: This is a one-year contract for a part-time hourly position. Pay is $25-$28/hour, depending on experience, with a part-time benefit package, including paid vacation, wellness/sick days, professional development funds, wellness fund, & employer-funded 401(k) plan. Option to include partially-covered health, vision and dental insurance. This contract is for one year but may grow to become longer-term.

Schedule:

An average of 32 hours per week on a mutually agreed upon schedule, with optional remote work days 1-2 days per week, depending on season.
Once a month required staff meetings (usually on a Monday from 10am-1pm)
Occasional weekend and evening events (to be scheduled in advance)
Seasonal reflection and celebration events

To apply:

To apply, please complete this form and include the following:

A cover letter demonstrating your interest in the position and your relevant experience
A copy of your resume
Names and contact information for 3 professional references

Kite’s Nest is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages Black, Indigenous, and people of color, people identifying as LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, formerly incarcerated people, immigrants, and people with working class backgrounds to apply.

Director of Youth power

Location: Hudson, NY
Start Date: June
Schedule: Full-time position, M-F with occasional weekends
Application Deadline: Applications for this position are currently being accepted

Kite’s Nest is a center for liberatory education in Hudson, NY. We are a small organization, currently run by a core team of 7 staff members; each semester we are joined by a crew of contract educators and volunteers. We are looking for a full-time Director of Youth Power to join our team this Spring.

Kite’s Nest runs the Social Justice Leadership Academy (SJLA), a year-round political home for teenagers, including both a weekly after school space and 5-week summer intensive. Now in its 11th year, SJLA combines transformative political education and hands-on arts programming, bringing youth together to connect, create, grieve, heal, learn, play, and organize. The program centers youth of color, immigrant youth, queer youth, low-income youth and court-involved youth in our community.

The Director of Youth Power leads this powerful program and supports youth-led organizing and campaigns throughout the year. The Director of Youth Power will work closely with our experienced team of educators to coordinate all aspects of SJLA and our youth organizing programming: overseeing the program schedule, teaching staff, and budget; collaborating to design creative curriculum and political education workshops for teens; leading group activities during after school and summer sessions; building meaningful relationships with youth; providing one-on-one mentorship to youth organizers; and supporting youth-led campaigns throughout the year. We are seeking someone with a passion for supporting the creative power, collective leadership, and joy of youth.

Responsibilities include:

Manage all aspects of SJLA program:

Collaborate with educators and Youth Staff to design after school and summer curriculum, including experiential learning activities, group discussions, arts projects, campaign development, community actions, and field trips.
Coordinate program planning for SJLA, facilitating planning meetings with SJLA adult and alumni educators and coordinating with youth program advisors.
Develop and manage SJLA program budget; manage purchases and supply inventory.
Support in interviewing, hiring, and training teen Youth Staff and young adult Alumni Staff; supervise and provide leadership development for Youth and Alumni Staff.
Hire, train, and supervise lead educators, guest educators and teaching artists. Coordinate partnerships and field trips with community partners, including youth organizing groups, social justice organizations, activists and artists in the Hudson Valley, the Capital Region, and New York City.
Help facilitate restorative and transformative practices and peer mediation as needed.
Facilitate regular feedback sessions and program evaluation.

Support youth-led organizing and campaigns:

Facilitate creative curriculum and political education workshops for SJLA teens to support their development as thriving youth leaders.
Partner with SJLA youth to design and lead campaigns for policy change, supporting teens to identify issues impacting their lives, conduct Participatory Action Research (YPAR), develop campaign strategy and goals, connect with local and statewide partners, create media, organize public actions, and mobilize community participation.
Provide one-on-one mentorship to youth organizers in our programs.
Lead occasional political education workshops at high schools and with other youth organizations in Columbia and Greene counties.
Represent Kite’s Nest at relevant city meetings and events related to local, regional, and statewide organizing.

General responsibilities

Contribute social media content of program activities
Develop and maintain seasonal work plans
Develop program reports for grant reporting, applications and end-of-year documentation
Participation in occasional organizational fundraising events
Develop and provide broad-level strategic visioning for the program, with support from the Director of Liberatory Education
Optional participation in staff committees

Ideal candidates demonstrate some or all of the following:

Experience with social justice education, community organizing, and/or art as a tool for liberation (including work related to education justice, housing justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, immigrant justice, racial justice, community organizing, youth-led change, etc.)
Experience with program coordination and/or management; highly organized, and able to manage logistics and communications related to program coordination.
Experience and skill facilitating restorative and transformative approaches to conflict and communication among youth
Experience with Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) projects
Familiarity with experiential, project-based education and curriculum design; training and/or experience in group facilitation with youth.
Experience training educators, providing leadership development, and supporting others to develop facilitation skills and confidence is a plus.
An ability to work with a team as both a leader and collaborator, and a commitment to supporting healthy communication, feedback culture, and group dynamics.
A deep respect for teenagers, and joy working with teenagers; an interest in supporting young people in developing their own passions, leadership skills, and pathways forward; and a commitment to healing-centered youth engagement.
An ability to serve as a mentor and role model to youth, to build meaningful relationships, and to bring positive energy and enthusiasm to a group environment.
Preference will be given to candidates who can commit to at least 3 years (and ideally longer) in this position; we are looking for someone interested in building relationships with our youth to strengthen and grow our program for the long-term.

