Program assistant Jobs in Milwaukee, WI

Program Coordinator

Milwaukee, WI

Hourly Pay: $23.50-$24.50, based on relevant experience

Employment Type: Full-time, non-exempt

Work Setting: Combination of office, remote, and field-based work, with regular travel throughout eastern Wisconsin

Connect local farms to local families. Build partnerships. Help strengthen Wisconsin's local food system.

Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is hiring a relationship-focused and highly organized Program Coordinator to help connect locally produced food with communities across eastern Wisconsin.

This is not a desk-only coordination role. You will work directly with farmers and food producers, support local food purchasing, help coordinate food distributions, track program activity, and bring together internal teams and external partners to keep projects moving.

If you enjoy building relationships, organizing moving pieces, getting out into the community, and seeing the direct impact of your work, this role offers a unique opportunity to combine food systems, agriculture, logistics, and hunger relief.

What You Can Expect

• Hourly pay of $23.50-$24.50, based on relevant experience
• A role that combines relationship building, project coordination, local food purchasing, and field work
• Opportunities to work directly with Wisconsin farmers and food producers
• Regular visits to farms, distribution sites, and community partner locations
• Hands-on involvement in local food initiatives and food distributions, including leading regular distribution events throughout the Milwaukee community
• Collaboration with procurement, warehouse, logistics, volunteer, and community-facing teams
• A chance to help strengthen the local food system while supporting people experiencing food insecurity
• Variety in your workday, with a combination of office, remote, and field-based responsibilities

Benefits

Full-time employees are eligible for a comprehensive benefits package that includes:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Safe Harbor 401(k) match of 100% on the first 4% contributed, with immediate vesting
• Employer HSA contribution for eligible employees
• Paid time off and paid holidays
• Personal Day and Floating Holiday
• Volunteer Time Off
• Employer-paid basic life and AD&D insurance
• Short-term and long-term disability coverage
• Paid parental leave
• Employee assistance program
• Professional development and training opportunities
• Mission-driven work supporting communities across eastern Wisconsin

What You Will Do

• Coordinate the sourcing and purchasing of locally produced food based on organizational needs, funding requirements, and nutrition priorities.
• Build and maintain relationships with farms and food producers to support a reliable pipeline of locally sourced products.
• Coordinate pricing documentation, contracts, purchasing processes, and other information with producers and internal teams.
• Track seasonal availability, producer capacity, purchasing activity, and product movement to support planning and decision-making.
• Help coordinate food distributions and local food initiatives by bringing together the right internal teams and external partners.
• Work closely with warehouse, logistics, volunteer, procurement, and event teams to support smooth execution.
• Maintain project timelines, task tracking, communication plans, and other documentation.
• Onboard new producers and help them understand program requirements, timelines, purchasing processes, and logistics expectations.
• Participate in farm visits, agricultural events, and community meetings to build and maintain relationships.
• Coordinate activities connected to programs such as MealConnect, FarmLink, and Local Food for Neighbors.
• Maintain required program documentation, reporting, and compliance records.
• Track program metrics and assist with budget tracking and reconciliation related to local food purchasing and programs.
• Prepare reports and information for internal and external stakeholders.
• Coordinate harvesting schedules, product readiness, and logistics information between producers and internal teams.
• Travel throughout eastern Wisconsin and occasionally statewide to farms, producers, distribution sites, and partner locations.

What You Bring

Required Qualifications

• Experience in procurement, purchasing, sourcing, or supply chain coordination, preferably within food or agriculture.
• Experience working with farms or food producers of varying sizes.
• Experience coordinating projects, programs, or initiatives involving multiple stakeholders.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities while keeping projects and people aligned.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively across departments and with external partners.
• Comfort working in a role that includes both administrative coordination and field-based work.
• Valid driver's license and ability to travel regularly throughout the service area.
• Ability to occasionally work evenings and weekends as program or distribution needs require.
• Commitment to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin's mission and the communities we serve.

Preferred Qualifications

• Background in food systems, agriculture, or nonprofit food distribution.
• Experience coordinating food distributions, operational events, or logistics.
• Familiarity with contracts, purchasing processes, or vendor coordination.
• Experience with hunger-relief or food-access organizations.
• Experience supporting grant-funded programs and reporting requirements.
• Multilingual skills, especially Spanish and/or Hmong.
• Experience working with culturally diverse communities.

What Will Help You Succeed

You do not need to be an expert in every part of the food supply chain. You do need to be someone who can build relationships, stay organized, communicate clearly, and keep multiple moving pieces on track.

The strongest candidates will be:

• Comfortable building relationships with farmers, producers, community partners, and internal teams
• Highly organized without losing sight of the bigger picture
• Detail-oriented when it comes to documentation, purchasing, and program requirements
• Comfortable moving between an office, farm, warehouse, distribution site, and community setting
• Collaborative and able to work across teams without needing to own every decision
• Adaptable and solutions-focused when plans change
• Interested in strengthening local food systems and expanding access to nutritious food

Physical and Working Conditions

This position includes a combination of office work, remote work, regular travel, and field-based responsibilities. Farm visits and distribution activities may involve outdoor environments, warehouses, and changing weather conditions.

The employee must be able to:

• Travel regularly to farms, producers, distribution sites, and partner locations
• Work in warehouse and cold-storage environments, including temperatures as low as approximately -10 degrees Fahrenheit
• Lift and move up to 50 pounds
• Walk, stand, bend, twist, climb, reach, kneel, and squat as needed during field and operational activities
• Wear closed-toed shoes and appropriate protective or cold-weather clothing when required

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.

About Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin

Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is the leading local hunger-relief organization in the state, with locations in Milwaukee and Appleton.

Founded in 1982, we are a local and independent member of the Feeding America network. Together with our community partners, donors, volunteers, and supporters, we serve nearly half a million people experiencing food insecurity across 35 counties in eastern Wisconsin each year.

Our local food work helps create stronger connections between Wisconsin producers and the communities we serve. This position helps turn those relationships into action by coordinating the people, products, programs, and logistics needed to move locally sourced food where it can make a difference.

Apply Today

If you are someone who enjoys building relationships, coordinating projects, working with local food producers, and turning plans into action, we would love to hear from you.