Careers & Opportunities

Date posted: 10/1/2026

Deadline: 10/20/2026

Position Overview 

Bartram’s Garden seeks a full-time Director of Development to oversee all fundraising activities within a strong and successful team. The Director of Development reports to the Chief Advancement & Experience Officer, who previously held this role, and serves the Bartram’s Garden mission through all aspects of contributed income, including both operational and capital fundraising.

As a dynamic and values-driven non-profit, Bartram’s Garden generates roughly $4–5 million in contributed income each year to support ongoing operations, programming, and special projects. The Garden is also in the midst of a multi-year, multi-million-dollar capital campaign to support major campus investments and the organization’s long-term sustainability. In a sign of the organization’s fundraising prowess and strong reputation among regional and local philanthropists, elected officials, and partners, the first phase of the campus plan is projected for completion in 2028—perfectly timed to align with the 300^th anniversary of the Garden’s founding.

The Bartram’s Garden Director of Development is responsible for leading and implementing the fundraising programs for Bartram’s Garden with efficiency, a goal-oriented mindset, and clear alignment with both the Garden’s strategic plan and the mission, vision, and values.

Responsibilities:

Fundraising

• Work closely with the Chief Advancement & Experience Officer to plan and oversee all fundraising for the organization, with operational goals of at least $4–$5M annually
• Cultivate, secure, and manage new and renewing sources of support with an emphasis on diversified revenue streams, including grants from private foundations, corporate sponsors, awards from public sources (city, state, and federal), and individual giving, including major and planned gifts
• Play a lead role in developing and implementing the campaign associated with the Garden’s 300^th anniversary in 2028, with a focus on advancing the strategic plan and growing the endowment
• Drive the success of longer-term campaigns and project-specific fundraising, including capital investments, by developing cases for support, meeting with or supporting meetings with donors, managing donor stewardship and naming opportunities, and facilitating prospect research
• Oversee the management and coordination of all galas and cultivation events for the organization, including event planning, solicitation of sponsorships from individuals and corporations, and outreach to honorees and stakeholders

Supervision & Department Management

• Oversee, train, and assess the Development Manager, Development Coordinator, and any consultants
• Lead and model effective, timely, and mission-aligned funder stewardship through relationship cultivation, reporting, and other outreach
• Manage and evaluate internal systems, vendors, and tools, such as CRM software and tracking practices
• Support staff from all departments to deepen capacity for fundraising and donor relations as a component of effective public space and program management
• Collaborate with the Advancement & Experience team to ensure that site-wide visitor experience drives increased contributed revenue through strategies such as messaging, signage, staffed interactions, and more

Strategy & Planning 

• With input from the Executive Team and Development department, create the annual fundraising plan in coordination with the Garden’s strategic initiatives as well as annual goals
• In coordination with the Development and Finance teams, provide timely and accurate budget projections towards both operating and project-specific goals
• Identify potential barriers and challenges to meeting revenue goals and collaboratively implement strategies to overcome these issues
• Share progress updates in writing and verbally with key stakeholders, including our Board of Trustees, Executive Team, and staff
• Facilitate the Board of Director’s Advancement Committee through preparing agendas and materials, capturing notes and action items, and working closely with the committee chair to advance the board’s engagement in fundraising
• Oversee development and update of policies for gift acceptance, donor recognition, and similar

