Stewardship Director Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Salary: $130,000.00 - $160,000.00 Annually
Location : Thurston County - Lacey, WA
Job Type: Exempt
Remote Employment: Flexible/Hybrid
Job Number: 2026-04973
Department: Parks and Recreation Commission
Opening Date: 06/23/2026
Description
Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
Job Title: Stewardship Director (Exempt Band 04)
Location: Lacey, WA.
Compensation: The annual range of compensation is between $130,000 - $160,000 depending upon qualifications, although the expected hiring salary will typically be less than the top of the range, to allow for growth and development movement.
Closes: This posting will remain open until filled. It is in the candidate's best interest to apply before July 6th, 2026, when the first review of applicants will be completed. The hiring authority reserves the right to fill this position at any time after that date without notice.
About the Opportunity
is seeking an experienced and strategic leader to serve as its next Stewardship Director. As one of the largest and most diverse state park systems in the country, Washington State Parks has a significant responsibility to protect and manage the system's resources for today's visitors and for generations to come. Stewardship is a critical lens for State Parks through which all work should be considered. It is a pillar of our mission, and a healthy, protected, and responsible park system is essential to providing a successful visitor experience.
The Stewardship Director is a member of the agency's executive team and leads the agency's work on natural and cultural resources, environmental compliance, climate change adaptation and sustainability, and GIS. The position advises the agency's Director, Executive Leadership Team, and Commission on stewardship related matters, furthering the agency's mission, vision, values, and goals.
Aa a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the Stewardship Director also serves as a critical thinker on high level agency matters brought to the team, providing input and advice based on their professional experience and perspective.
The position works closely with the directors of Park Operations and Parks Development to ensure stewardship is fully integrated into day-to-day park operations, maintenance projects, capital planning, land acquisitions, and other critical work. The position also works with the agency's Office of Tribal Relations in managing the work of cultural resources, ensuring compliance with various federal and state cultural resource regulations while working with tribal entities in a respectful manner based in cultural humility. This position plays an important part in the agency's success both within Stewardship and throughout all the agency's work.
The ideal candidate will be an experienced, strategic, and effective leader - one who can demonstrate their ability to guide a team of committed technical experts towards a shared vision. Maintaining a long-term perspective in a landscape of competing stewardship needs is essential.We are looking for someone who establishes and maintains credibility, who will share their voice to inform and influence in a positive way. A leader who can build effective partnerships and gain the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity and authenticity. A strong communicator who is knowledgeable of and embraces concepts critical to stewardship in a land management organization and ensuring the agency delivers on its commitments to the public, legislature, tribal and local government partners.
At State Parks, your work is mission-driven and deeply meaningful to care for Washington's most treasured lands, waters, and historic places. State Parks connect all Washingtonians to their diverse natural and cultural heritage and provide memorable recreational and educational experiences that enhance their lives.
Duties
The Stewardship Director leads and supervises a team of professionals in multiple technical disciplines including natural and cultural resource stewardship, environmental compliance, climate adaptation and sustainability, and GIS. The position encourages and ensures that the division's managers and staff are effectively coordinating their efforts with one another, with staff from other divisions and functional areas, other governmental agencies, and other individual and institutional stakeholders.

• Natural Resources: The position directs, guides, monitors, and evaluates performance of the agency's Natural Resources Program, including assessing, planning, prioritizing, and developing policy and practices for treating the state park system's natural resources. This area includes evaluating recreational impacts on the agency's natural resources and collaborating with sister agencies on management approaches. This area also includes a comprehensive program of tree risk management, including ongoing assessment, evaluation and on-the-ground treatment of forest pathogens and potential structural failure of individual trees in developed landscapes, as well as forest health management. This area also involves extensive work with tribes to ensure agency compliance with the United States v. Washington culvert sub-proceeding.
• Cultural Resources: The position directs, guides, monitors, and evaluates performance of the agency's archaeology, historic preservation, and collections staff, including assessing, planning, prioritizing, and developing policy and practices for managing the agency's cultural resources. This area includes managing capital funds related to historic property treatments and caring for a large array of artifacts. This area also involves consulting with tribes on agency activities, in compliance with various federal and state cultural resource regulations.
• Environmental: The position directs, guides, monitors, and evaluates performance of the agency's Environmental Program, including assessing, planning, prioritizing, and developing policy and practices for agency compliance with environmental regulations. This area includes complex legal risk management decisions associated with agency State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) implementation.
• Climate and Sustainability: The position directs, guides, monitors, and evaluates performance of the agency's Climate and Sustainability Program, including leading, guiding, and promoting climate change adaptation and sustainability initiatives statewide. This area includes developing the agency's biennial greenhouse gas reduction plan. This area works closely with agency staff statewide to implement the agency's climate change adaptation efforts, mainstream climate resilience efforts, and ensure the use of sustainable practices that protect the natural environment and reduce the agency's carbon footprint.
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS): The position directs, guides, monitors, and evaluates performance of the agency's GIS program, including developing, acquiring, and deploying technology to meet the agency's spatial data needs. This area includes GIS application development, data development, maintenance, analysis, programming, cartography, instructional materials, technical support, and software license management for GIS users agencywide.
• The position is ultimately responsible for the complete, inclusive, and timely delivery of the division's services and products. This work includes leading, guiding, and directing preparation of multiple program budgets and work plans, monitoring budgets and implementing work plans, and evaluating and improving the performance of program managers/coordinators.
• As a member of the Director's executive team, this position seeks and provides advice from other team members and coordinates the work of division staff with other agency divisions and programs. The position advises the Director on matters in the division's purview and prepares recommendations for consideration and formal action by the Director and Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (Commission). These actions typically affect the entire state park system, agency-wide policy or practice, or significantly affect an individual park or resource asset.

