The Alabama Coastal Foundation is looking to fill a new outreach coordinator position while also lining up volunteers for its annual Water Festivals in Mobile and Baldwin counties, events that give hundreds of local fourth-graders hands-on lessons in watershed science.
The coastal nonprofit’s new hire will take on both external affairs and volunteer management, overseeing recruitment, engagement and deployment of the organization’s volunteer base. The foundation is looking for a candidate with a bachelor’s degree and at least five years of experience organizing volunteers, maintaining websites and managing social media accounts. A full job description outlining additional requirements is available through the foundation.
Interested applicants are asked to send a cover letter, resume and contact information for three professional references to the foundation’s executive director, Mark Berte, ahead of the application deadline.
While the hiring search continues, the foundation is also recruiting volunteers for its upcoming Water Festivals, a longstanding educational program that brings local elementary students out for a day of interactive learning about coastal ecosystems. Fourth-graders from around the region rotate through stations where they build model watersheds and examine water pollutants and filtration processes firsthand.
The Mobile County festival is scheduled to run from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Bishop State Community College on North Broad Street in Mobile. A day later, the Baldwin County festival will be held at the Robertsdale Coliseum on Fairgrounds Road, also running from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Alabama Coastal Foundation relies heavily on community volunteers to staff the festival stations, guide student groups between activities and help set up and break down the events. Organizers say the festivals have become an annual rite of spring for many South Alabama elementary schools, giving students in Mobile and Baldwin counties an early introduction to the coastal and estuarine systems that shape the region’s economy and environment.
The foundation, which has long focused on coastal restoration, water quality and environmental education along Mobile Bay and the surrounding watershed, said both the staffing search and the volunteer recruitment reflect its continued push to expand community engagement heading into the spring programming season. Residents interested in volunteering for either county’s festival, or in applying for the outreach coordinator role, are encouraged to reach out directly to the foundation for registration details and job requirements.