Senior Education Specialist – APIL, Ghana

Responsibilities:

Team & Program Management

• Support the growth of team members and help promote team cohesion and culture.
• Conduct quarterly/termly team target reviews and annual staff performance reviews for direct reports to help achiever project targets.
• Manage regular effective communications across multiple digital channels, team meetings, one-on-one meetings, and other co-ordination support as needed.
• Prioritize actions to enhance program delivery based on internal and external research, feedback from school/partners, and the wider team
• Provide regular recommendations to the leadership team to continuously refine and improve delivery processes.
• Leverage the extensive and varied expertise embodied by the Education Specialist team to best meet program needs, and review/reallocate individual responsibilities as needed; leverage expertise from global team as needed.

Cluster Development & Management

• Ensure Education Specialists are equipped to promote effective collaboration between school leaders, teachers, and cluster members
• Lead the planning and implementation of Introductory Seminars to bring new schools and clusters into the EduQuality program, in collaboration with the Education Specialist team, EduQuality Project Management Associate, and financial institution partners.
• Support the team in delivering approximately nine cluster meetings per cluster per annum.
• Support the Education Specialist team in timely reporting on all required activities.

Pathways to Excellence

• Ensure all Education Specialists follow the developed procedures in supporting school leaders on their School Self-Assessments.
• Support school leaders in developing and monitoring the School Development Planning process each annum.

School Leadership Professional Development

• Oversee preparations, logistics, and implementation of the School Leadership Professional Development (SLPD) training.
• Ensure Education Specialist team are properly trained and supported to deliver high- quality trainings to school leaders.

Teacher Mentor Professional Development

• Oversee the Education Specialist team’s approaches to teacher development, mentor training, and providing on-going support.
• Ensure the schools have the materials and capability required to train replacement mentors.
• Research and implement strategies to improve the effectiveness of mentor in the clusters. 

Measurement & Evaluation

• Collaborate with the Director of Operations and local Monitoring & Evaluation team to implement the Edu Quality M&E framework in driving program learning and improvement.
• Assist Education Specialist team in supporting Monitoring & Evaluation activities through co-ordination with school leaders and data collectors/enumerators.
• Document learnings and effective practices from the field on a regular basis.
• Publish or contribute to publications, where applicable, to share outcomes, program design, and effectiveness of interventions with the broader financial institution and educational communities.
• Liaise with learning partners, as necessary, who are engaging with the work of EduFinance for the study and reporting of impact. 

Financial Institutions

• Liaise with financial institution partners to maintain quarterly/termly reporting and co- ordination.

Materials & Product Development

• Support the development and review of new EduQuality products/materials to ensure alignment with in-country teacher curriculum standards, context, language, and culture.

Events Management, Administration, and Reporting

• Ensure events and activities under the assigned project are delivered on-time, within scope and within budget.
• Manage all vendor relationships including on-time collection and payment of invoices, event budgeting, and procurement of capital assets for all local project staff.
• Help print program publications and event materials.
• Assist with preparation of periodical program donor reporting and other partner reports as needed, including client stories highlighting program impact.
• Develop and implement Ghana digital strategy to increase online presence and improve engagement in close coordination with the product development team.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY      

• Team of 6 Education Specialists 

QUALIFICATIONS

• Postgraduate degree in school-based education or education development, with significant experience in the education field. Graduate degree preferred.
• At least 10-15 years of relevant education experience in education development, pre- primary and primary education, early literacy and reading development, special education, and school leadership and teacher professional development.
• 10 years of experience managing a diverse multi-functional team.
• Leadership in large-scale education program implementation.
• Strong writing, data collection, and ICT skills (e.g., Microsoft Office products, EdTech, mobile tablets, etc.).
• At least 2-3 years of formal experience as a classroom teacher and/or school leader at pre-primary and primary levels.
• International education experience or training is preferred.
• Experience working within cross-cultural global organizations and INGOs.
• Knowledge of and experience with USAID-funded projects preferred.
• Passionate about Opportunity’s mission. Able to promote and communicate the organization’s goals and objectives to external and internal stakeholders.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

• Written and verbal fluency in English, additional 1 or 2 local languages required. Must be able to attend & fully participate in meetings conducted in English.

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS

• Access to a personal vehicle for 40% domestic travel; 10% international travel.
• Able to travel with minimal notice and maximum flexibility.
• Willing to travel independently and without escort or planning support.

ABOUT OPPORTUNITY

Opportunity International is a global non-profit that has been empowering people to work their way out of poverty since 1971. Opportunity provides 18.7 million people with innovative financial resources, training, and support to grow their small businesses and send their children to school.

Location: Tamale

Salary Range: Attractive

Employment Type: Full Time