Program Coordinator- Outreach and Education

Position Background:

The Chesapeake Bay Trust (the Trust), a non-profit grantmaking organization, seeks a Program Coordinator for our Annapolis, MD, location to play a key role in the Outreach and Education team’s award programs. This position performs a wide variety of tasks both strategic and tactical. This role reports to the Program Manager that oversees Stewardship and Capacity Building work on the Outreach and Education team. This position may be remote but requires residency within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, given the need for local travel. Preference will be given to candidates available for hybrid work (1–2 in-office days per week).

This person will be a key member of a high-energy, collaborative team of 40+ professionals who work diligently to advance the Trust’s mission while considering the Trust’s core values of learning, science and innovation, grantee focus, diversity and inclusion, fiscal responsibility, and transparency accountability. This is a full-time, salaried position (40 hours per week).

The Outreach and Education team manages several award programs and partnerships that advance environmental stewardship through behavioral science, environmental education, engagement and on the ground restoration programming, network development, organizational capacity building, and workforce development. The Program Coordinator will help specifically with the Keep Maryland Beautiful Award Program (https://cbtrust.org/grants/keep-maryland-beautiful/)

and several other programs focused on outreach and engagement throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. This will include supporting applicants as they develop project proposals; identifying new potential grant applicants and applications; overseeing proposal reviews, working with funding partners, and administering awards to nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations, governments, schools, and other applicants that are committed to stewardship actions that restore and protect local natural resources. This is an opportunity to support the outreach and engagement aspects of the Trust’s award program portfolio, focusing on the human dimensions of environmental conservation.

Established in 1985, the Chesapeake Bay Trust uses award making as a method to promote community-based participation in the restoration and protection of the natural resources of Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay region. In the past fifteen years, the Trust has doubled its grant-making five times through new revenue from a wide range of partners, with the current annual grant-making of approximately $25 million. The Trust currently allocates these award funds through 350 to 400 awards per year to entities who apply through open, competitive calls for proposals as well as programs such as the Chesapeake Conservation and Climate Corps.

Specific Responsibilities:

The Program Coordinator will play a pivotal role in driving the Trust's mission forward through the following responsibilities:

• Support administration of the Outreach and Education team’s award programs focused on increasing environmental stewardship through behavioral science, environmental education, engagement and on the ground restoration programming, network development, organizational capacity building, and workforce development.
• Support the refinement and/or development of Requests for Proposals and other program materials.
• Conduct outreach across the Chesapeake Bay watershed to encourage new and diverse applicants and provide technical assistance.
• Support applicants in developing strong proposals.
• Facilitate the analysis and review of grant applications.
• Administer awards in a wide range of sizes, including preparing award agreements and contracts, assisting awardees, reviewing status and final reports, approving payments, reviewing revisions, and more.
• Work with awardees throughout their project to discuss and overcome any obstacles; provide technical assistance; and report successes to funding partners, the public, and/or the Trust staff.
• Prepare summary reports and analysis for Technical Review Committees, funding partners, and the Trust’s Board of Trustees.
• Develop a suite of professional development activities, which could include participating in and presenting at conferences, at seminars, at symposia, and/or in publications.
• Advance recommendations received from the Trust’s external diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice advisory committee and the Trust’s internal action team.

Qualifications and Skills:

• A high level of proficiency in the Microsoft Office suite of programs, especially excel, word, and PowerPoint.
• Strategic thinking skills: ability to set priorities, balance short-term and long-term objectives.
• Exceptional project management and time-management skills, with the ability to manage and meet tight deadlines to meet milestones and deliver successful outcomes.
• Ability to work independently as well as in group settings.
• Demonstrated experience in and a track record of success in organizing and managing complex administrative tasks, tracking and synthesizing data, coordinating with multiple stakeholders, and communicating clearing – ideally in the context of environmental programs and funding.
• Experience in engaging underserved and/or historically excluded communities.
• Ability to conduct site visits to project locations (personal vehicle or access to a vehicle/transportation) and a valid driver’s license or access to transportation options required to facilitate site visit travel and travel to the office.
• Proficiency in managing both budgets and contracts.

If you have most of the qualifications and skills listed above plus a willingness to learn, you are encouraged to apply. This position provides administrative support for the full Outreach and Education team.

Salary and Benefits: $56,000 to $64,000 with an excellent benefits package and opportunities for related professional development.

Benefits include:

• Health Insurance with choice of medical plan and prescription, dental, vision, and life and disability insurance options, along with flexible spending accounts;
• 401K retirement savings program with match;
• Starting at 10 accrued vacation days, 7 accrued sick days, and personal days annually;
• Compensatory time available for overtime hours worked
• Ten paid holidays per year; and
• Individual Professional Development fund.

A successful candidate with less experience in some of the responsibilities listed above will be offered a starting salary at the lower end of this range. A successful candidate with more experience in the responsibilities listed above will be considered at a higher starting salary.

Application Instructions and Deadline:

The position will remain open until it is filled, but for best consideration apply by August 15, 2025. Please submit your resume and cover letter. Your cover letter is the most important piece of your application. In your cover letter, please address your ability, based on your skills and experience, to accomplish the specific duties of the position as outlined earlier. Please do not simply list your previous experience. Your cover letter should describe what makes you a strong candidate, specifically for this position, and why this position is a match for you.

The Trust provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, or disability in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis and have or are able to relocate to an address in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, or DC. The Trust does not participate in programs that require sponsorship for work visas.