Inspire the Next Generation of Desert Stewards at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum! Join our creative education team as a full-time Educator. You'll lead programs that ignite curiosity and foster a passion for wildlife, habitat preservation, and the natural world. Through hands-on, interdisciplinary learning that connects ecology, mathematics, art, and more, you'll help students discover the wonders of the Sonoran Desert while making a lasting impact on their understanding of conservation.

Summary

This position will most likely begin in late Fall 2026, with interviews in late September to early October. Application review will begin in September.

Job Title: Educator
Department: Conservation, Education and Science
Reports To: Associate Director for Education
FLSA Status: Non-exempt; Full-time
Compensation: $16.49 per hour (initial step)

Summary
The Educator role at the Desert Museum assists with educational and conservation experiences for school groups, families, children, camps, and the general public for people of all ages. Programs are a mix of in-person (indoors & outdoors), overnights, virtual, and hybrid.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
•   The primary responsibility of this position is to support a variety of programming (classes, family groups, festivals, field trips, informal activities, overnight camping trips, special events, etc.)
•   Assist with programs and orientations for school groups, teen programs, community groups, and camps.
•   Engage and educate guests through exhibit or nature exploration in addition to onsite, offsite, virtual, and tabling events.
•   Follow correct procedures for handling, transporting, and teaching with live animals (arthropods and reptiles) and maintain internal animal handling certifications.
•   Compiles Museum artifacts, materials, and other educational tools for educational programs.
•   Develops educational materials for programs such as slide decks, manipulatives, worksheets, booklets, and other hands-on teaching tools.
•   Assists with program logistics by communicating with teachers, group leads, and staff.
•   Knowledge of and comfort with communicating science topics including the natural history of Sonoran Desert species, climate change, invasive species, the age of the Earth, and dinosaurs, among other topics.
•   Maintain records of attendance, training goals, and animal handling.

Further Details/Comments

To view the full job posting along with an outline of additional qualifications go to the posting on our Career page. Please understand that if offered a position, you will be required to successfully complete a criminal background check, a pre-employment drug screen, and provide a current satisfactory 39-month driver's history report as a final condition of employment.

Compensation Information

Starting Salary: $16.49 per hour (initial step per Collective Bargaining Unit Agreement) plus a comprehensive benefit package, which includes medical, dental, vision, life and LTD insurance, FSA, HRA, 403(b) retirement plan, paid holidays, personal business days, sick leave, and vacation.