Language Access Coordinator (External Civil Rights Specialist 4)

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

The Department of Ecology is hiring a Language Access Coordinator (External Civil Rights Specialist 4) within the Office of Equity & Environmental Justice.

Location:

• Headquarters Office in Lacey, WA.
• Upon hire, you must live within a commutable distance from the duty station.

Schedule:

• This position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options.
• Telework is an option for the majority of your work time, however in-person meetings and activities are expected.
• Schedules are dependent upon position needs and are subject to change.

Salary Information:

• The high end of the salary range listed above ($103,536.00) is Step M, typically a longevity step. Employees cannot get to Step M upon initial hire. 
• All employees will progress to Step M six years after being assigned to Step L in their permanent salary range. For this position, Step A is $76,968.00 per year and Step L is $100,980 per year.
  

Application Timeline:

• Submit your application no later than 11:59 p.m. (Pacific Time) on December 14, 2025, to be in the first review of applications. Applications received after this date may not be considered.
• This position will remain open until filled. The agency reserves the right to make a hire at any time after application review begins.

Duties

Everyone deserves a healthy environment and needs access to Ecology’s information and services. Help us reach more of the half million plus people in Washington who speak English “less than very well”. In this role, you will provide crucial support to our environmental programs through guidance, training, and technical assistance, and you will help people connect with language services and builds strategies to reduce barriers to access. Join a unique team in the Office of Equity and Environmental Justice that is working to promote equity across all of the agency’s work. 

What you will do:

• Help make Ecology’s information and services accessible to more Washingtonians by shaping the future of our language access program. 
• Serve as the agency’s subject matter expert on state language access laws and policies, helping programs understand their responsibilities and supporting ongoing efforts to strengthen and assess compliance across the agency.
• Build staff capacity to improve language access through guidance, training, and technical support.
• Advise and strategize with our environmental programs on how best to reach linguistically diverse communities impacted by our broad range of work. 
• Help agency staff quickly and confidently access language services through in-house staff and external vendors.
• Assess progress in our language access program and identify areas for agency growth or improvement.

Qualifications

For detailed information on how we calculate experience, please visit our Recruitment website.

Required Qualifications:

Eight years of experience and/or education as described below:

• Experience with Civil Rights Programs, using an equity lens in analyzing polices, laws, rules, or regulations, and leading others in administering Civil Rights Programs. Civil rights program experience may include civil rights investigation, law, or research; other non-discrimination efforts; or planning, implementing, or directing work in any of the following areas:
  • Language access
    
  • Translation or interpretation services
    
  • Accessibility
    
  • ADA compliance
    
  • Community or Tribal engagement
    
  • Environmental justice
• Education involving a major study in business, public administration, political science, social science, race, gender, or sexuality studies, social justice, equity studies, language, linguistics, communications, law, public health, or related field.

Required knowledge, skills, and abilities:

• Understanding of federal and state language access requirements.
  
• Ability to design and implement language access programs.
  
• Understanding of translation and interpretation standards.
  
• Ability to understand and interpret language services contracts for Ecology staff.
  
• Data tracking and analysis skills.
  
• Ability to plan, implement, and sustain changes to how program staff do language access work.
  
• Excellent project management and communication skills.
  

Examples of how to qualify:

• 8 years of experience.
• 7 years of experience AND 30-59 semester or 45-89 quarter college credits.
• 6 years of experience AND 60-89 semester or 90-134 quarter college credits (Associate’s degree).
• 5 years of experience AND 90-119 semester or 135-179 quarter college credits.
• 4 years of experience AND a Bachelor’s degree.
• 2 years of experience AND a Master’s degree or higher.

Desired Qualifications:

• Language proficiency in English and Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, Russian, or Ukrainian. Ability to read, write, translate, and converse with fluency in both English and one of the other languages.
• Professional or lived experience working with people with limited English proficiency, immigrant communities, or providing language services.

If you are excited about this role but not sure if your experience aligns perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply. Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At the Department of Ecology, we are dedicated to building a diverse and authentic workplace centered in belonging. You may just be the needed candidate for this or other roles.

Supplemental Information

Ecology does not use the E-Verify system; therefore, we are not eligible to extend STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT). For more information, please visit www.uscis.gov.

Application Process

Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified job seekers from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

How to Apply

Click “Apply” at the top of this page. Complete the entire application, including full work history and responses to all supplemental questions, and attach:

• Cover letter, describing your interest in and qualifications for this position
• Resume

Because we base our selection on the information you provide, it is in your best interest to complete the application thoroughly. A resume will not substitute for the “work experience” section of the application or vice versa. Applications with blank fields or supplemental question responses with comments such as “see resume” may be considered incomplete.

For detailed application information, please visit our Recruitment website.

Application Attestation: By submitting an application, you are affirming that the information contained in your application and on all attachments is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information, and any false or misleading answers may result in rejection of your application or dismissal if employed.

Need an Accommodation?

If you need reasonable accommodation during the application and/or screening process, including this job announcement in an alternate format:

• Please contact us at 360-407-6186 or careers@ecy.wa.gov
• If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you may call through the Washington Relay Service by dialing 711 or 1-800-833-6384.

Questions?

• For specific questions about the position's schedule, or duties, please contact Hannah Aoyagi at Hannah.Aoyagi@ecy.wa.gov 
• If you need assistance applying for this job, are inquiring about the status of your application, would like to request the full position description, or have any other questions, please contact the Recruitment Team at careers@ecy.wa.gov

About the Department of Ecology

As the State of Washington’s environmental protection agency, we are deeply committed to protecting, preserving, and enhancing Washington’s environment for current and future generations. Joining Ecology means becoming part of a team dedicated to protecting and sustaining healthy land, air, water, and climate in harmony with a strong economy. A career in public service at Ecology allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Respect (DEIR) are core values central to Ecology's work. We strive to be a workplace where we are esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations.

We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued.

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following: Medical/Dental/Vision for employee & dependent(s), Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), Vacation, Sick, and other Leave, 11 Paid Holidays per year, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Tuition Waiver,  Long Term Disability & Life Insurance, Deferred Compensation Programs, Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP),  Flexible Spending Arrangement (FSA), Employee Assistance Program, Commute Trip Reduction Incentives, Combined Fund Drive, SmartHealth *Click here for more information

To learn more about Ecology, please visit our website, explore Working at Ecology, check out our Strategic Plan, and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or our blog.

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.

Collective Bargaining: This is a position covered by a bargaining unit for which the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE) is the exclusive representative.  

Note: This recruitment may be used to fill other positions of the same job classification across the agency. Once all the position(s) from the recruitment announcement are filled, the recruitment may only be used to fill additional open positions for the next sixty (60) days.