Nature School - Animal Care Director
Under minimal supervision, the Animal Care Director provides for animal care coordination, customer service and clerical support for the Chico Creek Nature Center. This includes greeting visitors, taking program registrations and recruiting, training, and supervising animal care volunteers, and assisting with animal care daily. Animal Care duties are required 7 days of the week and will be shared with the Animal Care Assistant. This includes placing online orders, running errands in town, taking animals for the occasional vet visit, maintaining feeding and ordering schedules, cleaning equipment and enclosures, and feeding.
Required: Applicant must be at least 18 years of age and possess the equivalent of at least two years, full-time, paid or volunteer, hands-on experience caring for restricted species at a facility engaged in native species exhibiting. Applicant must have at least one year full-time hands-on professional experience working with restricted native species. Applicant must be experienced and comfortable handling animals such as snakes, lizards, geckos, frogs, turtles, tortoises, and rabbits.
This is a part-time, non-exempt, hourly position with varying shifts and 20-24 hours per week as assigned.
Application Deadline: Monday, June 6, 2022.
Interviews will be scheduled as qualified applicants apply.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- Ability to communicate clearly and professionally with staff and the public.
- Must possess a desire to provide excellent customer service which includes consistent maintenance of a positive, open, and objective attitude towards work and others.
- Ability to utilize Microsoft Outlook, Office, Word, Excel, Publisher, and the G Suite as required to complete work.
- Ability to multi-task in a manner required to complete work objectives.
- Ability to learn and successfully operate software programs for registrations, reservations, and calendar programs.
- Knowledge of Bidwell Park and science in general, or interest and ability to learn.
- Ability to learn about, recall, describe, and promote Nature Center programs.
- Ability to understand and successfully carry out oral and written instructions.
- Ability to read and write at a level necessary for acceptable job performance.
- Experience working with children in a professional setting preferred.
- Experience working with animals, ranging from insects to raptors and including reptiles and amphibians in a professional setting preferred.
- Ability to work the hours the center requires. Hours are extended during summer programs with weekend work required.
- Ability to pass a background check via a Department of Justice live scan.
- Possess a valid California Driver’s License
- Be insurable on the District’s vehicle liability policy
PHYSICAL AND MENTAL REQUIREMENTS
- Mobility: frequent use of keyboard; frequent standing and sitting for long periods of time; occasional bending or squatting.
- Lifting: frequent lifting up to 25 pounds; occasionally up to 50 pounds.
- Vision: constant use of overall vision; frequent reading and close-up work; occasional color and depth vision.
- Dexterity: frequent repetitive motion; frequent writing; frequent grasping, holding, and reaching.
- Hearing/Talking: frequent hearing and talking, in person and on the phone with significant background noise.
- Emotional/Psychological: frequent decision making and concentration; frequent public and/or coworker contact, occasional working alone.
Essential Functions:
- Provide quality customer service and professionalism over the phone, in person, and via email correspondence; have positive communication and interaction with program participants, co-workers, volunteers, and the public, and maintain a professional demeanor.
- Display living animals, including snakes, other reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and birds for the public to touch. This display will also include physical handling of the animals.
- Recruit, screen, process, train schedule and support animal care volunteers and perform animal care as needed. This will include tasks that range from feeding animals live insects and frozen mice to cleaning all tanks and enclosures if volunteers are not available to do so.
- Maintain the Nature Playroom; clean up after visitors; and print coloring sheets.
- Perform Meet Our Animal presentations and assist with Field Trips.
- Perform a variety of clerical support related to the work unit.
- Act as a receptionist receiving and screening visitors as well as answering phones and taking messages.
- Provide directions and basic information for Bidwell Park as well as information regarding the Nature Center activities and functions.
- Word process correspondence, reports, forms, and specialized documents assigned from drafts, notes, or brief instructions, checking for accuracy and completeness.
- Enter, retrieve, and process data, and generate reports using computer systems and following established formats and procedures.
- Gather information from individuals or reference sources to complete and process routine forms, records, and applications, and contact individuals to obtain additional information.
- Open and close facility for activities/events; prepare facilities for event use including set-up and take down of chairs, tables, and equipment; ensure premises are vacated, alarms activated, and all doors secured/locked.
- Foster and maintain positive and collaborative relationships with co-workers, vendors, and the public at large.
- Will drive a vehicle to conduct CARD business.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
WORKING CONDITIONS
Work is performed in a typical temperature-controlled Nature Center environment at a mostly standing post. The noise level is usually moderate to occasionally loud. Frequent interaction with animals. Position is subject to visitor interactions on the phone and in person. Evening and weekend work are required particularly during summer programming.
CARD is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected Veteran status.
If candidate is given a conditional job offer, they must pass a fingerprint background check (Live Scan). If Live Scan is passed, the employee will be required to provide original documents for physical review within 3 days from date of hire, satisfying the Form I-9 requirements. Copies cannot be accepted. Examples of original documents include a driver's license, ID card, unexpired US Passport, social security card, birth certificate.