Qualifications and Requirements 

• 7+ years of experience and demonstrated success in non-profit fundraising, with at least some in a leadership role. The ideal candidate will have proven success in securing and managing at least two the following:
  • Major individual gifts ($100K+)
  • Multi-year foundation support
  • State or federal grants
  • Planned gifts
  • Fundraising campaigns in support of capital investments, endowment growth, or other targeted initiatives
• Demonstrated ability to supervise and manage staff and consultants.
• Excellent communication skills.
  • Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to effectively communicate with staff, visitors, and donors from diverse backgrounds in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class, and religion.
  • Strong writing skills with an ability to prepare thought-provoking, compelling, and timely proposals, reports, responses, and pitches on a range of subjects for varying audiences.
  • Comfortable engaging stakeholders over the phone, via email, and in person.
• Confident making projections and analyzing data.
  • Proficient reading, interpreting, and talking about budgets.
  • Experience using a customer relationship management platform to input and track data.
• Organized, detail-driven, and willing to take initiative.
  • Exemplary time management skills and able to manage multiple competing priorities and deadlines effectively without close supervision.
  • Ability to navigate and assess varied online and technological resources independently.
• Purpose-driven and equity-oriented.
  • Familiarity and alignment with the mission of Bartram’s Garden.
  • A demonstrated commitment to racial equity and enthusiasm to thoughtfully communicate our mission and work to funders.
  • Experience working in communities of color and a commitment to racial, economic, environmental, and social justice.
  • Personal or professional familiarity with Southwest Philadelphia is a plus.
• Physically present and capable of minor physical tasks.
  • Capacity for occasional evening and weekend responsibilities on-site at Bartram’s Garden in support of board meetings, funder activities, and special events.
  • Must be able to lift 30 pounds.
  • Must be able to work at a computer and look at a screen for extended periods of time. 

Hours and Compensation 

This is a is a full-time, non-exempt, year-round position. This role will largely work a typical M–F schedule, with occasional evening and weekend responsibilities in support of special events, funder activities, and Board meetings.

The anticipated start date for this position is January 2027.

This position requires regular on-site work at Bartram’s Garden in Southwest Philadelphia. This position is eligible for occasional remote work at the discretion of the supervisor.

Annual salary is between $80,000–$85,000, depending on experience. Benefits include employer-paid healthcare, dental coverage, short and long-term disability coverage, holidays, vacation, sick time, and professional development opportunities.

To Apply 

Email cover letter with resume, three professional references, and two work samples to , with subject line “Director of Development.” No phone calls or visits, please. Deadline to apply – October 20, 2026

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Finalists will be contacted to interview with the Chief Advancement & Experience Officer and with additional members of the Bartram’s Garden staff between mid-October and early December.

Bartram’s Garden recognizes the value of promoting a diverse workforce. All individuals, including those from historically under-represented groups, are strongly encouraged to apply. In addition, any form of personal or professional connections to Southwest Philadelphia will be considered a plus for all applicants. If desired, applicants are invited to reflect in their cover letter or other written statement on how their professional and lived experiences position them for their requested role.

ABOUT BARTRAM’S GARDEN:
Bartram’s Garden is a 50-acre public park and National Historic Landmark in Southwest Philadelphia, situated on Lenape territory on the banks of the Tidal Schuylkill River. Welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually, it is a venue for art, and access to the tidal river and wetlands, an outdoor classroom, and a living laboratory. Bartram’s Garden attempts to hold the colonial legacy of the land with a commitment to learn and share the whole truth about the plants of Southwest Philadelphia and the people who grow them. The site encompasses the Bartram family’s 18th-century house and farm buildings, the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden, a reclaimed meadow, tidal wetlands, the Sankofa Community Farm, recreational trails, and the riverfront with an accessible public boat dock and community boathouse.

The Garden is operated and maintained by the non-profit John Bartram Association in cooperation with the City of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. The mission of the John Bartram Association is to co-create equitable relationships among people and nature through immersive, community-centered experiences that activate the Bartram legacy, Garden, and House, on land and on the Schuylkill River, in Southwest Philadelphia.

Bartram’s Garden has been working to build its local Southwest-focused programs and activities and strengthen its community partnerships with nearby families, schools, and neighborhood groups. Thanks to plans for significant upcoming site investments, including major construction projects and expanded partnerships, the Garden is in the midst of transformation, with unprecedented opportunities for growth and renewal.

Date posted: 10/1/2026

Deadline: 10/20/2026

The Director of Youth Engagement supports the mission of Bartram’s Garden by creating equitable relationships among young people and nature through immersive community-driven experiences.

Bartram’s Garden has a successful history connecting young people to the natural world.   Tens of thousands of students during the school day visit, explore and connected to the history, land and water on field trips, immersive home school experiences, and library and classroom lessons.  Hundreds of Southwest Philadelphia teens have engaged in paid internship programs, through Denkyem River Crew, Roots Tree Crew, and the B.I.G. Crew at Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden. These high school programs support youth in their professional and personal growth as well as support their academic and career goals.

