Position Summary:

The Western Regional Coordinator helps grow and support Special Olympics programs across Western Colorado. This role works with schools (preschool through college) to build Unified Sports® and inclusive school programs, while also supporting community outreach, volunteer engagement, and regional fundraising efforts. The position works closely with staff, educators, families, and community partners to make sure constituents feel support and programming continue to grow. This position is based in Grand Junction and requires regular travel throughout Western Colorado, including some evenings and weekends.

Reports to: Western Region Senior Manager

Position Responsibilities:

Community Outreach and Engagement

• Recruit, train, and support new local programs and community-level teams, ensuring strong onboarding.

• Provide day-to-day administrative support to local teams and programs to ensure smooth operations and positive participant experiences.

• Partner with the Western Region team to plan and execute regional events, helping ensure strong local representation and engagement.

• Collaborate across departments to support regional priorities and organizational initiatives.

• Increase awareness by engaging community organizations, service clubs, and public audiences through outreach, presentations, and relationship-building.

• Build and steward relationships with local businesses and community partners to expand the volunteer pipeline and support resource development, including both sponsorship and in-kind support.

Unified Champion Schools Support

• Support the western region team in meeting annual goals for recruiting new school partnerships and expanding Unified Champion Schools and social inclusion activities across the Western Region.
• Provide training and ongoing support to school staff on starting, growing, and sustaining Unified Champion Schools initiatives.
• Partner with the Western Region team to ensure a smooth transition for athletes moving from school-based programs into community teams and year-round participation.
• Create and share clear program guides, tools, and resources to help educators successfully implement Unified Champion Schools programming.
• Serve as a trusted resource to schools to ensure all UCS activities align with Special Olympics Colorado policies, procedures, and standards.
• Conduct meetings and develop communication materials as needed to ensure clear, consistent communication across school programs and districts.
• Support and strengthen school-based programming by helping across Unified Sports, Young Athletes, Red Shirt Rookies, Youth Leadership, Healthy LEAP, SO College, and transition initiatives to ensure successful delivery for athletes, families, educators, and volunteers.

Administrative Operations

• Ensure SOCO policies, procedures, and safety standards are consistently understood and followed by community and school-based partners.

• Support the development, tracking, and stewardship of Western Region community team budgets, ensuring fiscal responsibility and alignment with organizational guidelines.

• Maintain accurate and timely program records, registrations, and reporting to support strong regional operations and organizational data integrity.

• Support the execution and tracking of grant deliverables within the region by coordinating data collection, documentation, and reporting in partnership with internal teams.

• Support SOCO signature fundraisers (Polar Plunge, Train Pull, and Hall of Fame) in the region by promoting events throughout the region and recruiting teams and vendors for the events.

• Support with rostering of school and community-based teams in the western region

Position Requirements:

• Demonstrated commitment to the mission, vision, and values of Special Olympics Colorado
• Education and/or experience equivalent to a bachelor’s degree in a related field
• Ability to build relationships with athletes, families, educators, volunteers, and community partners
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong organizational, planning, and time management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities
• Self-motivated with the ability to work independently and within a collaborative, mission-driven team
• Working knowledge of youth sports, and social inclusion initiatives preferred
• Familiarity with school systems, including experience working with educators or school-based programs
• Experience supporting program implementation, training, or community-based initiatives preferred
• Ability to support coach and educator engagement through training, communication, and resource coordination
• Bilingual skills (Spanish and/or American Sign Language) strongly preferred
• Willingness to support cross-departmental initiatives and contribute to a strong team culture
• Flexibility to work evenings and weekends as needed to support events and programs
• Ability to travel independently throughout the region and state
• Ability to lift and carry up to 30 pounds and operate a computer for extended periods
• Successful completion of a background check following a conditional offer of employment
• All other duties as assigned

Benefits:

Our comprehensive benefits package includes Health, Dental and Vision Insurance; Life, AD&D and Long-Term Disability Insurance; Flexible Spending Accounts, a 401K plan with a 2% company match at the end of the year. SOCO has a “Flexible Time Off” policy, offers paid holidays, paid family leave, and employees are eligible for 5-week sabbatical every 5 years of service with the organization. Additionally, we offer flexible work hours as allowable per the job responsibilities and professional development opportunities annually. We are willing to consider candidates outside of Colorado but are unable to provide a relocation package for this position.

Compensation:

Application Process:

Interested applicants should email the following to HR@specialolympicsco.org:

– Cover letter (1-page or less) that includes why you want to join the Special Olympics Colorado team and why you feel this position is a good fit for you.

– Resume

A complete application is required for consideration for this position.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:

Special Olympics Colorado is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

Updated 4/2026

Application Process:

Please email both documents to HR@SpecialOlympicsCO.org.