Job Pay: $17.50 per hour

Job Type: Hourly, Full-Time (32-40 hours per week), including some evenings and weekends. Part-Time during the school year.

Posting Date: 03/27/2026

Closing Date: 04/24/2026

Planned Start Date: 05/04/2026

Planned End Date: 10/09/2026

Supervisor: Rio Grande Farm Park Director (Dan Perez)

About the Farm Park: The Rio Grande Farm Park (RGFP), a project of the San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition (SLVLFC), is an innovative, community-led, multi-use park with the mission of preserving the San Luis Valley’s important agricultural heritage, precious water resources, and open public spaces. This 38-acre park is multifaceted, supporting on-site community garden plots, a commercial farming program, organizational food production, a summertime Farmer’s Market, and robust environmental education for youth and adults.                     

Find more information at slvlocalfoods.org and at riograndefarmpark.org.

Workplace Locations:

• Rio Grande Farm Park (6935 State Hwy 17 Alamosa, CO 81101)

• San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition Office (412 State Ave Alamosa, CO 81101)

Job Overview: Under supervision of the Rio Grande Farm Park Director, the Program Assistant will participate in many aspects of RGFP operations. They will support the seasonal farmers market, environmental education programs, land management and crop production, and support leadership in delegating tasks to volunteer groups.

Responsibilities and Duties:

• Farmer’s Market Support

  • Operate the Market Info booth on market days, setting up the tent, exchanging customers’ SNAP benefits for tokens, calculating DUFB, and operating the ATM service

  • Assist with vendor recruitment, orientation, fee collection, and record-keeping

  • Solicit sponsorships

  • Recruit musicians and other performers as entertainment

• Farm & Land Support

  • Assist RGFP Land Manager with crop and production planning, seed purchasing, inventory management, sales, and other data collection

  • Perform farming tasks like planting, cultivating, harvesting, and washing produce for sale by the RGFP

  • Perform groundskeeping tasks as necessary; operating weed whackers, lawn mowers, pruners, and other heavily physical tasks

  • Promote restorative agricultural techniques that rebuild the soil and ecosystem of the San Luis Valley while learning the interplay of ecology and farming

• Education Support

  • Help develop and deliver regenerative agricultural education curriculum for youth and community members; incorporate regenerative agriculture and soil health into education curriculum

  • Develop, plan, and occasionally deliver farmer education workshops with help from experts and partners (primarily during off-season)

• Administrative Support

  • Assist in managing RGFP volunteers at monthly work days, visiting groups, and for ongoing volunteer projects

  • Assist with program evaluation and data collection, primarily with irrigation, land and farmer data

  • Develop data collection tools for farmers

Educational opportunities the intern will be able to participate in: The intern will have on the job training, be able to attend workshops offered at the Farm Park or around the SLV by local experts, and will have the opportunity to attend statewide ag-focused conferences with staff and farming program participants.

Leadership opportunities the intern will be able to participate in: This intern will lead activities at monthly volunteer work days and will be invited to participate in meetings of the RGFP Participant Advisory Committee.

Skills and competencies the intern is expected to gain through the internship experience: This intern will become adept with using farm tools and equipment. They will learn about teaching methodology as they participate in educational program coordination. They will learn program and project management as they will help lead volunteer work day planning and coordination. They will become familiar with record keeping processes for operations, maintenance, as well as sales at the Mercadillo en el Rio farmers market, and they will practice customer service skills throughout the season.

Qualification and Requirements:

• Must be at least 18 years old

• Must be a student, recent graduate (within 6 months post-graduation), or a beginning farmer or rancher (with 10 years of experience or less)

• Cannot be a current or former employee, or displace a current employee

• Cannot be related to the business owner or operator

• Must apply directly with the business to be hired

• Must submit a qualifying application to CDA before they start work to verify their eligibility

To apply, please a send letter of interest and resume to Farm Park Director Dan Perez (dan@riograndeframpark.org) by April 24th, 2026.

The Rio Grande Farm Park is a program of the San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition, which is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applicants from all backgrounds to join us in strengthening our local food system. In compliance with Colorado’s Job Application Fairness Act, applicants may redact information that would identify their age, date of birth or dates of study from their application.