Head of Field Education & Outdoor Learning

Teton Science Schools; Jackson (WY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Teton Science Schools is seeking a Senior Director of Field Education to provide strategic and operational leadership for the Outdoor Learning School across multiple campuses. You will ensure educational quality, participant experience, staffing, financial performance, safety, and operations align with our mission.

You will develop long term department strategy, mentor a high performing leadership team, and represent Field Education in organization-wide planning and decision making.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
• Wilderness First Responder, CPR, and AED certification, or ability to obtain within an established timeframe.
• Demonstrated senior leadership experience in outdoor education, environmental education, experiential education, nonprofit programming, education, or a related field.
• Experience leading a large or complex department across multiple programs, locations, or operating environments.
• Demonstrated success developing and mentoring directors, managers, and multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong understanding of educational program design, instructional quality, participant experience, and program evaluation.
• Experience developing and managing significant operating budgets and connecting financial decisions to program strategy.
• Demonstrated ability to build long term vision and translate strategy into effective operations.
• Strong relationship building, communication, facilitation, and decision making skills.
• Experience managing institutional partnerships and representing an organization with external stakeholders.
• Ability to navigate complexity, establish priorities, and lead through organizational change.
• Commitment to place based education, outdoor learning, and the mission of Teton Science Schools.
• Commitment to building inclusive work and learning environments and continually developing cultural competency.

Responsibilities

• Lead the vision, strategy, and long term direction of Field Education in alignment with the TSS mission and strategic plan.
• Represent Field Education in organizational leadership, planning, policy development, and decision making.
• Translate organizational priorities into clear department goals, operating plans, and measurable outcomes.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen, expand, and evolve outdoor education and place based learning programs.
• Collaborate across TSS to coordinate people, programs, finances, facilities, and shared resources.
• Participate in an on-call rotation and provide support during program emergencies or disruptions.
• Ensure Field Education programs provide high quality, mission aligned learning experiences.
• Guide the development, evaluation, and continuous improvement of curriculum, instructional practices, and participant experience.
• Establish clear expectations for educational quality, program impact, and partner satisfaction.
• Ensure programming reflects TSS operating standards, educational philosophy, and commitment to inclusive learning environments.
• Lead, mentor, and support Field Education directors and other department leaders.
• Build a collaborative leadership structure with clear roles, accountability, communication, and shared priorities.
• Develop leadership capacity through coaching, feedback, professional development, and succession planning.
• Partner with Human Resources and department leaders to strengthen recruitment, onboarding, training, retention, and employee development.
• Promote a department culture grounded in trust, service, accountability, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Provide oversight of Field Education operations across campuses and program locations.
• Ensure effective systems are in place for scheduling, logistics, transportation, equipment, enrollment, risk management, and program delivery.
• Evaluate department systems and workflows to improve consistency, efficiency, and scalability.
• Develop and manage the Field Education budget in partnership with Finance and department leaders.
• Maintain accountability for revenue, expenses, staffing models, program margins, and overall financial performance.
• Use program and financial data to guide decisions related to pricing, capacity, investment, and resource allocation.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with schools, community partners, funders, agencies, and other stakeholders.
• Evaluate existing partnerships and identify opportunities to strengthen or expand strategic relationships.
• Partner with Marketing, Communications, Development, and Registration to increase awareness, demand, enrollment, and program access.
• Identify new audiences, program models, and markets that align with the TSS mission and organizational capacity.
• Represent Teton Science Schools at appropriate community, regional, and national events.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Staff development

Outdoor education

Budgeting & financial management

Partnership building

Communication & facilitation

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Budgeting software

HRIS / employee data systems

Program scheduling tools

Job description

Teton Science Schools is seeking a Senior Director of Field Education to provide strategic and operational leadership for the Outdoor Learning School across multiple campuses. You will ensure educational quality, participant experience, staffing, financial performance, safety, and operations align with our mission.

You will develop long term department strategy, mentor a high performing leadership team, and represent Field Education in organization-wide planning and decision making.