Lead Garden & Horticulture Educator (NYC-ONLY, ALL BOROUGHS)

Independent Service Provider: NYC School Programs

Foodstream LEARN provides hands-on food education to thousands of New York City students each year. We work across grade levels and with students of varied abilities, helping young people explore the connections between food, plants, health, sustainability and community.

Foodstream Learn is seeking experienced horticulture educators for defined school-garden and growing-program assignments across New York City.

The Assignments

Assignments may include garden-based learning, planting, crop care, harvesting, composting, pollinators, soil health, food systems and environmental stewardship. Each opportunity is offered separately through a Statement of Work confirming the school, program dates, intended outcomes, deliverables and engagement fee. Independent providers may accept or decline each assignment. No minimum number of assignments or continuing schedule is guaranteed, and providers remain free to work with other organizations.

Assignment deliverables may include

• Preparing for and delivering the sessions described in the assignment SOW.
• Assessing the garden or growing space relevant to the accepted assignment.
• Planning age-appropriate, seasonal learning experiences aligned with the agreed program objectives.
• Transporting assigned plants, soil, tools and program materials.
• Adapting activities for weather, site conditions, student readiness and accessibility needs.
• Leading safe, organized setup, instruction and pack-down.
• Coordinating agreed site and scheduling logistics with the designated Foodstream contact.
• Providing the attendance, garden-status and completion documentation specified in the SOW.
• Complying with applicable school, tool-safety and emergency requirements.

Provider Qualifications

Foodstream establishes the program objectives and required deliverables. The provider exercises professional horticultural and instructional judgment in delivering the agreed experience. School personnel retain responsibility for student supervision and behavior management.

We are looking for established professionals who can demonstrate:

• Significant practical experience in horticulture, gardening, urban agriculture, environmental education or a closely related field.
• Experience teaching or facilitating children and young people.
• Strong knowledge of seasonal planting, crop care, soil health and safe garden practices.
• The ability to assess changing site and weather conditions and adapt appropriately.
• Strong group-facilitation and instructional skills.
• Experience adapting learning for different ages, abilities and access needs.
• Excellent reliability, organization and professional communication.
• Regular access to a reliable vehicle suitable for transporting plants, soil, tools and program materials.
• A college degree is not required. Relevant professional experience, training and credentials will be considered equally.
• Experience supporting multilingual learners, neurodivergent students and students receiving special-education services is highly valued. 
• Relevant horticulture, Master Gardener, urban-agriculture, environmental-education, food-safety and CPR/First Aid credentials are also welcome.

Engagement Fees

• Program-day engagement fees are $120-200 per program day, depending on the assignment scope, preparation, site assessment, session schedule, transportation responsibilities, experience and relevant credentials.
• The applicable fee, deliverables and any specifically approved extraordinary material or transportation expense will be agreed before an assignment is accepted and recorded in its SOW.

Applying

Please submit your résumé and answer the application questions. We are particularly interested in educators who combine genuine horticultural knowledge with warmth, adaptability and a belief that children learn best by doing.