Public Programs Educator

The North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island is seeking a dynamic, efficient, and enthusiastic individual to join our team as a Public Programs Educator.  The Public Programs Educator will be responsible for developing, presenting, coordinating, and evaluating in-house educational programs for the public and aquarium visitors, school groups, and special interest groups on marine science topics, multiple times daily. Also expected to assist as needed in touch pool coordination and coverage, training, and interpretation. This position will coordinate public program scheduling, including special event programming, and will work with other education team members to develop, review, implement, coordinate, and evaluate programs based on current program content and learning standards.  

 Key Responsibilities:

• Preparing and giving public programs using live animals; designing, coordinating, and evaluating programs and special events for the public
• Preparing, presenting, and evaluating age-appropriate curriculum specific to school programs; facilitating public talks using biofacts and live animals
• Serving as a resource for staff, teachers, and community members; evaluating and analyzing education programs and content for effectiveness
• Training, supervising, and evaluating interns, volunteers, and seasonal education staff
• Touch pool coordination and coverage
• Interpretation  
• This position works cooperatively with other departments to achieve the overall mission of the Aquarium 
• Experience with project budgeting
• Experience with inventory and administrative duties

The North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island is located in Manteo, NC, nine miles from the Atlantic coastline in Nags Head. The 61,000 square-foot facility is sited on 16 acres overlooking the Croatan Sound and houses over 2,200 animals. More than 280,000 guests visit the aquarium each year to see a large array of sharks, learn about sea turtle conservation, participate in a variety of programs, enjoy the beauty of the area, and learn why North Carolina's waterways are so special.

The mission of the North Carolina Aquariums is to inspire appreciation and conservation of North Carolina's aquatic environments. This mission is achieved by attracting, retaining, and developing a world class team of professionals; providing visitors with outstanding exhibits, experiences, and customer service; practicing sustainability, internal customer service and fiscal responsibility; and working to save and restore aquatic species and habitats.

The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) takes care of the things that people love about North Carolina, literally from A to Z. The Arts to the Zoo, and so much else – parks, aquariums, historic sites, archaeology, African American Heritage Commission, science and history museums, the state Symphony, Library and Archives, historic preservation, land and water stewardship, and more. These places, and the ideas they represent, create a shared identity in North Carolina. They provide common ground. Everyone is welcome. The Department’s vision is to be the leader in using the state's natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational, and economic future of North Carolina. Our goal is to promote equity and inclusion among our employees and our programming to reflect and celebrate our state's diverse population, culture, and history. We encourage you to apply to become a part of our team.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities / Competencies

Qualified candidates must have or be able to:

• Experience in developing, managing, and presenting effective and engaging public programs in an informal setting in a zoo, aquarium, park, nature center, museum, or similar setting.
• Experience presenting live animals and responding to questions from large audiences.
• Experience managing budgets, inventory, and administrative duties.
• Occasional travel is required for Aquarium meetings.
• Weekend, evening, and holiday work required.
• Must have a valid NC driver's license or the ability to obtain one within 30 days of hire.

Management Preferences:

• Previous animal handling/animal care/animal welfare experience
• Dive Certification and understanding of aquarium dive processes and aquarium dive show presentations
• CPR/First Aid Certified
• Previous experience with volunteers who oversee touch-pool public operations

Experience Required

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements Bachelor's degree in Art History, Biology, Botany, Conservation, Education, History or Zoology from an appropriately accredited institution and two years of museum or related work; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.