School & Group Reservations Coordinator

Chabot Space & Science Center; Oakland, Northern (CA, KY); On-site; USD 34,000 - 37,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Job summary

Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland seeks a School & Group Reservations Coordinator to manage field trips, group visits, and overnight programs from inquiry to visit day. You will blend sales, relationship-building, and logistics to guide schools and youth groups to the best visit experience.

You’ll maintain CRM and reservations systems, coordinate scheduling with education staff, handle contracts and payments, and foster repeat business through proactive outreach.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of two years of experience in sales, customer success, reservations, admissions, hospitality, education, museum operations, or a related field.
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain strong customer relationships.
• Outstanding customer service, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience with CRM, reservations, ticketing, or database management systems.
• Strong working knowledge with Microsoft Office Suite, including Excel and Sharepoint.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary sales contact for field trips, group visits, and overnight programs.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with teachers, school administrators, youth organizations, homeschool groups, community partners, and repeat clients.
• Conduct consultative sales conversations to identify client needs and recommend appropriate educational and group experiences.
• Proactively grow attendance through outreach, follow-up, and relationship management.
• Maintain regular communication with group coordinators before and after their visit to encourage repeat business and referrals.
• Represent Chabot with professionalism and exceptional customer service through phone, email, and in-person interactions.
• Understands all upsell opportunities and stays familiar with rentals offerings, team-building experiences, merchandise, and other programs across the Center, in order to guide groups toward the most appropriate and valuable visitation experience.
• Understands contract and policy terms at an expert level, including how they intersect across different types of reservations, to provide seamless customer service and problem-solving.

Skills

Customer relationships

Communication

Organizational skills

Problem-solving

Multitasking

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

CRM systems

Reservations systems

Ticketing systems

Microsoft Excel

SharePoint

Job description

Chabot Space & Science Center unlocks the beauty and power of science for Oakland, the East Bay, and beyond. Perched on 14 acres in the redwoods above the city, Chabot is home to immersive exhibits, a state-of-the-art planetarium, the official NASA Ames Visitor Center, and the largest free public observatory in the Western United States.

Position Summary:

The School & Group Reservations Coordinator is the first touchpoint for every teacher, group leader, and camp director bringing their group to Chabot. This person owns field trips, group visits, and overnight programs from the first inquiry through the day of the visit, combining sales, relationship-building, and logistics into one seamless experience. You’ll know Chabot’s full range of offerings, from rentals to the Oakland Space Academy to team-building experiences, so you can guide each group to the right fit and handle their needs in one conversation rather than passing them along. Building lasting relationships with schools and community groups, and bringing them back year after year, is core to the role.

• Serve as the primary sales contact for field trips, group visits, and overnight programs.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with teachers, school administrators, youth organizations, homeschool groups, community partners, and repeat clients.
• Conduct consultative sales conversations to identify client needs and recommend appropriate educational and group experiences.
• Proactively grow attendance through outreach, follow-up, and relationship management.
• Maintain regular communication with group coordinators before and after their visit to encourage repeat business and referrals.
• Represent Chabot with professionalism and exceptional customer service through phone, email, and in-person interactions.
• Understands all upsell opportunities and stays familiar with rentals offerings, team-building experiences, merchandise, and other programs across the Center, in order to guide groups toward the most appropriate and valuable visitation experience.
• Understands contract and policy terms at an expert level, including how they intersect across different types of reservations, to provide seamless customer service and problem-solving.

Reservations & Program Coordination:

• Coordinate and book field trips, group visits, overnight programs, workshops, and other educational experiences.
• Guide clients through pricing, scheduling, payment requirements, program options, and visit logistics.
• Manage reservation calendars and coordinate classroom spaces, planetarium schedules, lunch areas, observatory access, and other campus
• Collaborate with Education staff to schedule instructors and ensure appropriate staffing for programs.
• Communicate schedules and logistical details across internal departments to ensure successful program delivery.
• Serves as the primary source of policy and operational guidance for Visitor Services staff regarding group and school reservations, ensuring groups can be welcomed and supported without a second touchpoint.
• Maintains a daily floor presence for group and school visit check-ins alongside Visitor Services, and holds regular desk side availability on the floor to assist with reservations questions and support during daily visits.
• Ensures the CRM and website reservation systems are kept current and user friendly, enabling visitors to make reservations independently where possible, and provides timely, expert responses for escalated or nuanced reservation questions.

Customer Experience & Administration:

• Prepare confirmations, contracts, invoices, purchase orders, receipts, and visit schedules.
• Track deposits, payments, outstanding balances, and customer communications within CRM and reservation systems.
• Resolve scheduling conflicts and customer concerns with professionalism and a solutions-oriented approach.
• Maintain accurate records, reports, and booking data to support revenue goals and program planning.
• Collect customer feedback and recommend improvements to enhance the guest experience.
• Quickly process a guest transaction at the time of inquiry or on the floor, minimizing delays and additional touchpoints for the client.
• Performs other duties as assigned

Cross Training

Chabot cross-trains staff across key operational functions to ensure appropriate staffing, visitor support, safety, and a positive guest experience. Employees may be trained to assist with front desk and reception, planetarium operations, floor resets, visitor greeting and wayfinding, field trips, crowd management, café functions, and traffic assistance as needed.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of two years of experience in sales, customer success, reservations, admissions, hospitality, education, museum operations, or a related field.
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain strong customer relationships.
• Outstanding customer service, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience with CRM, reservations, ticketing, or database management systems.
• Strong working knowledge with Microsoft Office Suite, including Excel and Sharepoint.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a museum, science center, nonprofit, zoo, aquarium, or other cultural institution.
• Experience working with schools, teachers, educational organizations, or youth-serving organizations.
• Knowledge of K–12 education, NGSS Standards, school districts, and informal learning environments.
• Familiarity with school purchase order processes and educational funding.
• Passion for STEM education and inspiring lifelong learning.

Must be committed to working in a diverse workforce with dignity and respect, appreciating unique backgrounds and experiences, and fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment for everyone.

Physical Requirements

The physical requirements listed below are characteristic of those that must be met to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Ability to sit, stand, and walk for extended periods of time.
• Ability to lift 25 pounds.
• Ability to work indoors in environmentally controlled conditions, or outdoors in seasonal temperatures.
• Ability to work in a sometimes loud and active environment for an extended period.
• Ability to work in crowded environments.

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible position. The pay range is $24.50–$26.50 per hour, depending on experience and qualifications. Full-time employees are eligible for Chabot’s benefits package.

CHABOT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Chabot is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our employees are people with differing strengths, experiences, and backgrounds who share a passion for bringing science to the full range of our community – sparking excitement about a universe of possibilities beyond our planet. Diversity not only includes race and gender identity but also age, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, religion, and many other parts of one’s identity. All our employees’ points of view are key to our success, and inclusion is everyone’s responsibility.