The Temporary Support Worker position is hired by Fort Hays State University, which operates the Kansas Wetlands Education Center. The position will be stationed at the Kansas Wetlands Education Center (KWEC), which is located at Cheyenne Bottoms near Great Bend, KS and reports to the Director of KWEC. This part-time position will assist with visitor services, interpretation, environmental education programming and preparation, and live animal handling and care. The position requires excellent customer service and interpersonal skills with coworkers and visitors/customers at KWEC, and highly detailed and very organized work habits. Up to 20 hours per week with some flexibility. Work schedule will include working at least 2 weekends per month.
Minimum Qualifications: High School diploma or GED equivalency and one year of related job experience.
Preferred Qualifications:
• Associates or Bachelor’s degree and two plus years of related job experience
• Experience with live animal care
• Proficiency with computers and Microsoft Office suite (especially Word, Excel)
• Experience with retail sales/management
• Strong written and oral communication skills
Appointment Date: The start date is flexible, with hopes that it will start around Aug. 3. Appointment will require acceptance of an offer and successful completion of a background check. The position is “temporary”, however, there is no set time limit for this position and could result in a long-term appointment.
Application Priority Deadline: Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.
Required Application Documents: Applicants should submit a resume, and names and contact information for three professional references. Applicant documents should be submitted in one PDF.
Application Process: Application materials should be sent directly to Curtis Wolf, KWEC Director at cjwolf@fhsu.edu for review.
Hourly Rate: $13.07 per hour
Benefits: No Benefits available
Responsibilities:
- Serve as a receptionist for the KWEC office, greeting visitors, tracking daily attendance, answering visitor questions, answering and forwarding phone calls, etc.
- Assist with feeding and maintaining the cages of live animals in the classroom, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects.
- Become knowledgeable about Cheyenne Bottoms, wetlands, and the surrounding area
- Operate the cash register for the gift shop, including opening the cash drawer at the beginning of the day, running purchases during the day, and balancing the cash drawer at the end of the day
- Assist the Environmental Educators with educational programs
- Lead interpretive talks and/or tours of Cheyenne Bottoms, KWEC exhibits, and other special occasions for programs
- Other duties as assigned
This description is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job.
If you have questions regarding the position, please contact:
Name: Curtis Wolf, KWEC Director
Email: cjwolf@fhsu.edu
Phone: 877.243.9268
About Kansas Wetlands Education Center: The KWEC is a branch of Fort Hays State University’s Werth College of Science, Technology, and Mathematics and opened in April 2009. The mission of the KWEC is to educate the public about wetland communities, their importance and the need for conservation and restoration. The KWEC facility contains 11,246 square feet of floor space, including the Koch Wetlands Exhibit gallery, the Duane Shook Auditorium, a classroom, a gift store, and office spaces for staff, volunteers, and graduate students. KWEC averages approximately 25,000 total contacts annually, including drop-in visitors, onsite program participants, and outreach program participants. KWEC Educators conduct more than 700 total programs annually. Admission is free. Viewing areas overlook a mitigation marsh, and a nature trail extends through a nearby wooded area. The building is located about 70 miles southeast of Hays, KS, along K-156 Highway, near the city of Great Bend in central Kansas. It overlooks Cheyenne Bottoms, the largest wetland in the interior of the United States, including: 19,857 acres known as the Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area managed by the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks and 7,706 acres known as the Cheyenne Bottoms Preserve managed by The Nature Conservancy. Another large wetland area, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (21,820 acres), is located about 40 miles south of the KWEC and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. http://wetlandscenter.fhsu.edu.
About Fort Hays State University: Fort Hays State University was founded in 1902 as the Western Branch of Kansas State Normal School-a teacher's college. Our hometown, Hays, Kansas, is located on the high plains of north-central Kansas. The original home of the institution was on the grounds of Fort Hays, a Nineteenth-Century frontier military outpost. The state of Kansas initially intended the university's academic programs to focus on agriculture, but it opened in as a "normal" or teacher's college. Our mission is to develop the engaged global citizen-leaders our world needs.
FHSU today is a regional comprehensive public university where determined, innovative, and caring faculty and staff share a deep commitment to teaching and mentoring students. Total enrollment at FHSU exceeds 14,000 students who pursue their educational goals on-campus, online, and at our two international partnership campuses in China.
Employers tell us the combination of challenging academic programs, close faculty/student relationships, and the abundance of experiential learning opportunities our students enjoy while at FHSU set our students apart in competitive job markets worldwide. More than 95% of FHSU students secure jobs or higher education opportunities after they graduate. And FHSU consistently ranks among the top regional universities in the American Midwest.
A pioneer in distance education, we began delivering correspondence courses to teachers in rural Kansas early in the 20th Century. Today, FHSU Online delivers more than 200 flexible, affordable, and high-quality online programs. Over the years, FHSU Online received many accolades, including U.S. News & World Report Online Programs rankings, GetEducated.com, Best Buys in Education, among others.
The university has rich sports and cultural programming, all of which enjoy tremendous community support. The Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center is home to the Encore Series, which hosts many traveling Broadway shows, the Hays Symphony, university, and other national and world-caliber performances.
The university supports one of the most extensive and successful intercollegiate sports programs of any comparably sized college or university in America, boasting numerous All-American athletes and eight national championships. Nearly 400 athletes compete annually in eight men's and eight women's sports. FHSU is a member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, which comprises 14 schools from Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
Notice of Non-discrimination: Fort Hays State University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, religion, national origin, color, age, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability or veteran status.
Background Check: Final candidate will have consented to and successfully completed a criminal background check.
Notice to KPERS retirees applying for a position: Recent legislation changes working-after-retirement rules for both you and your employer if you go back to work for a KPERS employer. Please contact your KPERS representative or www.kpers.org for further information on how this might affect you.
