Growing Chefs! Ontario: We’re hiring!

Growing Chefs! Ontario is Hiring a Summer Garden Assistant

Job Title: Summer Garden Assistant

# of Positions Available:1

Location: London, Ontario

Supervisor: Ilana Guslits, Garden Programs Coordinator

# of Hours/​wk: Full-time hours (40 hrs/​week) are anticipated

Hourly rate: $18.85/hr

Work Hours: Generally 8 – 4 or 9 – 5

Work Days: Mostly weekday shifts, occasional weekend/​evening hours

Start Date: May 30^th, 2024

End Date: End of August 2024

Eligibility Criteria (this position is contingent upon funding by the Government of Canada’s Canada Summer Job Program):

-Between 15 and 30 years of age (inclusive) at the start of employment;
-Is a Canadian Citizen, permanent resident, or person on whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and;
-Legally entitled to work according to the relevant provincial / territorial legislation and regulations.

Job Description:

Growing Chefs! Ontario is a registered charity based in London, Ontario that unites chefs, growers, educators and community members in children’s food education projects. Our mission is to change the way children, youth, families and the greater community learn about and develop healthy relationships with food. We offer a variety of growing and cooking programming to get kids and communities excited about healthy, wholesome food.

At our Growing Chefs! HQ, we have several beautiful learning gardens, and 2 hoop houses at our teaching facility at The Grove at Western Fair District. We also share multiple garden sites and food forests with community partners at the Western Fair District. We utilize all of these growing spaces to provide hands-on education opportunities to children, youth, and adults on how our food systems work. We harvest produce from these growing spaces to be delivered directly to families in need. We also facilitate garden programming off-site for community partners and in-school programming.

We are very excited to be expanding our garden programming this summer, and we are looking for an enthusiastic person with a willingness to learn new skills to join our Education Team. The Summer Garden Assistant position is a full-time 3 month position funded in-part by the Canada Summer Jobs program (contingent upon funding).

Roles and Responsibilities:

-Assisting in the maintenance of hoop-houses and outdoor garden spaces including watering, weeding, and planting.
-Facilitating community engagement opportunities including workshops, field trips and working with volunteers
-Assisting as needed in support of our Know Your Roots summer camp and other hands-on programming
-Assisting with creation of educational content and resources for social media and our website
-Presenting new ideas about crop planning, pest control management, and activities for community programming

This position is ideal for an individual who is passionate about bringing agricultural education to those who don’t often have the opportunity to engage in the production stages of our food system when living in urban communities

Required Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience:

-Strong interest in learning more about agriculture, landscaping, food systems or working with children, youth and families
-Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and adapt quickly
-Ability to learn new skills and retain new information
-Ability to work in both a team and independently with minimal supervision
-Excellent verbal and written communication
-Computer literacy

Preferred Qualifications:

-Education or hands on experience in agriculture, landscaping and or gardening
-Experience working with children and youth
-Experience working in the agriculture or food industry
-Experience facilitating programs and speaking publicly
-Proficiency with Google Suite and creating content for social media
-Knowledge of health and safety regulations
-Knowledge of food safety
-Available to work some evenings and weekends
-First aid and CPR

Physical Ability/​PPE Requirements:

Ability to stand for long periods of time
Ability to push, pull, or carry heavy objects
Ability to bend, stretch, twist or reach
Ability to use a variety of agricultural hand tools and implements
Ability to follow public health regulations such as masking, physical distancing and sanitization

Accommodations will be provided upon request. Please let us know if there are any accessibility needs throughout the hiring process

What We Offer You:

-Work with significant, meaningful impact on our organization and community
-Opportunities to grow your own understanding of healthy food systems
-Opportunity to work in a growing, fast paced non-profit environment
-Dynamic workplace with plenty of job variety
-Good food! Good people!

How to Apply:

If you are interested in applying for this position, please submit a resume and cover letter to Ilana Guslits at ilana@​growingchefsontario.​ca by end of day, April 11^th. Please ensure that you fully meet the eligibility criteria before applying. Please contact us if there are any questions regarding your eligibility or the job details. Those chosen for an interview will be contacted via email. Interviews will be scheduled throughout the hiring process, so please submit your application as early as possible.

Please note:

Growing Chefs! Ontario is committed to diversity and inclusion. Preference will be given to applicants who voluntarily self-identify as black or other racialized youth, indigenous youth or youth who are early leavers of high school, not in employment, education or training.