In this role, the Director of Youth Engagement both supports and strengthens the existing successful programs while helping grow youth initiatives that are integrated in all stewardship and management aspects of the 50 acre ecosystem. Leading a team of educators, the Director will give support and strengthen site-wide youth programming that spans all age groups from pre-kindergarten toddlers to post-secondary adults and focuses on youth development and educational experiences connected to nature, the environment, and climate resilience.

Reporting to the Chief Campus and Operations Officer, the Director of Youth Engagement will have up to six direct reports consisting of educators, and contracted support for the youth programs.

Core Responsibilities

• Direct the development and implementation of all youth education programming at Bartram’s Garden in support of the institution’s local population and the neighborhood’s climate change resilience.
• Create policies and procedures to meet highest-level industry standards for youth education, safety, supervision, case management, and trauma informed social emotional learning.
• Lead the education team toward the execution of year-round youth programming in the areas of agriculture, horticulture, river ecology, urban forestry, and early learning ages pre-K through middle school.
• Manage the relationship of the City of Philadelphia’s workforce development intermediary including all communications, planning, worksite compliance, and reporting to ensure well-resourced programmatic growth.
• Manage outcomes and deliverables for Registered Apprenticeship programs; coordinate consistent communication with state apprenticeship office.
• Develop organizational relationships with local educational institutions and educators such as local public and charter schools, libraries, early education centers, and institutions of higher learning toward long-term programmatic connections.
• Lead education-related workshops or trainings for staff, youth and other stakeholders as needed.
• Implement curriculum and evaluation frameworks and supports, providing professional development where needed.
• Grow youth programming to ensure alignment with coming capital improvements such as FloatLab, and Education Center.
• Coordinate with the Senior Director of Finance to administer all aspects of the departmental budget including creation, execution, oversight, and projections.
• Collaborate with the Senior Director of Human Resources to maintain secure files for all youth records and manage onboarding of youth workers.
• Support the Director of Development in developing funding requests, participating in funder meetings, and reporting on deliverables.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in education plus 5 years’ relevant experience or master’s degree plus 3 years’ experience.
• 3 to 5 years’ experience delivering or developing environmental education programming.
• Previous experience managing a team or supervising staff required.
• Strong leadership and communication skills.
• Personal or professional familiarity with Southwest Philadelphia preferred.
• Able to work collaboratively with people from diverse backgrounds in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class, and religion.
• Experience working in communities of color, commitment to racial, economic, environmental, and social justice.
• Strong computer skills (Excel, Word, Outlook, and web-based work platforms).
• Physical requirements include: a combination of sitting, standing, and walking; lifting modest weights (up to 30 pounds).

Schedule and Benefits

This is a full-time, exempt, year-round position within a range of $80,000-85,000. Benefits include healthcare and dental coverage, short and long-term disability coverage, paid holidays, vacation, and sick time.

As this position involves routine contact with minors, the Director of Youth Engagement will be required to submit and renew at least every 5 years the following:

• Pennsylvania Criminal History Check through the Pennsylvania State Police (PATCH)
• Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Check through the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services
• FBI Criminal History Check

To Apply 

Email cover letter with resume and three professional references to , with subject line “Director of Youth Engagement”. No phone calls or visits, please. Deadline to apply – October 20, 2026

ABOUT BARTRAM’S GARDEN:
Bartram’s Garden is a 50-acre public park and National Historic Landmark in Southwest Philadelphia, situated on Lenape territory on the banks of the Tidal Schuylkill River. Welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually, it is a venue for art, and access to the tidal river and wetlands, an outdoor classroom, and a living laboratory. Bartram’s Garden attempts to hold the colonial legacy of the land with a commitment to learn and share the whole truth about the plants of Southwest Philadelphia and the people who grow them. The site encompasses the Bartram family’s 18th-century house and farm buildings, the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden, a reclaimed meadow, tidal wetlands, the Sankofa Community Farm, recreational trails, and the riverfront with an accessible public boat dock and community boathouse.

The Garden is operated and maintained by the non-profit John Bartram Association in cooperation with the City of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. The mission of the John Bartram Association is to co-create equitable relationships among people and nature through immersive, community-centered experiences that activate the Bartram legacy, Garden, and House, on land and on the Schuylkill River, in Southwest Philadelphia.