Compensation: This is a full-time salaried position. The starting salary is $58,450/yr, with significant annual pay increases and an additional $200/month housing stipend. Kite’s Nest offers a robust benefits package, including fully-covered health, vision, dental, accident and life insurance, paid vacation time, 4-day workweeks in January and February, expanded paid family leave, unlimited sick/wellness leave, a wellness fund, employer-funded ethical 401k, cell phone reimbursement, work computer, sabbaticals, and professional development fund.
Schedule: Full-time position, M-F with occasional weekends

Kite’s Nest is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages people of color, trans and gender nonconforming people, people from poor and working class backgrounds, queer people, people with disabilities, parents, and women to apply.

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete this form. The form will ask you to upload a cover letter and resume in a PDF format. If you have any questions, contact Sam at hello@kitesnest.org.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Applications received by May 15 will be prioritized.

SJLA SUMMER LEAD EDUCATOR

Location: Hudson, NY
Duration: May 20th, 2024 - August 16th, 2024 (In person work starts June 24th, 2024)
Application Deadline: Applications for this position are currently being accepted

Social Justice Leadership Academy (SJLA) summer intensive is a five-week summer leadership program for teens (ages 13-19) based on the principles of social justice and youth-led change. SJLA brings together local youth from different backgrounds, primarily youth of color growing up in Hudson. Over the course of five weeks, youth develop meaningful relationships of trust and mutual support, identify issues impacting their community, gain critical tools for political analysis, create art (music, film, radio, poetry) to express their ideas, gain leadership skills, and connect with inspiring people and organizations.

We are seeking a Lead Educator for our summer Social Justice Leadership Academy. This position will work closely with our SJLA Director and our experienced team of educators to coordinate all aspects of this program: You will collaborate with a team of educators to design, plan and lead curriculum, including hands-on workshops, group discussions, arts projects, experiential learning activities and field trips. You will serve as a mentor to Youth Fellows building meaningful relationships with youth and community members. As a youth employment program you will also support the compassionate development of youth leaders in the areas of accountability, responsibility and teamwork.

Compensation: This is a Seasonal Contracted Position. Seasonal Flat Rate: $6,250 for approx 235 hours. Summer housing may be available.

SCHEDULE + RESPONSIBILITIES

SJLA Planning Phase of Program: (May 20th - June 24th) (Remote Option)

(3) Planning Meetings with SJLA Director
Lesson plan design + Workshop prep

SJLA Summer Program Schedule: (June 25th - Aug 9th) (In Person)
June 25th - July 5th

Attend Staff Orientation and Training Session
Participate in Team Planning/ Prep Sessions
Additional Planning support and preparation including but not limited to:

Youth Staff orientation
Site preparation
Additional workshop and curriculum development

July 8th - Aug 9th: Summer Program (5 Weeks: Mon - Fri 8:30am - 4:30pm, no students on Mondays)

Lead daily workshops; support with transitions and time keeping
Organize group games + team building activities
Support with the overall Safety + Care of participants in program
Provide SEL support
Supervise and provide leadership development support for teen staff
Help facilitate restorative justice circles and peer mediation as needed
Support with supervision and safety during field trips
Help with direct action events and other community organizing initiatives
Support youth with organizing and leading community events
Participate in daily setup and clean-up of our outdoor classroom
Participate in regular team feedback and planning sessions
Resource management of supplies and materials
Print agendas for the day and organize daily class materials/ paperwork
Support class daily setup and breakdown; while mentoring Youth Staff to complete their daily opening and closing tasks
Archive class materials
Support with the culture of hospitality at Kite’s Nest, greeting guest educators as they arrive, getting them oriented to the space
Support with Final Event planning
Support with end of summer assessments

SJLA Post Summer Program (Aug 12th-16th) (In Person)

Work with team to clean and reorganize classroom space for next program cycle
Participate in end of summer reflection and evaluation

IDEAL CANDIDATE: The ideal candidate has experience as a youth educator working with BIPOC youth, experience with designing and facilitating engaging curriculum for teens and tweens, has experience as an organizer, has a knowledge and deep grasp of social justice issues/ anti-capitalism/ liberation struggles and a passion to create communal and systemic change, has knowledge of restorative and transformative justice and conflict resolution skills, has an understanding and practice of healing modalities for themselves and young people, is flexible and adaptable, inventive, and enjoys fun youth-centered environments.

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete this form. The form will ask you to upload a cover letter and resume in a PDF format. If you have any questions, contact Sam at hello@kitesnest.org

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Applications received by May 1 will be prioritized.

Kite’s Nest is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages Black, Indigenous, and people of color, people identifying as LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, formerly incarcerated people, immigrants, and people with working class backgrounds to apply.

