Boys & Girls Club of Santa Monica·Los Angeles, California
The Teen Specialist engages youth aged 11-18 through mentorship, coaching, and the implementation of academic and leadership curricula. They are responsible for strategizing recruitment and retention efforts while leading civic engagement and volunteer activities.
Summary of the Role
Our Club staff members are educators, coaches, mentors, community leaders, and ambassadors.
They don’t just open the doors of our Clubs – they open the door to new worlds and possibilities for kids and communities.
When you join Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica, you are part of a talented, mission-driven team that is singularly focused on making sure every child can achieve their greatest potential.
We are curious and compassionate, diverse and dedicated; inspired and inspirational.
And we love what we do.
The Teen Specialist plays a key role engaging youth ages 11-18 years old, by supporting outreach efforts that encourage tween/teen club membership.
While providing positive mentorship and coaching and implementing a variety of engaging activities within the Club space.
The Teen Specialist facilitates curriculum focused on a mix of academic, character and leadership, and career exploration materials.
It will be important to strategize innovative ways for retention and engagement.
Along with leading programs related to Jr.
Youth of the Year and Youth of the Year.
Holistically, we encourage youth in leading civic engagement activities that support Leaders in Training or volunteer culture.
Providing resources and preparing our tweens/tweens for the future.
Essential Functions of the Position Foster positive and supportive relationships with middle school and high school members.
Work with other standalone staff for cross functional opportunities to implement within the Club.
This includes following all safety requirements for Boys & Girls Clubs.
Plan walking field trips, incorporates pop up opportunities, cultural engagement activities, program planning, coaching, planning assistance in teen nights and civic engagement projects during the school year.
Strategize recruitment strategies with Program Manager, Site Director and Director of Operations.
Design and implement emotionally intelligent and age-appropriate programming.
This includes building programming that allows middle schoolers and high school members to explore, be creative, and try new things.
Assist in driving members to the Club, if needed.
What we offer you
Targeted Tween/Teen Support Professional onboarding in your first 90 days.
New hire orientation that breaks down the organization and your important, fun, connected place within it.
You get to understand how your work drives our mission and makes an impact in kids’ lives.
An employer who invests in its team!
Commitment to DEI in the workplace, which means ensuring access, opportunity, and advancement for our diverse team.
Making a difference by providing a fun and safe environment for youth! Summary
Qualifications for the Ideal Candidate Demonstrated experience working in the youth development field with older youth or teens. Ability to design and implement age specific programming and curriculum. Good character, integrity and adaptability. Must lead with good judgement, be able to set healthy boundaries, illustrate patience, and emotional intelligence. Ability to set a positive example for teens and peers in presence, attitude and behavior. Experience working with diverse populations and communities and know how to build an inclusive environment for teens. Knowledge of and the ability to establish relationships within the Santa Monica and L.A. nonprofit community, local school districts, colleges, and universities. Have worked with interdisciplinary and collaborative teams. Demonstrated experience with recruitment for after school programming, building rapport with youth, and engagement tactics for youth. Must participate in required training by the Club, County, State, and/or funders. Must be able to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends and/or holidays.
? You are a Spanish speaker. ? You have more than one year of experience working with young people. ? You have a teaching certificate or background in education.
you ? Targeted Tween/Teen Support Professional onboarding in your first 90 days. ? New hire orientation that breaks down the organization and your important, fun, connected place within it. You get to understand how your work drives our mission and makes an impact in kids’ lives. ? An employer who invests in its team! ? Commitment to DEI in the workplace, which means ensuring access, opportunity, and advancement for our diverse team. ? Plus: Making a difference by providing a fun and safe environment for youth!
Market context
In California, teen specialist roles often draw steady interest because youth-serving programs need staff who can build trust with adolescents and keep activities age-appropriate. Competition usually centers on experience with teen development, strong interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, and flexibility in scheduling. On this platform, the job requirements and benefits are AI-summarized from the original description, saving you research time; review the programming expectations and prepare one example of work with teens before applying.