The non-profit Vermont Energy Education Program (VEEP) is seeking a Deputy Director with experience in planning, budgeting, fund-raising, administration, science education and public relations. VEEP is looking to strengthen and expand our existing programs as we take VEEP to the next level of effectiveness and scope. It is our expectation that the Deputy Director will be an effective leader who will transition over time from the Deputy Director to the Executive Director, after demonstrating leadership and learning the mission, culture and operations of VEEP. The job is currently funded at 75% of full- time, with the opportunity to expand to full-time as funds are raised to support that expansion. The Deputy Director, as with all VEEP staff, will operate out of a virtual office, as there is no physical VEEP office. The VEEP Executive Director will provide training and ongoing support to this position

Organization Background

VEEP has provided hands-on/minds-on energy education experiences for teachers and students in grades K-16 throughout Vermont for 23 years. Our programs use multiple learning pathways to engage students in problem-solving challenges to help them understand energy and the effects of its use on society and the environment. Our educational approach to teaching and learning helps teachers address national science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) standards and the Vermont Grade Expectations. In addition to classroom activities and teacher training, VEEP offers education, demonstrations and displays for public fairs and events and other venues. VEEP’s services are tailored to meet the needs of particular schools, teachers, students, and communities.

VEEP now faces significant opportunities for growth. With the increasing public awareness of climate change and the role of efficient energy use in reducing climate change, educators’ need to strengthen STEM skills and content and need to be prepared to implement the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Additionally, VEEP is in an expansion phase in order to assure state-wide reach and long-term viability as an organization.

Job Responsibilities

The Deputy Director will:

• Report directly to Andy Shapiro, VEEP Executive Director and Energy Engineer.
• Supervise and evaluate staff, including hiring and firing, goal-setting, performance assessment and feedback.
• Prepare an annual plan and budget and track progress against them.
• Expand VEEP’s funding base so that it may serve more Vermonters with more energy education services, by identifying and developing grant proposals and other funding resources; manage relationships with funders.
• Become the public face of VEEP in state-wide education, energy and sustainability arenas by overseeing public relations and promoting VEEP through the media.
• Stay informed of statewide, regional, national and international best practices in the area of energy education; maintain relationships with other energy education/literacy organizations.
• Manage Efficiency Vermont’s Energy Literacy Project, VEEP’s primary service contract.
• Perform all necessary administrative tasks, including writing of periodic reports to funders and the Board as required.
• Work out of home office with periodic meetings around Central and NW Vermont

Job Requirements

This position requires excellent demonstrated experience and skills in the following:

• Leadership — communicating an inspired, compelling vision of a mission-driven organization; orchestrating multiple activities at once to accomplish a goal; maneuvering through complex political situations effectively & professionally makes good decisions based upon a mixture of analysis, wisdom, experience and judgment; comfortable with risk, uncertainty & change.
• Strategic Planning & Budgeting — thinking ahead about how to sustain and grow VEEP; demonstrates initiative and persistence to accomplish goals; developing budgets, schedules & assignments; adjusts for problems & roadblocks; measuring performance against goals & evaluates results.
• Fundraising — seeking opportunities and developing relationship with potential funding sources; writing compelling, successful grant proposals.
• Team-Building & Staff Management — creating and leading effective teams; developing and supervising staff.
• Communication – effective presenter in a wide variety of presentation settings; able to write clearly & succinctly for a variety of settings and in a variety of styles; experience writing press releases and articles.
• Collaboration — working creatively with affinity organizations, practitioners and policy-makers to enhance VEEP’s effectiveness and visibility.
• Computer Skills — proficient with Excel for planning, budgeting and financial records, MSWord for writing grants and reports, PowerPoint for presentations, and other programs such as Facebook, Doodle, SurveyMonkey, etc.

More information is available on the VEEP website.