Outreach & Training Specialist

Seattle Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is a nationally recognized program for its innovative and ongoing efforts in preparedness education and community outreach. Within the “Whole of Community” philosophy, Seattle OEM engages the community in planning, preparedness, training, exercises, and special initiatives. The Outreach and Training Specialist is one of two positions dedicated to utilizing existing and innovative methods in developing, improving, delivering, and evaluating emergency preparedness educational programs (SNAP, skills-based training, etc.) intended to reach the city’s diverse makeup of residents, businesses, City employees, neighborhoods, and community partners. The goal of these programs is to guide the community in protecting lives and property, and helping the overall community attain self-sufficiency in anticipation of emergencies and disasters.

This position is part of an overall team within OEM that has responsibilities associated with activations of the City’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and the successful candidate must have a complete grasp of all emergency management functions in order to supplement programs associated with mitigation, emergency response operations, post-disaster recovery operations, planning, and exercises. With Seattle OEM as a regional partner, this position also works with other jurisdictional and agency partners on collaborative outreach and educational efforts. This position works with another Outreach and Training Specialist and reports to the Public Education Coordinator of the OEM.

Job Responsibilities:
The Seattle Office of Emergency Management is responsible for delivering emergency preparedness education and outreach to City departments and employees, households, businesses, and community based organizations. OEM’s Public Education team is responsible for developing the outreach strategies, methods, and programs used to educate and train this diverse, city-wide audience. These strategies will rely on collaboration with City employees, partners, and volunteers.

This position will be directly responsible for managing the Community Safety Ambassador (CSA) program. The CSA program aims to educate traditionally hard to reach communities, including non-English speaking populations. The program consists of approximately 20 trained community members capable of delivering preparedness education training in 16 different languages. The Training and Outreach Specialist will be responsible for the management of existing CSAs, including scheduling, training, engagement, and budget management. The position will also be responsible for regularly assessing performance of the program, recruiting new CSAs to address existing gaps, marketing the program throughout the community, and determining the general direction of efforts to reach vulnerable populations.

This position will also take the lead on developing relationships with community based organizations to amplify preparedness messaging in coordination with the Community Planning Coordinator. Community based organizations are a key partner both as consumers of preparedness messaging, and as a conduit to share messaging with the clients they serve. This effort will require collaboration with existing OEM partners, and city and county government partners.

This position will also support overall preparedness efforts through assisting with preparedness messaging and material development, and delivering public preparedness presentations to a variety of audiences on a regular basis.

Overall skills of the Outreach and Training Specialist include:

Ability to speak clearly and persuasively, and listen effectively.

Ability to think creatively and develop new strategies for reaching diverse audiences.

Understanding of different learning styles and ability to adapt programs according to type of audience.

Understanding of diverse communities and cultures.

Ability and enthusiasm in public speaking, training and group interaction.

Expertise in public relations and public outreach.

Expertise in standard software programs such as Word, Power Point, Publisher, and Excel.

Ability to elicit cooperation, build professional relationships, and engender trust.

Ability to develop and maintain data tracking systems.

Familiarity with web development and social networking platforms and communications. This position serves on a rotating basis as Staff Duty Officer, the primary point of contact for agencies in need of emergency management support during non-work hours. During Emergency Operation Center (EOC) activations, this position will serve in various roles, provides leadership to department representatives and serves as the face of Seattle to other jurisdictions doing business with the EOC.

Qualifications:
QUALIFICATIONS:
Required Qualifications: The equivalent of a Bachelor’s degree in communications, education, emergency management, public relations, or planning. Four years of professional experience in emergency management, public education, community outreach, program development and design, or related field.

Experience communicating to internal and external audiences. Experience building and maintaining relationships with community organizations, and harnessing those relationships to amplify messaging and enhance program effectiveness. Excellent customer service skills, including effective listening and problem solving, and ability to deal courteously and professionally with members of other agencies and the public. Excellent project management skills and techniques. Some combination of education and experience may be applied to fulfill these requirements. Several Incident Command System (ICS) courses must be completed within the first 12 months on the job. Driver’s license. Selected candidate must successfully complete a Seattle Police Department comprehensive background investigation.

Desired Qualifications: Two years of experience in delivering community education and outreach programs. Completion of relevant emergency management courses such as the Professional Development Series, Emergency Management Institute Independent Study Series, etc. Strong written, oral and interpersonal communication skills, with demonstrated ability to effectively communicate to and with diverse range of stakeholders. Experience with grant management, including grant writing, budget management, and project reporting is a plus. Demonstrated project management skills is highly desirable.

Position Requirements:
Must satisfy a Seattle Police Department background investigation

Must be willing to work a non-standard schedule which will include evening and weekend days

Must be willing to carry a pager and cell phone and participate in Staff Duty Officer rotation

Must be able to work cooperatively in a team environment

Must have a Washington State Driver’s License

Must be able to lift 50 pounds

Additional Information:
ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT:
The Seattle Police Department is comprised of approximately 2,100 dedicated law enforcement professionals all committed to creating and fostering a work environment that is collaborative, innovative and leading the way in law enforcement principles and practices. Ours is a culture that encourages top performers to adhere to a standard of excellence in the identification of and resolution to complex challenges. At SPD we acknowledge and honor the fundamental value and dignity of all individuals and pledge ourselves to creating and maintaining an environment that respects diverse traditions, heritages, and experiences.

HOW TO APPLY :
Apply online at http://www.seattle.gov/jobs and please include a resume and cover. A computer is available for use to complete an on-line application and is located at the Personnel Department, Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Avenue, Suite 5500, Seattle, WA 98124-4028. Please refer to: JOB #: 2017-00456.