Job Title: Education
Program Coordinator
Requisition Number: I1716
Area of Interest: Education
Position Type: Full Time
Location: Afghanistan/Kabul
Reports to: Country
Representative
Supervises: National
Deputy M&E Manager (Education)
National
Education Technical Advisor
Job Summary:
CRS began supporting development efforts in
Afghanistan in 1998 as a member of the Caritas Network, and launched direct
program operations in Afghanistan in early 2002. CRS currently works in Bamyan,
Daykundi, Ghor, Herat and Kabul Provinces.
The CRS strategic plan for Afghanistan focuses on
poverty and risk reduction, human development and emergency response in rural
areas in western and central Afghanistan. CRS works to:
- Support rural livelihoods that are
sustainable and accessible
- Strengthen human assets such as
professional skills, basic education, and life skills
- Strengthen the resilience and coping
mechanisms of poor communities
CRS-Education Program Summary
Education is highly valued in Afghanistan and
since 2001 school enrollment has increased from 900,000 to more than 7.3
million children in 2011. But despite these gains, approximately 5 million
school-aged children are still out of school, nearly 70% of whom are girls. In
addition, only 26% of the population is estimated to be literate—which drops to
10% for women and girls in rural areas. In 2005, CRS Afghanistan initiated
a long-term strategy for rural education based on the Community Based Education
model (CBE) in Western and Central Afghanistan. CBE classes have
brought hundreds of thousands of children into the education system in areas
where villages are too far from a government school. The program focused on
quality, local ownership and sustainability. Villages set up school shuras (or
school management committees) to select and support a local teacher and find an
appropriate space for the class. CRS provides technical training and
support to teachers and shuras as well as classroom supplies.
CRS also liaises with the District, Provincial and National Education
Departments to have the schools, teachers and students registered as part of
the formal system. Community-based schools use the national educational
curriculum and are designed to be handed over to the MoE.
The CRS/Afghanistan education program is currently
implementing three large multi-million dollar, multi-year community based
education grants.
CRS works in a consortium with CARE, IRC and AKF to
implement the Canadian DFATD-funded Basic Education in Afghanistan
Consortium (BEACON). The three-year program (2012-2015)
will expand upon the gains built and lessons learned through the previous
PACE-A consortium (funded by USAID) to continue providing CBE class throughout
Afghanistan ensuring that children, especially girls, in marginalized
communities have access to quality learning opportunities. Through
BEACON, CRS has supported more than 250 CBE classes in Bamyan, Ghor and Herat
provinces with more than 6,200 students (61% female).
CRS is a member of the DFID-funded, Aga Khan
Foundation (AKF)-led Steps Toward Afghan Girls’ Educational Success (STAGES)
program running from June 2013 through March 2016. CRS’ portion of
the grant enables support of an estimated 2100 primary school aged boys and
girls to access education in 65 different communities (totaling 80 classes) in
Ghor and Herat Province.
In January 2014, CRS received confirmation from
Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD) for a
5-year, $6.2 million CBE project to be implemented in 110 communities
(supporting 132 new CBE classes). CRS intends to open new classes in Ghor,
Herat and Bamyan Provinces, and to expand activities to Daykundi Province – a
remote and underserved region of Afghanistan. While education
activities for this project will be very similar to those under BEACON and
STAGES, a randomized control trial conducted by New York University (NYU) will
complement the implementation of the Community Based Education
Enrichment Program(CBEEP) program.
Primary Role:
The primary role of the Education Program
Coordinator is to oversee and guide the quality management,
implementation, and strategic direction of the CRS education projects in
Afghanistan.
The Education Program Coordinator will supervise the
Bamyan, Daykundi, Ghor, Herat and Kabul education programs, providing overall
program guidance, budget management, linkages with the STAGES and BEACON
program management unit and new consortiums, and liaising with New York
University, the Afghanistan Ministry of Education at various levels, and
non-government actors. The Education Program Coordinator will also
guide the development of partnership building and alliances, spearheading
initiatives to strengthen the capacity of local NGOs/partner organizations. The
Education Program Coordinator will also be responsible for fundraising by
developing multi-year program and funding strategies, proposals, and
budgets.
CRS Afghanistan Education Program’s USD $3 million
(FY15) portfolio includes multi-year funding from 4 donor sources and CRS
private funding. The near term (2014-2016) funding outlook for the
education program is quite strong. The CRS Afghanistan Education program is
implemented by a team of nearly 75 staff in Bamyan, Daykundi, Ghor, Herat and
Kabul Provinces and one partner organization supported out of its Kabul office.
Specific Responsibilities:
The Education Program Coordinator will oversee all
aspects of the implementation of the Education Program in the Afghanistan
Country Program, including staff supervision, recruitment and retention; staff
capacity development; program quality; monitoring and evaluation; budget
management; reporting; donor relations; and coordination/collaboration with other
CRS departments and wider NGO and Education community. Specific
responsibilities will include:
Program Quality
§ Provide leadership to Education Program
Managers on program direction and implementation strategies.
§ Ensure that best practices, lessons
learned, and constraints are consistently captured and sharedacross the country
program and develop strategies for addressing constraints.
