Craigardan is a nonprofit arts organization and educational working farm that leverages collective creativity for social good. We bring people together for place-based and interdisciplinary learning, providing creative residencies, courses, and events that span diverse artistic and knowledge disciplines in order to foster curiosity, inquiry, and collaboration.
Craigardan supports ceramic, literary, visual, and performance artists, as well as farmers, chefs, activists, scholars, and researchers from the Adirondack region and around the world. We cultivate a dynamic that amplifies each individual’s work and activates collective creativity within the community. We believe that fostering the interaction between artists and the local public is as important as providing sheltered time to artists to further their creative practices.
As an organization deeply rooted in this region’s unique history, Craigardan exists at the nexus of processes (re)making this region’s present and future: environmental conservation, the resurgence of small farms, rural economic revitalization, and cultural/social activism.
By developing interdependent connections within our local Adirondack community, we nurture a deep sense of place through people, culture, food, stories, and the exchange of ideas and skills. With a built-in focus on equitable exchange across a wide range of disciplines, Craigardan offers an experience that ties the creative process to larger contexts. This experience leads to new questions and new initiatives; and it generates positive social change through collective creativity.
Craigardan's mission is to encourage the human imagination to interpret the world with philosophical, ecological, and artistic perspective.
This is an on-site position at our campus in the Adirondack State Park of New York.
Elizabethtown, NY
United States
ELIGIBILITY
Required Education and Experience:
- Bachelors Degree
- At least 2 years of related experience
- Nonprofit experience a plus but not required
Applicants must have a strong affinity for Craigardan’s mission and work, live in or be willing to relocate to the Adirondacks, and thrive in a place-based environment — this position is not a remote or work-from-home position.
COMPENSATION
This position provides training and offers significant room for growth for the right candidate
Starting salary $45,000 - $50,000 commensurate with experience
The employment package includes:
- 30 paid holiday, personal, and sick days per year
- Optional health, vision, and dental insurance with employer contributions
- Eligibility for enrollment in Craigardan’s SIMPLE IRA retirement plan with 3% employer matching
- Staff shares of farm food produced at Craigardan and 15% off in the Farm Store
- Free access to programs and educational classes
- Continuing education, training, and professional development support
This position requires working occasional evenings, weekends, and some holidays that coincide with scheduled programs. This job description covers key responsibilities but does not outline all duties.
Craigardan is an equal opportunity employer. We highly encourage applications from women, people of color, and people who identify as LGBTQIA+
Apply online at craigardan.org/employment. Find the position description and apply button and upload a cover letter, resume, and three references.
THE POSITION
As an integral member of Craigardan’s team, the Program Manager must work closely with staff in all areas of the organization. With the direction and collaboration of the Executive Director, the PM’s work will fall primarily within two key areas:
Program Management
- Manage our year-round Artist-In-Residence program (AIR) which supports artists and scholars, from around the world. This includes:
- overseeing the outreach, application, and selection process;
- maintaining careful records and communications with applicants and accepted artists;
- facilitating the onboarding and orientation processes; and
- providing radical hospitality to artists-in-residence (AIRs)
- Manage our Resident Internship program (RI) which includes all of the above for AIRs, plus working with staff and partners to create experiential learning opportunities on- and off-campus.
- Coordinate and manage public courses in collaboration with teaching fellows and guest instructors.
- Coordinate and manage multi-day workshops both on and off-campus, including our international retreats.
- Assist our Farm Manager and Food Access Program Manager in designing and administering our community farm programs.
- Coordinate and manage the summer Applebarn lecture series in collaboration with AIRs, as well as visiting and local speakers.
- Organize and execute Craigardan’s annual journal publication, The Gardan.
- Support relationships with local and regional nonprofits, educators, and institutions to design and deliver collaborative opportunities and events.
- Assist staff with the planning and execution of events, dinners, and other community engagement events and fundraisers.
- Manage program work flow including marketing, administration, enrollment, and execution in collaboration with fellow staff.
- Manage program spaces including set-up, take-down, and organizing; as well as studio and housing turnover in collaboration with housekeeping staff.
- Assist the team with campus, property, and farm care as needed.
Program Communications + Advertising
- Take the lead and collaborate with staff on advertising for public programs - including outreach, press releases, email blasts, digital ads, and social media.
- Actively seek out new locations to post public programs and new ways to creatively advertise to the regional community.
- Research new ways to advertise the residency and internship programs, keep current listings up-to-date, and conduct strategic and creative outreach to expand program reach nationally and internationally (university partnerships, conferences, etc.).
- Help manage components of Craigardan’s website including program listings, as well as our application platform and online registration using Tally, Squarespace, and SquareUp.
- Develop, publish, and distribute our annual program guide in print and digital formats.
- Help develop brochures/booklets for specific events such as the annual Summer Firing Celebration and international workshops.
- Share responsibility for weekly social media posts and creatively promote programs and on-campus happenings.
- Capture moments and take (non-professional) photos during events and programs to share with our artists and audiences.
WHAT YOU DO
You have acquired the life experience and hard skills for this position and you have a strong desire, through our collective work, to creatively explore, address, and support:
- Visual arts, fine craft, literature, scholarly research, music, and the performing arts
- Environmental conservation, ecological thinking, and climate change action
- Food justice, sustainable agriculture, and the culinary arts
- Place-based thinking, the Adirondacks, Indigenous culture and history
- Systems thinking and social change
You are highly capable, curious, and positive; and you are comfortable in your ability to:
- Lead but also listen; ask questions; give and take direction
- Be dependable, observant, and adaptable
- Communicate exceptionally well both verbally and in writing without the use of AI
- Work alone or in a team, and often spending hours at a time behind a computer
- Think and act quickly and efficiently, without missing details
- Manage spreadsheets and documents, databases, and project timelines in a clean and organized way.
- Keep information up-to-date in real time, including our shared calendar system
- Follow and improve systems to collaborate and work efficiently with others
- Manage multiple projects or programs simultaneously and meet all deadlines
- Plan ahead, be proactive, and organize steps to achieve outcomes
- Offer genuine, inclusive hospitality to all of our program participants
- Continue to learn and grow; and set and achieve professional goals