Sustainability Fellow

Fellow Opportunity and Description
Healthy Schools Campaign (HSC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to making schools healthier places where children can learn and thrive. This work is at the intersection of health, education, equity and sustainability, supporting health and learning in under-invested schools through on-the-ground work and advocacy at the local, state and national levels. HSC succeeds in these efforts by recognizing parents, caregivers and a diverse set of school stakeholders as leaders and advocates in school health, ensuring programs are rooted in community and designed to be equitable and reflective of the communities served. Space to Grow, Chicago’s green schoolyards program, was co-founded by HSC and Openlands, and transforms schoolyards into vibrant, community-centered spaces that foster outdoor learning, active play, climate resilience and community engagement.

HSC is seeking a Sustainability Fellow to play a strategic role in strengthening and supporting how the program works with and engages schools, educators, and communities, and facilitates the inclusive school community design process. This one-year fellowship offers the opportunity to shape long-term tools and practices for green schoolyard programming, maintenance and impact. The fellow will also lead a special research or implementation project, support the development of educator materials and support deeper engagement with schools and program partners.

The fellowship may be structured as full-time or part-time depending on the fellow’s academic or professional situation. Candidates who are currently enrolled in a graduate program are encouraged to participate part-time, while candidates who are recently graduated or between roles are encouraged to participate full-time. For current students, HSC can work with your university to explore opportunities for receiving academic credit as part of this fellowship.

This fellowship will be overseen by HSC’s Senior Vice President, with day-to-day guidance and collaboration from HSC’s Senior Community Engagement Manager and HSC’s Space to Grow Project Manager. The role will also involve close collaboration with partners at Openlands.

Core Responsibilities
Educator Engagement: Support efforts to update the Space to Grow Teacher Toolkit; support the development of lesson plans and outdoor learning strategies with teachers and partners; help activate the Space to Grow Peer Learning Network.
Maintenance Strategy & Evaluation: Build upon existing knowledge library by conducting interviews and analyzing best practices to document schoolyard design innovations, long-term site maintenance challenges and stewardship models.
Research & Best Practices: Design and carry out an in-depth project on a topic such as equitable community access, curriculum integration, high school builds or green stormwater infrastructure maintenance.
Community Design & School Support: Support the inclusive schoolyard design process with school communities and partners; facilitate meetings; document and synthesize input for design teams; track school-specific needs and next steps.
Partnership & Convening Support: Assist convening of the citywide Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) Maintenance Working Group and the Space to Grow Community Advisory Council; help develop meeting content, document insights, surface challenges and translate learnings into program tools and guidance.
Program Evaluation: Collect partner and school feedback, help evaluate processes, and contribute recommendations to strengthen program equity and impact.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and Credentials
Demonstrated alignment with HSC’s mission, equity values and commitment to sustainable school environments.
Bachelor’s degree required; graduate coursework or 3+ years of post-college experience in a related professional role strongly preferred. Relevant coursework and/or roles may include public health, urban planning, school or community-based program work, environmental studies, landscape architecture, community development or related fields. Relevant experience may include positions within public health, school or youth-based programs, environmental justice or planning organizations.
Experience with community engagement, stakeholder facilitation and/or qualitative research.
Background in public health, education, environmental justice, planning, landscape architecture or related fields.
Strong communication and writing skills; able to synthesize complex feedback into actionable insights.
Experience creating educator-facing resources or curriculum materials strongly preferred.
Spanish fluency is highly desirable.

Additional Requirements
The HSC team works both from the organization’s downtown Chicago office and remotely; candidates must have a functioning home office space for remote work and be able to regularly travel downtown and to other neighborhoods for meetings and events.
This fellowship is only open to Chicago-area candidates or candidates who are relocating to the Chicago area (relocation resources are not available).
Valid driver’s license maintained through the duration of employment and reliable transportation is required.
Candidates must be willing to submit background checks.

Compensation and Benefits
The compensation range for this fellowship is a monthly stipend of $4,350 to $5,200 for full time, or $2,175 to $2,600 for part time. The stipend will be commensurate with experience and qualifications. The fellow will serve as an independent contractor (1099), which means health benefits are not included, and the fellow is responsible for any taxes (no taxes are withheld from contractor payments).

To Apply
HSC is committed to equal opportunity and nondiscrimination, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability or veteran status. HSC fosters a culture of inclusion and values having a team that reflects the communities we serve. All people whose skills and abilities align closely with the position requirements are encouraged to apply, including BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ candidates.

Send resume, cover letter and two writing samples as one PDF to fellow@healthyschoolscampaign.org. Please include your full name and “Sustainability Fellow,” in the subject line as well as contact information for two professional references in the body of the email.

Priority will be given to applicants who apply by March 2, 2026. Application review will take place on a rolling basis. This fellowship will remain posted until filled.