Coach, NYRR Striders Program (C3) (Part-Time)
About NYRR
New York Road Runners (NYRR) was founded in 1958 when a small group of passionate runners vowed to bring running to the people and has grown from a local running club into the world’s premier community running organization. NYRR’s mission is to help and inspire through running, aiming to empower people of all ages and abilities to improve their health and well-being through the power of running and fitness.
NYRR’s year-round offerings of races, community events, programs, and training resources provide hundreds of thousands of people with the motivation, know-how, and opportunities to start running and keep running for life. NYRR’s premier event, the famed TCS New York City Marathon, attracts the world’s top professional runners and committed amateurs alike, while also raising millions of dollars annually for charity and driving economic impact for New York City. NYRR is equally committed to the runners of tomorrow, passionately providing youth fitness programs that educate and inspire children in underserved communities in New York City, nationwide, and around the world.
Headquartered in New York City, NYRR is a 501(c)(3) organization. To learn more, please visit www.nyrr.org.
New York Road Runners is an Equal Opportunity Employer
About the Department
The Community Impact department encompasses our Youth and Community Program Teams, Community Engagement, and Development & Philanthropy.
NYRR is one of the largest non-profit providers of youth and community fitness programming in New York City (with a growing national/international footprint). Our Youth Program team develops, administers, and supports an evolving portfolio of youth running programs and resources used by schools, community centers, and families throughout New York City and nationwide. Our flagship youth program, Rising New York Road Runners, brings the benefits of physical activity to various sites, predominantly in lower-income communities, to help children develop the ability, confidence, and desire to be physically active for life.
Our Community Program team develops, administers, and supports a wide portfolio of programs including our renowned Striders walking/fitness program for older adults, our Open Run platform that provides free running and walking racing and community-building opportunities in parks across the city, and bespoke programs such as Run for the Future and Youth Ambassadors that provide deep engagement with targeted groups.
Our Community Engagement function helps coordinate our community outreach efforts to better understand our various stakeholders, including the needs of our local and global running communities. The team manages relationships with local running clubs/crews, like-minded nonprofits, neighborhood coalitions, local businesses and chambers of commerce, government entities (city, state, national), industry partners, etc.
The Development & Philanthropy function is responsible for securing financial support from individuals, foundations, and corporations. It also oversees Team for Kids (an event-based peer-to-peer fundraising platform that recruits participants to fundraise in NYRR and other events), and NYRR’s membership program, which is designed to enhance runner's engagement with the running community and their experience at NYRR events. Overall, Development & Philanthropy is responsible for expanding and diversifying the organization’s funder base, furthering the potential for future fundraising efforts, and retaining of the growing base of donors who share NYRR’s passion and commitment of helping and inspiring all people through running.
About the Position
NYRR Striders is a fitness and walking program for older adults. Coaches lead weekly walking and fitness sessions that incorporate several types of activities for all levels of older adults, in both indoor and outdoor settings. Most sessions are conducted in local parks and senior neighborhood centers throughout all five boroughs of New York City. NYRR Striders holds weekly sessions, with most program hours occurring between Monday-Friday mornings and afternoons. However, occasional weekends are required to support organized NYRR or partner events for Striders’ participants.
Coaches support all efforts to foster a safe and inclusive environment and create a culture that allows for formidable team cohesion. In addition to providing instruction and leading activities, the coach will also perform administrative duties, such as attendance, attending regular training and team meetings. Coaches will also communicate regularly with internal program staff, participants and site leads about program sessions and upcoming events.
Job Responsibilities:
- Lead a group fitness and/or walking session for an older adult population, including people from diverse backgrounds, and all physical activity levels (primarily novice level walkers/runners).
- Prepare and implement Striders’ Walking and Beyond curriculum, as directed, utilizing the support from coaches as required for activities.
- Ensure all participants are supported throughout each session and finish the session safely.
- Arrive to various locations promptly and as assigned.
- Complete daily attendance, participant enrollment, and other administrative tasks required for program implementation.
- Attend staff meetings, required program curriculum trainings and program events.
- Respond to participant questions and provide feedback, as appropriate, during and after workouts.
- Maintain regular communication with Specialist and Director of Striders Program about site and participant needs, and program logistics.
- Must commit to total time per session of 90 minutes. Workout’s average 60 minutes in length, and coaches are expected to arrive 15 minutes ahead of time and are encouraged to stay and answer questions for up to 15 minutes after each workout concludes.
Job Requirements:
Experience:
- 5+ years in fitness instruction or coaching older adult and/or non-traditional populations.
- 1+ year of prior coaching experience in any sport and/or experience with training runners/walkers
- Knowledge of best practices in older adult fitness and an understanding of age-related needs.
- Experience teaching group exercise, dance, or older adult fitness specialties is beneficial
- Experience with physical therapy, yoga, or geriatric care desirable.
- Experience working with older adults in virtual/remote learning setting helpful.
- Fluency in another language is a plus, particularly Spanish, or Chinese
Education
- Senior Fitness, Group Fitness, and/or Running Coach certified from a nationally recognized program (ACE, NASM, AFFA, APFA, ISSA, USATF, RRCA) preferred.
- First Aid and CPR/AED certification (or willingness to obtain certification through NYRR sponsored training)
- Bachelor’s Degree or college experience preferred.
- Safesport and NYS Mandated Reporter training (or willingness to obtain certification)
- Knowledge of Physical Literacy (or willingness to attend online or in-person workshops through NYRR sponsored training).
- Knowledge of COVID-19 Prevention procedures (or willingness to implement and enforce safety protocols as required by centers)
Skills and Attributes:
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to coach and implement training plan for novice-advanced fitness/walker/runner participants.
- Punctuality and dependability; Attendance at team events is required.
- Collaborative skills to build and sustain team cohesion.
- Ability to simultaneously coach and effectively demonstrate and cue proper fitness technique and walking activities
- Ability to facilitate games and team bonding activities to create a dedicated team environment.
- Ability to motivate and encourage new fitness and walker/runner participants.
- Ability to implement effective conflict resolution as needed.
- Flexibility to work nights and weekends as needed for the organization’s events and attend training sessions.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite
- Comfortable with and willing to travel throughout NYC. Knowledge of NYC neighborhoods a plus.
Hourly Rate: $45.00