Therapeutic Recreation & Accessibility Coordinator

Job Description:

Therapeutic Recreation & Accessibility Coordinator

Description

Description

Do you have experience serving individuals with all-ability levels?

Do you enjoy collaborating with community partners and building relationships to build trust and a welcoming environment?

This is a fantastic opportunity for a Therapeutic Recreation or Accessibility professional to get involved in a top-notch recreation program and play a key role in shaping inclusive and accessible offering from the ground up. This role offers the chance to grow and expand the City’s commitment to inclusive recreation in impactful and lasting ways.

The City of Palo Alto Community Services Department is hiring for the newly expanded full-time role of Therapeutic Recreation & Accessibility Coordinator. This position requires a motivated and energetic candidate with strong organization and communication skills. This position will be primarily responsible for development, oversight, and leadership of streamlining processes and services that support specialized recreation programs for individuals of all ages, with a special focus on those with disabilities and unique recreation needs in a community setting. As a fairly new position, this role will have the unique and exciting opportunity to evaluate the City’s existing programming and services and develop a comprehensive plan that will outline the City's strategy for providing inclusion services moving forward. This position will also serve as the Community Services Department's key staff representative for all-inclusive recreation needs in the department, coordinating with partner organizations, and with community members.
The ideal candidate will be a friendly, highly organized, community-focused, and solutions-oriented professional who has demonstrated success in developing relevant and successful inclusive and adaptive recreation services. The ideal candidate will have a bachelor’s degree in recreation or a related field and might also possess certification in Therapeutic Recreation. They will also have 2-3 years of experience in the recreation or human services field serving individuals with disabilities.

Benefits Highlights

• CalPERS Pension- Lifetime retirement income with up to 100% of your highest salary.
• Fully Paid Medical, Dental & Vision- Coverage for you and eligible dependents.
• Six Weeks Paid Parental Leave.
• Up to $10,000/year in Childcare Assistance.
• Generous Time Off- Up to 200 hours of vacation plus 13 paid holidays.
• Commuter Perks- Unlimited Bay Area transit with Clipper BayPass, including Caltrain, BART, VTA, MUNI, and more

Visit our Careers Page to learn more and view Memorandum Of Agreements between the City and its employee groups.

Work Schedule: 9/80 M-F ( This position is primarily on-site and may require occasional travel to various Community Services Department locations throughout the City as needed.)

This position is represented by Service Employee International Union (SEIU).

Compensation (SEIU): Comprehensive compensation plan, to learn more click HERE.

Essential Duties

Essential and other important responsibilities and duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Lead comprehensive evaluation of existing department and city inclusive recreation programming and develop a comprehensive plan that will outline the City’s strategy for providing inclusion services moving forward.
• Establish and foster positive relationships with community partners and service providers for people with disabilities in Palo Alto and the surrounding area.
• Create a positive, welcoming, and safe environment with an emphasis on building and maintaining rapport with program participants, families, staff, and volunteers.
• Lead the planning, implementation, and evaluation of adaptive and inclusive services and programs for individuals of all ages with disabilities.
• Provide guidance, supervision, and performance feedback to additional staff and/or volunteers involved in programs as needed.
• Promote specialized recreation initiatives through crafting and disseminating promotional materials, drafting program descriptions, and identifying target audiences for outreach efforts.
• Offer administrative and logistical support to class and/or contracted instructors, including equipment procurement, material reproduction, on-site assistance with registration and evaluation processes, and orientation to facilities and emergency procedures.
• Develop and provide training and resources for Community Services Department staff on best practices and strategies for working with individuals with disabilities, including seasonal summer camp.
• Encourage positive interactions among participants through group facilitation and provide necessary assistance to facilitate independence and successful learning for each individual.
• Maintain detailed and proper documentation and discretion of confidential information.
• Collaborate with Community Services Department coordinators and programmers to evaluate activities to meet the needs of program participants.
• As assigned, will serve as liaison to community groups and organizations, parents, and/or school officials regarding activities within their assigned program areas.
• May utilize specialized software applications to assist with department-related programs. Attend required staff meetings and trainings.
• As needed, assist in development of the budget; monitor program budget, identify and analyze trends. Provide regular and specialized reporting.
• Perform related duties and responsibilities as required.
• Follow procedures and policies as set by the City of Palo Alto to ensure the safe operation of programs.
• Responsible for maintaining safe practices and conditions in a municipal recreation environment.

For full job description, please click HERE .

Desired Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Recreation, Social Work/Human Services or a related field or equivalent experience. Any combination of work experience and education equivalent to a Bachelor's degree in Recreation or closely related field will be considered.
• Minimum of one to two years of experience in leadership, with a focus on specialized community recreation such as inclusive, adaptive and/or therapeutic recreation.
• Understanding of the basic foundations of therapeutic recreation including the philosophy of community recreation and inclusion and the physical, cognitive, and social-economic needs of individuals with varying disabilities.
• Strong written and oral communication skills. Ability to lift up to 30 lbs.
• Current CPR/AED and First Aid Training or ability to obtain within six months of employment.
• Valid California Driver’s License and an insurable driving record.

Minimum Qualifications

Sufficient education, training and/or work experience to demonstrate possession of the following knowledge, skills and abilities, which would typically be acquired through:

For recreation positions:

• College degree in recreation, liberal arts or a related field, or equivalent experience. For special events position:
  
• College degree in marketing, PR or communications or equivalent experience in the special events industry.
  
• At least one year of lead or supervisory experience
  

If assigned to Aquatics: CPR and Lifeguard certification

Supplemental Information

The Selection Process:

• Applicants will receive recruitment status notifications via email. Governmentjobs.com account also has notification status updates.
  
• Applicants will be screened throughout the posting process and highly qualified candidates may be invited to interview at any time after the posting closes.
  
• The screening process for this position typically may include a virtual recorded interview and/or panel interviews preceding final interviews with the hiring manager or their designee.
  

Recruitment Timeline:
First Review of Applications: Week of August 25th
Interviews: First-round interviews are expected to take place the week of September 15th; Final interviews will take place the week of September 22nd.

Our online application system is provided by NeoGov. If you have problems while applying online, please contact NeoGov's Live Applicant Support at (855) 524-5627 between 6:00 AM and 5:00 PM Pacific Time, Monday - Friday.

The City of Palo Alto is an Equal Opportunity Employer. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City will provide reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities and encourages both prospective and current employees to discuss potential accommodations with the employer.

See our Benefits at a Glance Bookletfor more details.
Learn more about our Memorandum of Agreements (MOAs) between the City and its bargaining units, by clicking HERE.

Closing Date/Time: 8/24/2025 11:59 PM Pacific

Salary:

$91,582.40 - $112,028.80 Annually