Gleaning Coordinator Summer Position - Ages 17+

Gleaning Coordinator: June 1st – August 15th

Weekdays 9 am to 5 pm with some flexibility & remote service hour opportunities.
Weekends and evenings are required for gleaning initiatives but we try to schedule as many as possible during business hours.

A quarter-time member agrees to serve a minimum of 450 hours throughout their service term. The member agrees to serve a minimum of 20-40 hours per week throughout their term. Regular service hours are Monday through Friday, from 7 AM to 5 PM. Monday Volunteer Events from 4-6 pm is required. Some evenings and weekends are required to support events and volunteer groups if they cannot be scheduled during business hours. There is some flexibility with morning start times ranging from 6-9am. Fridays are half days unless there is an event. If weekend events occur they are typically in the morning and 1-3 hours. High school students who will turn 17 by June 1 are welcome to apply.

Position Summary: This highly interactive and hands-on position will coordinate the gleaning of free, fresh produce from local farms and private donors. The Coordinator will lead volunteers to harvest local food and deliver it to partners serving food insecure individuals. The Coordinator is
responsible for relationship building and outreach with local farms, volunteers, and recipient agencies. The fresh produce gleaned is a vital additional resource for fighting food insecurity across Iowa. The gleaning coordinator will also assist in washing and packaging veg and distribution.

Gleaning Coordinator Responsibilities:

• Organize and schedule volunteers to glean produce, including scheduling of local youth volunteers.
• Deliver educational components and safety demonstrations to volunteers, including all youth gleaning initiatives.
• Lead gleaning trips to farms/gardens – educate about gleaning and farming, oversee and coordinate the harvest
• Track and records what is harvested and donated.
• Provide data to the gleaning network via the program development coordinator
• Become GAP Food Safety trained
• Oversee gleaned produce, weighing, logging, processing, and packing
• Collects materials for each glean keeps and maintains tools and gloves.
• Participate in outreach activities to heighten awareness of local gleaning initiatives and recruit volunteers.
• Maintain communication with the gleaning network and state-level program development coordinator to access resources and provide feedback.
• Distribution: Serve as a liaison between local hunger relief agencies and Feed Iowa First.
• Collaborate with recipient partners (local churches, schools, community, and civic organizations) to gauge produce needs and delivery windows.
• Distribution: Assist staff with produce distribution to pantries and community members on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons

Partner Relationships Responsibilities:

• Builds relationships and a network of long-term donors that are interested and willing to have volunteers come and glean their produce.
• Serve as a liaison between local hunger relief agencies and growers.
• Collaborate with recipient partners to gauge produce needs and delivery windows
• Facilitate deliveries of harvested food and complete pickups/deliveries as needed

Volunteer Coordination:

• Organize and schedule volunteers to glean produce
• Train and lead groups of volunteers in proper harvest procedure, food cleaning, and tools for harvest

Communication

• Participate in outreach activities to heighten awareness of local gleaning initiatives and recruit volunteers and farm partners.
• Maintain communication with the gleaning network and state-level program development coordinator to access resources and provide feedback.

Typical challenges this position will face:

• Frequent interruptions, especially during hours with the heaviest volunteer activity.
• Last-minute volunteer scheduling conflicts
• Making sound, quick decisions based upon available information without oversight.
• Manual labor in heat and rain

Service Environment:

• The service environment for the gleaning coordinator is primarily in the field, leading and harvesting with volunteer gleaners.
• Work conditions include summer heat, rain, and an unairconditioned office.
• Office hours for coordination and planning are required.
• Must have a valid license. Will need to drive vehicles to pick up or deliver donations on occasion (there is funding to cover milage).
• Moderate physical demands regularly lift 24-50llbs.
• Familiar with Office, use of email daily, ability to talk on the phone

Qualifications

• Certify that they have or will obtain the diploma/GED to be in accordance with the PD manual requirements
• 17 years or older at the start of service (no upper age limit, high school students can apply if 17 by the start of service)
• Must have transportation to and from work
• Pass a national service criminal history check
• Hold one of the following citizenship statuses: US citizen, US national, or Lawful Permanent Resident

Benefits:

• Living allowance of $4,235
• Education award of $1678.57 upon completion of 450 hours of service
• Receive training in:
• AmeriCorps 4-H Orientation
• Host Site Orientation
• Farm and Food Transportation Safety
• Volunteer Development and Management
• Develop community partners and strong professional network
• Student loan forbearance while serving
• Leadership experience, skill development, and commitment to your local community

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: From $4,235.00 per year

Benefits:

• Health insurance
• Tuition reimbursement

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

COVID-19 considerations:
We follow local health recommendations. At this time masks are not required.

Education:

• High school or equivalent (Preferred)

License/Certification:

• Driver's License (Preferred)

Work Location: One location