Position, Availability and Travel Requirements:
This position is based out of Parks Headquarters in Lacey, WA. Work schedule is Monday - Friday 8:00 am to 5:00pm; a compressed schedule or hybrid telework may be an option. This position requires the ability to travel to remote places throughout the state, which may include overnight travel.
Qualifications
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree** with major study in a natural or cultural resources field, such as biology, geology, anthropology, archaeology, historic preservation, environmental science, or closely related field; OR **advanced senior/executive level professional leadership experience in biology, geology, anthropology, archaeology, historic preservation, and environmental science, or closely related field will substitute on a year for year basis.
• Seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in project and program management that includes supervision of senior level leaders, budget management, and delegated decision-making authority.
• Ability to travel statewide.

**Additional years of qualifying experience may substitute year for year for education.
REQUIRED COMPETENCIES: Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Advanced or Expert Level Technical Expertise and Knowledge of Stewardship Management to include:
  • Natural Resource Management: Expert understanding of direct management practices for biological and environmental assets.
  • Cultural Resource Management: Deep familiarity with preserving, documenting, and managing heritage and historical assets.
  • Geographic Information Systems (GIS): Technical knowledge of spatial data mapping and analysis technologies.
  • Climate Adaptation & Mitigation: Structural awareness of policy mechanisms and technical practices to address climate vulnerabilities.
  • Environmental Regulations: Functional understanding of local, tribal, and federal compliance frameworks.
• Executive Leadership & Supervision: Demonstrated experience overseeing a team of high-level, technical, and interdisciplinary programs or divisions. Experience working directly with and advising executive level leadership and governing bodies.
• Advanced Oral and Written Communication Skills: Demonstrated experience making oral presentations to large groups, executive level groups, and governing bodies. Experience preparing verbal and written reports, memoranda, and decision documents for consideration and action by an organization director or governing board.
• Strategic Planning: Demonstrated experience identifying organizational issues and opportunities and strategically develop plans, secure support of an organization's executive leadership or commission, and direct initiatives that effectively address them and bring them to a successful conclusion.
• Budgetary Management, Contract & Financial Negotiation: Experience managing multiple high-level program budgets and aligning resources with work plans. Formulating, pricing, and structuring complex legal and financial agreements where no clear precedence exists.
• Policy Interpretation & Implementation: Demonstrated experience identifying policy needs and developing, recommending, and implementing policy across divisions. Ability to translate complex legal, policy, and technical information into clear communications.
• Commitment to learning and growth: Experience considering and incorporating new information and different perspective; and practicing self-awareness by reflecting on personal strengths, growth areas, and biases.
• Takes action to meet the needs of others: Experience adapting communication and approaches to different communities and individuals, welcoming and valuing different identities and perspectives and experience increasing access, opportunities, and positive outcomes for others.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Advanced degree such as master's and/or PHD with major study in a natural or cultural resources field, such as biology, geology, anthropology, archaeology, environmental science, or closely related field.
• Experience working with tribes on complex natural and cultural resource issues.

HOW TO APPLY:
To ensure consideration, please complete the online job application and profile at

• Letter of Interest - Specifically describing how you meet the required competencies and your qualifications that make you the best candidate for this position.
• Chronological Resume

To take advantage of veteran preference, please do the following:

• Attach a copy of your DD214 (Member 4 long-form copy), NGB 22, or USDVA signed verification of service letter.
• Please black out any PII (personally identifiable information) data such as social security numbers. Include your name as it appears on your application in careers.wa.gov.
• For more information on Veteran's Preference and instructions on how to check your eligibility, click

Supplemental Information
About Parks:
The provides policy direction for one of the largest, most diverse, and beautiful state parks systems in the country. The state park system is comprised of 124 state parks and properties covering over 138,000 acres throughout the state. The park system includes marine parks, heritage sites, historic parks, interpretive centers, retreat centers, ocean beaches and hundreds of miles of trails. The agency is also responsible for the state's winter recreation program, boating safety and vessel pump out program and numerous contracted concession operations. The Washington State Parks and Recrea