- Coordinate
regular program planning and coordination meetings with senior Education
program staff to ensure that programming is consistent throughout the
Country Program.
- Organize
regular opportunities for communication and exchange between education
staff and other program staff throughout the Country Program in order to
promote greater programmatic integration and facilitate discussion on
crosscutting issues.
- Ensure
that programming is consistent with donor requirements, CRS program
quality standards and relevant international standards.
§ Ensure provision of timely and accurate
reports to program donors. Support and guide Education PMs in building their
writing and reporting skills.
Management Quality
§ Manage CRS Afghanistan Education
project grants in accordance with CRS and donor rules and regulations and
support senior Education Program staff to do the same.
§ Work closely with Education and Finance
department staff to ensure that CRS funds, donor funds and other resources are
used responsibly.
§ Work closely with Education Program
staff and Finance to ensure that budgets are well developed, managed in
accordance with CRS and donor regulations and that financial reports are timely
and accurate.
§ Work closely with the Management
Quality coordinator to streamline best management practices within the
Education Program.
§ Support senior Education Program staff
to incrementally take on greater budget management responsibilities.
Staff Supervision and Management
§ Directly supervise National M&E Deputy
Manager and National Technical Advisor through the CRS Performance Management
System, regular communication and feedback systems.
§ Coordinate with Program Managers and
M&E Manager to ensure that all staff are able to successfully fulfill their
job responsibilities while at the same time supporting their professional
development and growth through actively searching out opportunities for staff
capacity building.
§ Ensure that all Education staffs have
job descriptions, and roles and responsibilities.
§ Review and revise staffing structure in
coordination with Program Managers, Head of Programs and Country Representative
as appropriate.
§ Support senior education staff in
carrying out CRS performance management responsibilities with their teams
through coaching sessions.
§ Ensure that team members are fully
compliant with CRS performance management and development planning standards.
§ Recruit appropriate staff for education
team positions to fill vacant and new positions in a timely manner.
Monitoring and Evaluation
§ Support National M&E Deputy Manager
through the implementation of the recently revised Education Program M&E
system to ensure that program indicators are appropriately collected and
reported on in a timely manner.
§ Utilize quality M&E practices to
guide programmatic recommendations and decisions, and support and guide the
M&E Officers and Provincial Education Project Managers to do the same.
Program Growth and Proposal Development
§ Guide the development of future
Education Program direction in a way that is strategic, responsible and in line
with CRS Program Quality and partnership principles.
§ Contribute to program growth through
proposal development and meetings with donors.
§ Participate in and conduct project
development workshops for proposal development.
§ Contribute to preparation of donor
reports, including both narrative and financial reports.
Representation
§ Represent the wider CRS education
program in internal CRS meetings.
§ Actively contribute to and participate
in consortium/partner meetings and specific working groups as needed.
§ Present on CRS education programs to
government, NGO community and donors in Afghanistan, the region and in the US
as needed.
Staff Safety and Well-Being
§ Work closely with Provincial Education
PMs and CRS Safety and Security Manager to ensure education staff safety in the
field and office environments.
Core Competencies
Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS
Staff)
These are rooted in the mission, values, and
principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her
responsibilities and to achieve the desired results:
§ Serves with Integrity
§ Models Stewardship
§ Cultivates Constructive Relationships
§ Promotes Learning
Program Manager Competencies
These are rooted in the mission, values, and
principles of CRS and used by each program manager to fulfill his or her
responsibilities and to achieve the desired results:
§ Sets clear goals and manages toward
them
§ Collaborates effectively with staff and
stakeholders
§ Manages financial resources with
integrity
§ Applies program quality standards to
project design and organizational learning
Key Working Relationships:
INTERNAL: Country
Representative, Head of Programming, Provincial Education Program
Managers, National M&E Manager, M&E Officers, Education Project
Officers, Heads of Offices, Management Quality Coordinator, Finance Manager,
Finance Officer, Administration Departments, Procurement Departments, Program
Quality Support Department
EXTERNAL: National
and Local government ministries, BEACON consortium members, other consortium
members, donor staff, community shuras, local/international NGO offices and UN
agencies.
Personal Skills:
1. Exceptional
communication skills, both written and verbal, and proven ability to lead a
dynamic and diverse group of people.
2. Strong
teamwork, coordination and strategic planning skills.
3. Ability
to deal effectively with deadlines.
4. Ability
to respond practically and operate successfully in difficult field conditions.
Willingness to travel to and work in remote areas for extended periods.
5. Willingness
to live in shared housing with a diverse group of international staff.
6. Ability
to be flexible, persistent, and diplomatic and to gain respect among staff,
local community leaders as well as local government ministries and donor
organizations.
Qualifications:
1. Masters
degree in education or a related field
2. At least
five years experience in program management in developing countries.
3. Experience
working with international non-governmental organizations
4. Professional
experience and academic training in the area of education, monitoring and
evaluation, or other relevant fields.
5. Excellent
writing skills.
6. Strong
project management experience: supervision, budget management, program
planning, monitoring and evaluation.
7. Knowledge
of CRS systems and tools a plus
For fastest consideration, please create an online profile to apply.
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