REGEN COORDINATOR

Location: Hudson, NY
Start Date: May 1, 2023
Schedule: Part-time, see below for scheduling details
Application Deadline: Applications for this position are currently being accepted

ReGen Teens program engages and employs teenagers as environmental justice and food justice leaders in Hudson, NY.

Now entering its sixth year, our ReGen Teens program at Kite’s Nest is growing in exciting ways. This position is integral in expanding the capacity of this program. In collaboration with the Environmental Justice Program Director, the ReGen Coordinator will support with group activities and work sessions with teen staff at our garden, greenhouse, and on field trips; provide one-on-one mentorship and support to teen staff; and support the development of teen-led regenerative businesses. The ReGen Coordinator will also coordinate our community compost program and work with our River City Community Garden Manager to manage our 40-family community garden.

Responsibilities include:

General

Participate in physical and dirty outdoor work, including gardening, food-waste composting, construction, heavy lifting, site and infrastructure maintenance.

ReGen Teens Program

Support with providing transportation for youth as needed for trainings and field trips (Kite’s Nest van provided).
Support EJ Director in maintaining regular communication and coordination with teens and families about program scheduling and special events.
Support EJ Director in leading consistent work sessions with teen staff, including hands-on activities that integrate gardening, greenhouse propagation, cooking, composting, nature exploration, green business management + entrepreneurship, art creation, and community education. Prepare for and lead certain activities and sessions independently.
Support EJ Director in gathering and organizing supplies and materials needed for program implementation.
Support with youth-run enterprises, currently focused on their bike-powered smoothie business, including farmers markets and community events; work with youth staff to develop business plans and manage finances.
Occasionally work with Kite’s Nest outreach team to implement outreach strategies that include tabling at events, building relationships with schools, flyering and outreach calls.
Create social media posts about program activities; support youth in creating social media posts and marketing materials. Contribute photo documentation to shared albums.

River City Garden

Coordinate with River City Garden Manager to buy culturally relevant seeds, start seedlings, and tend plants in the greenhouse to be distributed to gardeners; coordinate with RCG Manager for gardener access to the greenhouse
Coordinate with Operations Director and community partners to generate translated signage and other communication materials
Coordinate with operations team to purchase tools and materials for gardeners and coordinate with RCG Manager to distribute materials in an equitable manner
Provide support with gardener scheduling and communications; collaborate with RCG Manager to plan registration days and community work days and communicate with gardener community about event schedules and expectations

Compost Program

Manage compost admin: respond to compost sign-up form by registering applicants, setting up invoices and automatic payments, and sharing compost drop-off guidelines
Manage compost system staff: oversee tending of compost through teen programming and teen staff work days; coordinate and oversee compost volunteers; hire and oversee compost technician position
Oversee general structure, sanitation, and communications related to the compost system; coordinate with operations team to respond to any site or systems problems and maintain standards of cleanliness and ease of access

ReRoot Site Restoration Project

Support EJ Director in coordinating and implementing ReRoot site restoration and bio/mycoremediation project on eastern parcel with Teen Staff and volunteers (already well underway)
Support EJ Director to coordinate and implement ReRoot compost system upgrade project in coordination with contractors
Coordinate additional soil testing to demonstrate soil improvement results
Contribute photo documentation of ReRoot site restoration project efforts

Ideal candidates demonstrate most or all of the following:

Experience working with teenagers, and a demonstrated ability to develop meaningful relationships of mutual respect with youth.
Experience and interest in one or more of the following: urban regenerative agriculture, environmental/food justice activism, environmental education, culinary arts, greenhouse production and management, food waste management, bioremediation, cooperative business management.
Experience managing/supervising employees and/or volunteers; an interest in the unique challenges and joys of supporting and guiding youth staff.
An understanding of the connections between environmental injustice, racial injustice, food insecurity, and generational trauma impacting communities; and a passion for supporting community-led solutions.
An ability to collaborate with a co-teacher and to work independently as needed; adaptive, curious, and able to give and receive constructive feedback.
A strong commitment to anti-oppressive values and practice.
Must be able to lift up to 50 lbs and work in an outdoor environment year-round.
Comfortable working with food waste, soil and compost

Work schedule and compensation:

This position will average 22 hours per week, with the intention of growing the position and increasing hours in 2025. Seasonal changes will create a fluctuating schedule over the course of the year, though there is flexibility depending on the applicant’s availability:

Spring (April-May): Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, Friday team meetings, plus occasional weekend work sessions.
Summer (Late June - August): 3-4 days/week, plus occasional weekend work sessions.
Fall (September - November): 2 afternoons/week, plus meetings; occasional weekend work sessions.
Winter (December - March): Greenhouse and compost management, planning, program prep, and admin. Flexible hybrid work schedule.

Pay is $25/hour, with a part-time benefit package, including paid vacation, wellness/sick days, professional development funds, wellness fund, & employer-provided 401(k) plan.

HOW TO APPLY: Please complete this form. The form will ask you to upload a cover letter and resume in a PDF format. If you have any questions, contact Sam at hello@kitesnest.org.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Applications due now.