Conscious Kitchen | Senior Program & Grants Manager

Help Transform the Future of School Food

Every school day, California serves millions of meals to more than 6 million public school students.

At Conscious Kitchen, we believe every one of those meals is an opportunity—to nourish children, strengthen local economies, support organic agriculture, and build a healthier, more resilient future.

Our North Star is bold: helping build a school food system where all 6 million California public school students have access to fresh, local, organic, scratch-cooked meals—creating a model for the nation.

Today, we partner with more than 100 California school districts serving approximately 1.8 million students. By bringing together school nutrition professionals, farmers, distributors, public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and funders, we're creating practical solutions that schools can implement, farmers can grow with, and communities can build upon.

We're looking for an entrepreneurial, collaborative, and highly organized Senior Program & Grants Manager to help lead this next chapter of growth.

This is an opportunity for someone who believes meaningful change happens when bold ideas are paired with thoughtful execution, strong relationships, and a willingness to roll up their sleeves. If you're energized by building partnerships, solving complex challenges, and helping shape the future of school food, we'd love to hear from you.

Your Impact

Working closely with the Executive Director and the Conscious Kitchen team, you'll help turn vision into action by leading statewide initiatives that strengthen school food systems across California while creating models that can inspire communities nationwide.

You will:

• Lead grant-funded initiatives from planning through implementation, evaluation, and reporting.
• Build and strengthen partnerships with school districts, farmers, distributors, public agencies, foundations, nonprofit organizations, and other key stakeholders.
• Develop practical tools, playbooks, workshops, and resources that help schools expand organic procurement, seasonal purchasing, and scratch cooking.
• Manage grants, budgets, timelines, deliverables, and reporting while supporting proposal development and fundraising efforts.
• Convene meetings, trainings, and statewide gatherings that connect partners, foster collaboration, and accelerate progress.
• Supervise interns, fellows, consultants, and project teams supporting program implementation.
• Capture, evaluate, and communicate lessons learned and program outcomes to strengthen and expand our impact.

The Person We're Looking For

You see possibility where others see complexity.

You're entrepreneurial, proactive, and resourceful. You take initiative, enjoy solving problems, and don't wait to be asked what needs to be done. You thrive in a collaborative, fast-paced environment and enjoy building relationships that bring people together around a shared purpose.

You're equally comfortable facilitating a meeting, developing a project plan, writing a grant proposal, managing multiple priorities, or rolling up your sleeves to help wherever needed. You communicate with clarity, build trust through follow-through, and take pride in delivering high-quality work.

Above all, you're motivated by meaningful food systems work and excited to help create a healthier future for California's students, farmers, schools, and communities.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and equivalent professional experience considered in food systems, agriculture, environmental studies, nutrition, public health, education, nonprofit management, or a related field.
• 3–5 years of professional experience managing complex programs, grants, partnerships, or multi-stakeholder initiatives.
• Excellent project management, organizational, and facilitation skills.
• Exceptional writing and communication skills, including grant writing and reporting.
• Experience managing budgets, timelines, deliverables, and multiple concurrent priorities.
• Demonstrated success building collaborative relationships with diverse partners.
• Passion for healthy food, sustainable agriculture, public education, and building healthier, more resilient communities.
• Proficiency with Google Workspace and Microsoft Office.
• The job requires travel throughout California. Personal car required.

Why Join Conscious Kitchen?

This is more than a job. It's an opportunity to help shape one of the country's most innovative school food initiatives.

You'll work alongside visionary school nutrition professionals, organic farmers, public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and philanthropic partners to build programs that can ultimately benefit all 6 million California public school students while creating a model that can inspire communities across the nation.

You'll join a passionate, entrepreneurial team that believes the best solutions are built together—through collaboration, curiosity, and a shared commitment to improving the health of people and the planet.

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary: $75,000–$90,000 DOE
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Paid vacation, holidays, and PTO
• Flexible hybrid work environment
• Professional development opportunities
• A collaborative, mission-driven team committed to making meaningful change

We believe every student deserves access to healthy, delicious food—and that by working together, we can help build a school food system that nourishes people, communities, and the planet.

Conscious Kitchen, a program of Turning Green, is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive.

Please send a cover letter and resume to info@consciouskitchen.org with the subject line Senior Program & Grants Manager.

Medical, dental, and vision coverage

Paid vacation, holidays, and PTO

Flexible hybrid work environment

Professional development opportunities

Spanish speaking a plus