School Program Specialist at Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution · Washington, United States Of America · Onsite
- Professional
- Office in Washington
OPEN DATE: September 26, 2025
CLOSING DATE: October 10, 2025
POSITION TYPE: Trust Fund
APPOINTMENT TYPE: NTE - 2 Years
SCHEDULE: Full Time
DUTY LOCATION: Washington, DC
What are Trust Fund Positions?
Trust Fund positions are unique to the Smithsonian. They are paid for from a variety of sources, including the Smithsonian endowment, revenue from our business activities, donations, grants and contracts. Trust employees are not part of the civil service, nor does trust fund employment lead to Federal status. The salary ranges for trust positions are generally the same as for federal positions and in many cases trust and federal employees work side by side. Trust employees have their own benefit program, which may include Health, Dental & Vision Insurance, Life Insurance, Transit/Commuter Benefits, Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance, Annual and Sick Leave, Family Friendly Leave, 403b Retirement Plan, Discounts for Smithsonian Memberships, Museum Stores and Restaurants, Credit Union, Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (Child Care), Flexible Spending Account (Health & Dependent Care).
Conditions of Employment
- Pass Pre-employment Background Check and Subsequent Background Investigation for position designated.
- Complete a Probationary Period.
- Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer.
- The position is open to all candidates eligible to work in the United States. Proof of eligibility to work in U.S. is not required to apply.
- Applicants must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.
OVERVIEW
This position is located within the Education Department in the Education and Visitor Experience Directorate, National Air and Space Museum (NASM), Smithsonian Institution (SI) and reports to a Supervisory Education Specialist position, who reports to the Education Deputy Director position. The mission of NASM is to commemorate, educate and inspire. Learning at the National Air and Space Museum sparks curiosity and empowers learners to imagine the possibilities of our future. The museum collects, preserves, and displays aeronautical and spaceflight artifacts of historical significance.
The purpose of this position is to identify, plan, and implement education programs that focus on onsite, K-12 student engagement. This work targets students in the DC Metro region for onsite field trip programming at the National Mall Building. The employee is responsible for developing age-appropriate learning activities for students that leverage NASM content and facilitating programming for school groups. They will also collaborate with Youth and Teachers team members to iterate on programming.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Responsible for constructing and facilitating learning opportunities to expand field trip programming at the National Mall Building as renovation project nears completion.
- Organizes field trip schedules and collaborates with Tours and Reservations Office to create a communication workflow for booking and confirming programs
- Maintains relationships with local school districts and tailors program content to local district standards as appropriate
- Maintains a working knowledge of learning principles and practices for K-12 students in museums.
- Acts as part of a collaborative team of NASM staff that develops, implements, and evaluates innovative, accessible education programs that are based on STEAM subjects, collections and the work of the museum
- Research program topics and work with curatorial staff to ensure content accuracy, and develop educational activities based on the knowledge of the content and best museum teaching practices.
- Manages program funds by anticipating expenses, preparing a program budget, tracking expenses, and following procurement procedures to purchase necessary program goods and services.
- Works collaboratively with Manager of Youth and Teacher Programs and Advancement Office to develop donor proposals and reports.
- Works collaboratively with the Manager of Youth and Teacher Programs and the Communications Department on promotion plans to enhance marketing and outreach efforts of the programs.
- Performs subject-area research and develops educational materials for student and educator audiences.
- Collaborates with Education Specialist for Teacher PD to create learning opportunities for local teachers in support of onsite school programming as needed
- Performs other duties as required.
QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
Education and Experience: To qualify for this position, applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree (B.A.) from an accredited four-year college or university and 3-5 years of related experience (described below); or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Experience coordinating and planning multi-day programming for K-12 educators
- Experience developing STEAM lessons, curriculum, or other educational materials
- Experience in managing large scale museum programs involving internal and external stakeholders
- Experience in creating professional development program series with both in-person and virtual components
Education completed outside the United States must be deemed equivalent to higher education programs of U.S. Institutions by an organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials. This documentation is the responsibility of the applicant and should be included as part of your application package.
Any false statement in your application may result in rejection of your application and may also result in termination after employment begins.
Join us in "Inspiring Generations through Knowledge and Discovery."
Resumes should include a description of your paid and non-paid work experience that is related to this job; starting and ending dates of job (month and year); and average number of hours worked per week.
What To Expect Next: Once the vacancy announcement closes, a review of your resume will be compared against the qualification and experience requirements related to this job. After review of applicant resumes is complete, qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager.
Relocation expenses are not paid.
The Smithsonian Institution provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation should contact [email protected]. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more, please review the Smithsonian’s Accommodation Procedures (https://www.si.edu/OEO/IndividualswithDisabilities).
The Smithsonian Institution provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation should contact [email protected]. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more, please review the Smithsonian’s Accommodation Procedures (https://www.si.edu/OEO/IndividualswithDisabilities).
The Smithsonian Institution is an Equal Opportunity Employer. To review The Smithsonian's EEO program information, please click the following: https://www.si.edu/oeo
