Culinary Program Manager

Foodwise is a nonprofit organization dedicated to growing thriving communities through the power and joy of local food. Our vision is to inspire a world that nourishes all people, local economies, and the living earth.

Foodwise is seeking an experienced, passionate Culinary Program Manager who will oversee the implementation of all aspects of Foodwise’s new in-market California Crop of the Month educational program at Foodwise’s three weekly markets at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market and seasonal Mission Community Market. You will be joining an Education team of three others: the Director of Education, the Youth Education Manager, and the Youth Education Coordinator.

Foodwise’s current education programs include Foodwise Teens, Foodwise Kids, Foodwise Demos, and Foodwise Talks, as well as other educational initiatives as specified.

Foodwise is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in our programs and across all aspects of our organization. Foodwise education programs prioritize families with a high percentage of students who qualify for free/reduced priced meals, BIPOC students, and integrate a community-centered, anti-racist, and culturally relevant curriculum and approach to teaching.

Primary Responsibilities

Develop and implement all aspects of Foodwise’s new in-market California Crop of the Month (CCM) educational programming in collaboration with the Director of Education (90%). Foodwise’s CCM programming will consist of three major components: culinary advice booths with seasonal sampling, weekly cooking demos, and monthly CCM Festivals.

Culinary advice booth + seasonal sampling (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays): The Culinary Program Manager will be responsible for developing and implementing seasonal recipes and providing culinary advice that highlights the CCM each month at every Foodwise market (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, year round; and Thursday afternoons at Mission Community Market, March-November). Example responsibilities include:

• Research and compile nutritional and culinary information on every CCM to share at culinary booths
• Develop and test recipes to highlight each CCM every month
• Work with farmers to raise awareness of new program and to document the effect of the culinary advice booth and sampling on sales of the CCM
• Work with Communications team to create collateral and promote CCM at every market
• Consult and coordinate with the Operations team on farmer participation and tracking
• Set up and run culinary advice booth to highlight CCM at every market
• Manage and train volunteers and interns to support the culinary advice booth
• Collect and compile participant survey data
• Manage program budgets and track expenses

Weekly Saturday cooking demos: This position will work to schedule and host cooking demos with local chefs and restaurants as well as cookbook authors at the Saturday Ferry Plaza Farmers Market to highlight the CCM. Example responsibilities include:

• Coordinate with chefs, publicists, restaurants, etc. to schedule cooking demonstrations for every week at the Saturday Ferry Plaza Farmers Market
• Edit and format chef recipes to ensure they highlight the CCM
• Set up and run the cooking demos
• Manage and train volunteers and interns to support the cooking demos
• Manage program budgets and track expenses

California Crop of Month festivals: Once a month, a festival will be held at both the Mission Community Market and Ferry Plaza Farmers Market to highlight the CCM. Example responsibilities include:

• Develop and implement activities associated with the CCM festival each month in collaboration with the Education team
• Work with Communications team to determine best ways to promote each month’s festival
• Manage and train volunteers and interns to support the festivals
• Manage program budgets and track expenses

In addition to the major CCM program components, the Culinary Program Manager will work with the Education team to incorporate CCM curriculum into the Foodwise Kids and Foodwise Teens programs. They will also consult and coordinate with the Communications team on CCM educational materials and messaging, and collaborate on CCM program storytelling and marketing.

This position also ensures that Foodwise’s kitchen facilities are managed and maintained in accordance with industry and health department standards and Foodwise’s institutional protocols and schedules to ensure smooth programming out of the kitchen. Tasks include tracking inventory, ordering supplies, and scheduling deep cleaning in coordination operations team. The Culinary Program Manager will also train and supervise those assisting with culinary programming at the markets, including other Foodwise staff, culinary interns, and volunteers, using protocols designed in collaboration with the Director of Education and Operations Team.

Other Responsibilities (10%): The manager will work with Foodwise team to support additional educational and general organizational activities, as needed. Examples include:

• Support the Education team with larger events and projects such as: Foodwise Kids, Foodwise Teens, Foodwise Talks, etc.
• Support Foodwise fundraising events such as Summer Bash and Sunday Supper with educational activities.
• Participate in team racial equity work and initiatives to advance Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) framework and work plan, and actively work to advance DEIJ in education programs.
• Support Market Match and food access education in the farmers market.

Required Skills and Qualifications

• Demonstrated expertise planning and teaching culinary and nutritional educational programming for both youth and adults
• Ability to establish and maintain great working relationships with a variety of constituents such as chefs, farmers, funders, volunteers, youth, teachers, donors, and event attendees
• Demonstrated experience managing project and program budgets
• Successful track record working with and managing teams and supervising others, including staff, interns, and volunteers
• Foundational understanding of sustainable food systems, especially food access and food equity issues, with a clear sense of the Bay Area food landscape in particular
• Multi-cultural and/or multi-lingual competency and familiarity working with people from diverse backgrounds, particularly in San Francisco
• Familiarity with equity frameworks and their implementation within nonprofit settings
• Proficiency in collaborative decision making
• Excellent customer service and public speaking skills
• Enthusiastic personality and a positive, can-do attitude
• Strong writing skills and attention to detail for a variety of correspondence such as professional and emails, and other informational documents
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills and emotional intelligence
• Computer and software proficiency: Google and Microsoft Suite
• Reliable, punctual, adaptable, and able to work independently with input from supervisors

Desired Skills and Qualifications

• Language proficiency in Spanish or Chinese (Cantonese or Mandarin) is highly preferred
• Expertise in culturally inclusive culinary and nutrition curriculum development
• Familiarity with grant management, writing, and/or reporting

Job Parameters

• Position type: This position is a full-time, exempt status salaried role with an expectation of 40 hours per week, and grant-funded until June 2027.
• Schedule: The work schedule is Tuesday through Saturday, 8 hours/day. Evening obligations are every Thursday evening at the Mission Community Market, along with occasional other evening and weekend events. This position requires in-person work when running programming at the farmers market, at least three days per week, with a remote policy of up to two days a week.
• Salary: $70,000 (non-negotiable)
• Benefits: Workers’ compensation coverage, earned sick leave (1 hour earned for every 30 hours worked), paid vacation accrued at 15 days annually to start (increases by 1 day each year to cap at 20 days annually), and 13 paid holidays provided. Medical, vision, and dental care benefits are through Kaiser plan with $15 copay (employer pays 80% and employees pay 20% of monthly cost). Additional benefits include 401(k) plan with company match up to $1430 annually, pre-tax commuter benefit, $60 monthly wellness reimbursement stipend, and professional development allowance.
• Additional requirements: This position requires the latest COVID-19 vaccination.
• Reports to: Director of Education