Enter a job title or keyword
Foster & Placement Coordinator
Job Location:
Hourly Salary:
Posted:
6 October 2026 (3 days ago)
Posted:
Application Deadline:
3 January 2027
Application Deadline:
Vacancies:
1 Vacancy
Vacancies:
Job Summary
Foster & Placement Coordinator
APA! BACKGROUND: Austin Pets Alive! (APA!) is one of Austins most dynamic and beloved nonprofits. The organization leads the No Kill movement nationally and is considered a national thought leader in animal welfare. APA! locally rescues treats and adopts thousands of homeless dogs and cats each year providing a critical safety net for some of the regions most at-risk shelter pets and helping Austin remain a No Kill city. APA! also works alongside communities and animal welfare organizations to expand lifesaving capacity beyond Austin.
The organization is distinguished by its large volunteer workforce grassroots spirit and innovative community-based approach to animal welfare. APA! continues to develop and share lifesaving best practices nationally through American Pets Alive! its national division. American Pets Alive! also leads Human Animal Support Services (HASS) an initiative focused on rethinking traditional animal sheltering by supporting people and pets within their communities reducing unnecessary shelter intake and strengthening collaboration between animal welfare organizations and community-based services.
OUR EXPANDING WORK IN HAYS COUNTY: APA! is building upon this community-centered approach through an exciting partnership initiative in Hays County. Through Hays County Pets Alive! a locally led and operated initiative launched by Austin Pets Alive! APA! is working in partnership with PAWS Shelter of Central Texas to strengthen lifesaving programs expand resources for pets and the people who love them and build greater animal welfare capacity across Hays County.
PAWS Shelter of Central Texas has served Dripping Springs Kyle and surrounding communities for decades providing no-kill sheltering and compassionate care for homeless pets. This partnership brings together PAWS longstanding connection to the Hays County community with APA!s lifesaving programs resources and experience to support the continued growth of animal welfare services throughout the region.
Team members supporting this work may have the opportunity to collaborate across Austin Pets Alive! PAWS Shelter of Central Texas and Hays County Pets Alive! as these organizations and initiatives work together toward shared lifesaving goals.
Learn more about PAWS Shelter of Central Texas at .
BRIEF POSITION SUMMARY/OVERVIEW:
The Foster & Placement Coordinator plays a key role in advancing the goals of APA! with a focus on foster recruitment foster retention and advancing other pet placement pathways at the PAWS Kyle location. This position contributes directly to APA!s mission to increase the live release rate across Texas by supporting a sustainable inclusive and high-impact model for shelter operations. This role recruits matches and supports foster families to expand shelter capacity improve animal outcomes and help more animals move successfully from the shelter to homes.
The Foster & Placement Coordinator is responsible for managing their daily responsibilities maintaining clear priorities and delivering consistent high-quality work that aligns with APA!s values and goals. This includes staying organized using data or feedback to inform decisions and following through on key tasks and responsibilities with minimal oversight. This is a hands-on mission-driven role focused on results reliability and teamwork.
APA! is a volunteer-centric organization. Every staff member is expected to work alongside and support volunteers. The Foster & Placement Coordinator collaborates closely with volunteers to complete day-to-day tasks helps create a positive and inclusive environment and actively contributes to a culture of shared effort and mutual respect.
This position involves shift flexibility weekend hours and high responsiveness.
Every individual at APA! is responsible for working in collaboration with volunteers; making sure volunteers are recruited trained and feel impactful through their efforts at APA!. A core part of this role is creating a welcoming and empowering experience for volunteers including assisting with onboarding training and volunteer engagement as part of the day-to-day workflow.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
- Serve as a primary point of contact for foster families throughout their foster experience
- Develop and implement ongoing strategies to recruit new foster families
- Respond to foster inquiries and guide prospective fosters through the onboarding process
- Maintain an active pipeline of prospective foster families
- Conduct foster orientations trainings and informational sessions
- Maintain an up-to-date understanding of available foster homes and their individual capacities
- Coordinate foster placements transfers extensions and returns
- Help foster families prepare animals for adoption
- Coach fosters and staff on system-level awareness of placement urgency so pets do not get stuck in foster homes
- Provide excellent customer service and follow APA placement guidelines and policies
- Build rapport with foster families creating a welcoming foster community and environment
- Identify foster opportunities for animals who are difficult to place in traditional shelter housing
- Monitor shelter population and foster capacity daily and identify opportunities to move appropriate animals into foster care
- Ensure fosters receive appropriate information supplies medications and instructions before an animal goes home
- Help fosters troubleshoot problems and identify practical solutions that allow placements to remain successful
- Monitor foster program data including recruitment retention placement returns and outcomes
- Build a foster community where people feel connected to one another and to the shelters mission
- Actively contribute to a volunteer-powered culture by partnering with volunteers during every shift and helping create an inclusive welcoming environment
- Work alongside volunteers to complete daily tasks ensuring the work is shared and collaborative
- Support the recruitment and onboarding process by welcoming new volunteers and helping them get oriented to the program
- Help retain volunteers by offering encouragement guidance and feedback during shared work
- Recommend strong volunteers for deeper involvement or specialized roles to your supervisor or volunteer manager
