Job Description
The Education Manager is responsible for overseeing the delivery of the PM3.0 core package by partner organizations, ensuring that agreed targets in the Play Matters project plan are achieved. This role involves close collaboration with partners to provide support, monitor progress, and ensure planned results are delivered effectively around Harar and Jigjiga area schools selected by local partners. The Education Manager will play a key role in planning, monitoring, and reporting on PM3.0 core package activities within the education sector. In addition, She/He will support partner teams to address the diverse needs of boys, girls, men, women, and individuals with special needs, ensuring inclusive and equitable access to education services.
Major Responsibilities:
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Support the CO office team in the process of strategic education initiatives development and implementation in collaboration with implementing partners, ensuring alignment with IRC’s mission, vision, and strategic goals.
- Represent IRC’s education programs in interagency regional, zonal and woreda level cluster coordination meetings, providing updates and sharing action items.
- Identify critical education needs of crisis-affected communities and support the effort to secure funding opportunities through rapid needs assessments, concept notes, and proposal development.
- Capture lessons learned from education projects implementation by partners and ensure they inform program scale-up and improvement.
- Provide ongoing support to partners implementing PM3.0 Core Packages through on-the-job training, mentoring, and technical guidance in collaboration with the Project Coordinator.
- Liaise closely with regional, zonal and woreda level system actors and government officials to ensure PlayMatters system level engagement, timely and effective program planning and implementation, while jointly addressing challenges affecting delivery.
- Undertake other responsibilities or projects as requested by the immediate or matrix manager.
Project Planning and Implementation
- Support the implementing partners to develop work plans, procurement plans, and spending plans in a timely manner to ensure the timely procurement and distribution of teaching learning materials
- Provide remote and onsite technical support for the quality implementation of projects in collaboration with the CO technical team.
- Set up periodic (bi-weekly) check-in meetings with implementing partners (emergency) to update progress, spot bottlenecks, and suggest and implement solutions.
- Actively participate in the project cycle meetings to reflect on the needs, success, and challenges of the project and document and apply lessons learned.
- Monitor and review partners budgets versus actual expenditures reports (BvA) on a monthly basis, reflect on variances amounting to greater or equal to 5% and guide the partners to take appropriate action based on the status of spending on a specific project.
- Document the number of clients in each project with age and gender disaggregated and file for future use and reporting.
Grant Monitoring and Reporting
- Conduct regular site monitoring visits and provide support for the partners for taking corrective measures.
- Document key findings of the internal and external assessments for planning purposes.
- Review reports from the partners, provide timely feedback and follow up the implementation of the actions
- Deliver well-reviewed reports to the technical team in Addis within the given timeframe.
- Work with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Coordinator to ensure that monitoring and evaluation systems are in place as well as inputs are provided in a timely manner.
Staff Management and Development.
- Engage in technical supervision and capacity development of partners staff to fulfill the minimum skills set across both the education sectors.
- Share insights on the performance management of partners’ staff with the PlayMatters Project Coordinator.
- Maintain open and professional relations with the implementing partners, promoting a strong team spirit and providing guidance to enable partners to successfully perform in their positions and support them in following personal staff development plans.
Representation, Coordination and Advocacy
- Collaborating and coordinating with another sector team, on co-designing, implementing, and monitoring education – other sector initiative projects to ensure comprehensive delivery and quality outcomes.
- Engage and maintain effective/professional working relationships with key partners, including donors, government actors, UN agencies, international and local NGOs, and other relevant actors in emergency and recovery programs.
- Represent IRC in cluster, coordination and working group meetings at regional levels to share experiences and challenges with other actors.
Safeguarding Responsibilities: –
- Promote and actively participate in initiatives and efforts to build team engagement, inclusion, and cohesion with IRC and partners’ staff
- Foster ongoing learning, honest dialogue, and reflection to strengthen safeguarding and to promote IRC values and adherence to IRC policies,
Job Requirements:
- MA/BA in Social Work or Educational Planning and Management (EDPM); Educational Leadership, Development Management; Development Economics or related field of studies.
- 3 years for MA holders and 4 years for BA holders relevant experience in international NGOs preferably in a protracted refugee context; and at least two years of managerial experience.
- Excellent professional track record with a minimum of 2 years of management-level experience within an NGO working in child protection/education in emergency/ humanitarian program implementation in conflict or immediate post-conflict environments.
- Experience in managing and/or technically supporting emergency programs related to education.
- Strong monitoring and evaluation experience.
- Proposal and report writing skills.
- Computer literate.
- Experience in working with multicultural and diversified workforce.
- Must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Strong ability to organize work, meet deadlines, maintain composure, prioritize work under pressure, coordinate multiple tasks, and maintain attention to detail.
- Fluency in English required
Disclaimer: – Please note that IRC will never request applicants or candidates to make any form of payment at any stage of the recruitment process.
IRC is an equal employment opportunity employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability.
IRC strives to build a diverse and inclusive team at all levels who as individuals, and as a group, embody our culture statement creating a working environment characterized by critical reflection, power sharing, debate, and objectivity for us to achieve our aspirations as a team and deliver the best possible services to our clients.