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Woodworking Teaching Artist / Designer

POSITION: FULL or part-TIME

LOCATION: IN-PERSON, PHILADELPHIA

CLOSING DATE: applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis

Tiny WPA is seeking a Woodworking Teaching Artist/Designer with extensive wood fabrication experience to co-teach its Building Hero Training Program and lead additional educational programming. We’re looking for someone who not only has experience teaching or leading in formal or informal settings, but also finds real joy in helping everyone from teens to seniors design and build projects that positively impact their communities.

The ideal candidate is comfortable experimenting, making mistakes, and learning alongside others, and able to work with, lead, and follow people from diverse ages, genders, and socioeconomic backgrounds. A deep curiosity about how people learn, create, and collaborate is a strong plus.

This role can be part-time, with availability required on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. As Tiny WPA expands its educational offerings, there will also be opportunities to lead in school programming and community workshops. A full-time position would additionally include design and fabrication for contracted projects with community partners. Like all roles at Tiny WPA, this position offers significant room for growth and leadership.

PRIMARY ROLES + RESPONSIBILITIES

Co-Teaching the Building Hero Training Program (Approximately 20 hrs a week, September-December & March-June)

The Building Hero Training is a free 10-week (16-session) program offered in spring (March–June) and fall (September–December) for 10–12 participants. Classes are held at Tiny WPA’s community workshop at 3145 W Jefferson St in Brewerytown on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30–8:00 pm.

Fundamentally different from other design-education initiatives, this action-oriented, product-driven program teaches participants to use design to solve real-life challenges. Participants build products to address personal or community needs while learning hands-on design and fabrication skills through projects like stools, coat racks, and benches. The program concludes with a community-focused build for a local nonprofit or organization. Past projects include renovating a school garden, creating planter benches for supportive housing, and building amenities for Philadelphia Public Pools.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Deliver engaging, high-quality instruction following the established curriculum

  • Coordinate weekly prep with co-teachers, including ordering materials, milling wood, prototyping, and preparing lessons

  • Follow up with participants on attendance, project deadlines, and upcoming lessons

  • Conduct regular assessments, including daily lesson reflections and program-start and program-end evaluations

  • Document and share the program through photos, updates, and stories for social media and communications

  • Assist in planning and preparing the community build project

Leading and Co-Teaching Tiny WPA School Programs and Community Workshops (Approximately 5-10 hrs a week)
Tiny WPA partners with schools and community organizations to lead single-session, multi-week, and months-long design-build workshops. Many of these workshops take place off-site in schools and neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia, with schedules varying based on partnership requests. The one consistent program is our Wednesday afternoon session with high school students from Science Leadership Academy Beeber and Center City.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Teach and lead small-scale building and design projects at partner sites and at Tiny WPA’s workshop

  • Assist with workshop preparation, including creating lesson plans, ordering materials, milling wood, and prototyping

  • Conduct regular assessments, including daily lesson reflections and participant feedback through surveys or other tools

  • Document and share program activities through photos, updates, and stories for social media and communications

QUALIFICATIONS

We are seeking a stellar educator, builder, and community/team builder who is excited to inspire and support learners of all ages.

Experience & Skills:

  • Extensive woodworking and wood fabrication experience, with proficiency on a range of shop machinery

  • 1+ years in a role similar to the responsibilities outlined in this job description

  • Strong commitment to social justice and community impact

  • Comfortable with Google Suite; experience with Adobe products (Illustrator) and CAD software (SketchUp, Fusion, etc.) is a bonus

  • Experience teaching or leading groups of 8–30 people in learning, creative, or service activities

  • Exceptional ability to engage, support, and inspire participants of all ages

  • Strong design sense; please share work or project samples that showcase your aesthetics, whether professional, school, or personal projects (for example, a website, portfolio, or Google Slides)

  • Attention to detail and excellent verbal and written communication skills; over-communication is encouraged in our collaborative environment

  • General project management experience

Physical & Safety Requirements:

  • Ability to lift 50–100 lbs as needed in the workshop

  • Skilled and safe in operating woodworking equipment and other shop machinery

  • Valid driver’s license recommended, but not required

  • Must be able to share or obtain PA Child Abuse, FBI Fingerprinting, and PA Background Check clearances

Preferred Traits:

  • Deep curiosity about how people learn, create, and collaborate

  • Enthusiasm for hands-on problem solving and bringing ideas to life

COMPENSATION

This is an in-person position. Tiny WPA’s workshop is located at 3145 W Jefferson St in Brewerytown. Hours per week can fluctuate depending on teaching requests for programming and workshops (unless position is full-time). The Building Hero Training Program takes place in the Spring and Fall.  

The salary range is $20-30 per hour, depending on experience.

HOW TO APPLY

1 - Please email a cover letter, resume and project samples or portfolio to Megan Lasiter at megan@tinywpa.org. The subject heading of your email should be Teaching Artist: Your Name’. We will review applications on a rolling basis, but hope to fill the position by the end of October.

2 - We need to see how you design and build with others. Schedule a time to design-build for a number of hours with our Building Heroes. You will quickly know if you love or hate how we work and we get to see if you are a good fit for the team.

Tiny WPA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. A diverse staff is critical to our mission. Individuals of diverse interests and backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply.