West End House is the largest youth development agency in the Allston-Brighton community providing high-impact programs that ensure that our young people are succeeding academically, exploring and mastering the arts, developing career readiness skills and adopting healthy lifestyles. Operating since 1906, today’s West End House welcomes hundreds of youth each year who represent more than 40 different countries and 10 languages. Our commitment is to ensure Boston’s children and teens have access to opportunities to help them thrive. West End House serves young people throughout Allston-Brighton and across Boston’s neighborhoods, including Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park, Fenway, Roslindale, South Boston and East Boston.

THE OPPORTUNITY

At the West End House (WEH) our mission is at the heart of all we do. We provide high-impact programs that support youth as they achieve academic success, explore the arts, develop career readiness & leadership skills, and adopt healthy lifestyles. We are committed to advancing racial equity through our work and throughout all aspects of our organization- our youth programs, our community and family engagement, and our board and leadership.

Youth need to grow in a holistic, well-rounded manner and one of the ways in which we seek to facilitate this is through our Sports and Fitness program. By involving youth in innovative fitness activities and athletic teams, we equip them with the necessary tools to manage their physical health and well-being, while simultaneously providing channels to explore sports and fitness linked career avenues.

As the Sports and Fitness Coordinator at West End House, you will combine your expertise in Sports and Fitness with your passion for coaching youth to create and facilitate a program that engages a diverse community. You will be a leader and subject matter expert in your domain and develop a high-quality, results driven program. Additionally, you will stay abreast of major trends in the domain of Sports and Fitness and ensure program design captures and reflects the same. You will use your talents working with young people to build close-knit relationships that will help youth remain engaged. These relationships, in combination with reflections from program data, will enable you to adapt and grow the program to create the best outcomes for young people.

You will be the primary staff member in charge of sports and fitness instruction and report directly to the Senior Program Director.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Coaching and Mentoring

• Lead West End House's Sports and Fitness program; develop and facilitate key after school and summer programs to ensure youth remain physically active, including any new relevant programs that may be introduced by the West End House in the domain of Sports and Fitness

• Create and implement innovative sports and fitness activities that appeal to the diverse population of youth attending the program, including activities that improve the health of young people who do not traditionally participate in physical fitness activities

• Organize leagues and coach athletics teams for youth ages 7 to 18, across a variety of sports, including basketball and and soccer

• Act as a catalyst for change; continuously focusing on quality and improvement to ensure consistent delivery of high quality programs

• Attract and recruit youth from within West End House programs as well as the broader community

• Create opportunities to highlight achievements of participating youth, and advance dedicated members to higher levels of skill

• Maintain a system of assessment to ensure advancement of skill level

• Build long-term, trusting relationships with youth

Program Design

• Create, revise, and implement program curriculum in collaboration with Senior Program Director

• Provide opportunities to showcase and celebrate youth’s skill and development through involvement in major annual events

• Alter instructional design based on emerging trends and ensure that the key goals and objectives of the program are met

General

• Manage and provide feedback to assigned volunteers and peer leaders

• Collect & submit youth participation numbers, surveys, and other information to ensure that organizational decisions and plans are informed by relevant on-ground data

• Implement/adhere to BGCA membership and safety requirements

• Adopt responsibility for protection and care of program equipment and facility; report all issues in a timely manner to facility manager

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FOR:

There are a multitude of ways to learn, grow and excel professionally and we know that people gain skills through a variety of professional, personal, educational, and volunteer experiences. We respect this when we review applications and take a broad look at the experience of each applicant. We want to get to know you and the unique strengths you will bring to the work. With this in consideration, we are most likely to be interested in your candidacy if you can demonstrate the majority of the qualifications and experiences listed below:

• Bachelor’s degree preferred; equivalent experience considered

• 2+ years' experience facilitating sports, fitness, or recreational programs for youth; experience coaching athletic teams is a strong plus

• Subject matter expertise and knowledge of key trends in the domains of fitness, physical education games, and other athletic activities

• Proven track record of building trusting relationships with youth through empathy and robust communication skills

• Strong classroom management and program facilitation skills

• General project and people management experience is a strong plus

• Demonstrable knowledge of youth psychology is also a strong plus

WHAT WE OFFER

This is a non-exempt position with a salary range of $45,000 - $50,000. Rates of pay within this range will be commensurate with experience and based on factors such as years of experience, educational qualifications, and proficiency in a second language.

West End House provides eligible employees with access to a comprehensive benefits package, including paid time off; health insurance; dental insurance; retirement; short and long-term disability insurance; and life insurance.  West End House provides training and access to job related certifications for all employees and staff are encouraged to participate in their own professional development by identifying opportunities and sharing with their supervisor. West End House encourages and supports healthy lifestyles for all staff and provides access to our fitness center, gym, and pool as well as daily, homemade dinners (and lunch during the summer) for all interested staff.

IMPORTANT

This job description provides a general summary of the essential job functions typically assigned to individuals with the job title listed above. Employees are expected to perform duties assigned to them regardless of whether or not they are listed in the job description. Working hours are expected to align with youth program hours.

The West End House is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, height, weight, or marital status in employment or the provision of services.