Bartram’s Garden has been working to build its local Southwest-focused programs and activities and strengthen its community partnerships with nearby families, schools, and neighborhood groups. Thanks to plans for significant upcoming site investments, including major construction projects and expanded partnerships, the Garden is in the midst of transformation, with unprecedented opportunities for growth and renewal.

Date posted: 9/18/2026

Date updated: 9/30/2026

Application deadline: 10/02/2026

Reports to:                                    Executive Director

Status:                                             1-year limited contract

Hourly Rate:                                 $35.00 per hour

Schedule:                                       6–10 hours per week

This position is responsible for conducting and supporting research from materials in the John Bartram Association (JBA) archival collections to identify historic information, maps, and documents for the Garden’s long-range plan being developed through the services of a multi-disciplinary consultant team that started in November 2025. The Archive Researcher will also support broader public access to the JBA collections through arranging and describing diverse materials including manuscripts, rare books, born-digital research memos on garden and environmental history, historic maps, archeological findings from on-site digs, and other artifacts. 

Core responsibilities include:

• Process, describe, arrange, and digitize key archival collections (particularly those relevant to the long-range landscape plan) in accordance with both traditional and emerging archival practices

• Provide by-appointment reference services to the JBA Archive for the long-range landscape plan consultant team and steering committee 

• Explore and index research memos, correspondence, and other born-digital records connected to previous JBA Curator Joel T. Fry

• Support the accession and deaccession of collection items to the Archives

• Provide input into the JBA’s Living Collections Plan

Qualifications

• Proficiency in archival collections management software (ideally including EMU)
• Proficiency in best practices for archival description including standards (DACS, EAD, ERM, OAISF), controlled vocabularies, and authority control frameworks
• Experience supporting and conducting archival research

• • This position include sitting, standing, kneeling, and lifting or moving objects up to 20lbs.; climbing stairs, and walking over varied terrain, repeated adjustments to varied lighting conditions

Application Information

To apply, please send your resume along with a cover letter describing your interest in the position to . Include “Archive Researcher” in the email subject line. Only those whose applications are being considered will be contacted. No phone calls or visits, please. Bartram’s Garden recognizes the value of promoting a diverse workforce.

All individuals, including those from historically under-represented groups, are strongly encouraged to apply. In addition, any form of personal or professional connections to Southwest Philadelphia will be considered a plus for all applicants. If desired, applicants are invited to reflect in their cover letter or other written statement on how their professional and lived experiences position them for their requested role.

About Bartram’s Garden

Bartram’s Garden is a 50-acre public park and National Historic Landmark in Southwest Philadelphia, situated on Lenape territory on the banks of the Tidal Schuylkill River. Welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually, it is a venue for art, an access to the tidal river and wetlands, an outdoor classroom, and a living laboratory. Bartram’s Garden attempts to hold the colonial legacy of the land with a commitment to learn and share the whole truth about the plants of Southwest Philadelphia and the people who grow them. The site encompasses the Bartram family’s 18th-century house and farm buildings, the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden, a reclaimed meadow, tidal wetlands, the Sankofa Community Farm, recreational trails, and the riverfront with an accessible public boat dock and community boathouse.,mm

The Garden is operated and maintained by the non-profit John Bartram Association in cooperation with the City of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. The mission of the John Bartram Association is to co-create equitable relationships among people and nature through immersive, community-centered experiences that activate the Bartram legacy, Garden, and House, on land and on the Schuylkill River, in Southwest Philadelphia.

Bartram’s Garden has been working to build its local Southwest-focused programs and activities and strengthen its community partnerships with nearby families, schools, and neighborhood groups. Thanks to plans for significant upcoming site investments, including major construction projects and expanded partnerships, the Garden is in the midst of transformation, with unprecedented opportunities for growth and renewal.

Interested in selling your handmade items at Bartram’s Garden? We have opportunities for vending at various events and festivals throughout the year, as well as the possibility of vending wholesale through our Welcome Center. As a neighborhood park, our mission is to prioritize connections in Southwest Philadelphia.

Please fill out the Vending Interest Form. We’ll be in touch if it feels like a good fit. Feel free to contact Tahnisha Thomas at with any questions. Thanks!