- Contribute to a positive culture by recognizing volunteer contributions through appreciation gratitude and shoutouts
- Help set volunteers up for success by clearly explaining tasks providing hands-on guidance and offering in-the-moment supporT
- Job duties may include some or all of the above and other duties as assigned by manager
OTHER FUNCTIONS:
- Must demonstrate dependability accountability time management use of reasoning and good judgment skills
- Attend and participate in all required training sessions and meetings
- Maintain open and consistent communication with supervisor and other colleagues
- Partner with Volunteer Managers to learn about the volunteer programs and support volunteers interested in your department on an ongoing basis
- Able to react to change productively and perform other related duties as assigned
- Able to work evenings weekends and holidays as needed
- Able to work in a high-volume fast-paced high-stress environment
- Comfortable working autonomously when given goals and deadlines
QUALIFICATIONS SKILLS & EXPECTATIONS:
- Committed to embodying APA!s Core Values: Innovation Respect Drive Resourcefulness and Inclusion and cultural values: Humble Hungry Smart
- Commitment to APA!s customer experience expectations
- Passion for working well with staff volunteers and customershelping all individuals feel successful appreciated and connected to APA!s mission
- Strong commitment to volunteer engagement and support; dedicated to working well with volunteers across all roles
- Comfortable working cross-functionally and serving as a liaison between volunteers customers and team members
- Effective written and verbal communication skills; able to interpret rules procedures and instructional materials
- Self-starter with strong time management; able to work independently and collaboratively
- Excellent interpersonal skills; maintains a calm and professional presence in all situations
- Strong attention to detail and high standards for quality
- Adaptable to change and able to perform related duties as needed
- Dedicated to delivering an exceptional and inclusive customer experience
- Comfort and skill with technology including software use spreadsheet management data entry etc.
PHYSICAL JOB REQUIREMENTS:
- Must be able to routinely lift 40-50 pounds
- Must be able to work around animals (including diseased injured and/or potentially aggressive animals) loud noises chlorine or other chemicals and inclement weather
- Must be able to comfortably interact with cats/dogs of various health levels including cats who may carry zoonotic diseases such as ringworm scabies intestinal parasites etc.
- Must be able to walk big dogs that pull and jump
- Able to be on your feet for multiple hours of the day
- Must be able to visually observe people and animals from up to 150 feet away
- Ability to hear normal speech at close contact and shouting up to 150 feet away with the ability to hear and discern dog vocalizations both soft and loud
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
- If reasonable accommodations are requested reasonable accommodations will be made to enable employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job absent undue hardship to the organization.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
- Possible exposure to contagious diseases
- Rapid pace with exposure to potential hazards including animal waste disinfectants and high levels of noise
- Potential for animal bites and scratches and diseases that can be transmitted from animals to people
- Occasional after-hours or weekend work may be required to support program needs
TIME COMMITMENT:
- This is a full-time exempt position with an average of 40 hours per week.
- Shift and schedule flexibility is required as weekly schedule is subject to change
- Able to work evenings weekends and holidays as needed
PAY:
This position starts at $40000 / Year. Eligible employees will be able to receive up to $2/hr stipend within approximately 6 months through successful completion of internal APATec certifications (applicable to shelter operations customer service and medical roles). *Certifications and stipends are discretionary and subject to change based on business need.
WORKING RELATIONSHIPS: This position reports directly to the PAWS Shelter Director & Manager currently Mara Hartsell or another individual designated by APA!.
LOCATION(S):
- PAWS Kyle 500 FM 150 East Kyle TX 78640
- May travel to offsite locations as needed
BENEFITS:
Austin Pets Alive! is proud to offer a competitive benefits package for full-time employees including subsidized employer-sponsored medical coverage subsidized and voluntary life insurance voluntary dental vision and short-term disability options all effective the first day of employment. We also offer voluntary wellness and emergency sick plans up to 2% match on 401(K) retirement plan supplemental benefits flexible spending accounts and additional life coverage. Full-time employees receive 10 paid holidays and accrue 10 days paid time off during the first year of employment with an additional 5 days of PTO accrual upon completion of 12 months of employment. Employees will also receive professional development opportunities through APA!s ongoing mission to advance our animal welfare professionals in our life-saving work.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND ACCOMMODATIONS STATEMENT
Hays County Pets Alive! A program of Austin Pets Alive! is an equal employment opportunity employer and we value having staff who come from communities that are most impacted by the issues we engage on. We especially encourage people of color LGBTQ people women transgender and gender non-conforming people and people with disabilities to apply.
Austin Pets Alive! does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race color religion sex national origin age disability veteran status marital status sexual orientation gender identity or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Austin Pets Alive! is committed to creating a dynamic work environment that values diversity and inclusion respect and integrity community focus and innovation.
APA! is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in the employment application process. To request an accommodation please contact Talent Acquisition at at least one week in advance of your interview.
Required Experience:
IC
About Company
Austin Pets Alive! is not your average animal shelter. We pioneer innovative lifesaving programs designed to save the animals most at risk of euthanasia.
