Advisor, Girls' Education Program, Tanzania

Organization Profile:

Room to Read seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in developing countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.

We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We currently work in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. Since our inception, Room to Read’s worldwide team has impacted over 7.8 million children by constructing more than 1,700 schools, establishing over 16,000 libraries, publishing 882 new children’s book titles in 27 local languages, and reaching over 25,000 girls through our Girls’ Education program.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$43.7 million and our global staff numbers over 600. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have smaller fundraising offices in Delhi, New York, Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, Sydney, and Tokyo. We have an Asia Regional Office located in New Delhi and program offices in Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Dhaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane.

Position Overview:

The Girls’ Education program Advisor is a full-time position responsible for the overall vision, design and successful implementation of Room to Read’s Girls’ Education program in Tanzania. The Advisor will provide guidance, direction, expertise, and direct management to Girls’ Education program staff. The position will work closely with an Africa Regional Program Manager, and the Global Girls’ Education program team based in San Francisco, USA. It will also require regular interactions with government officials, school administrators, NGOs and others at varying levels of influence. Based in the country office in Dar es Salaam, the Advisor will be required to make frequent trips to the regions and districts where the Girls’ Education program is operating. This position is on a six month renewable contract.

Responsibilities:

• Leads the development, review, and revision of the Girls’ Education program strategy for Tanzania and ensures alignment with global strategy.
• Responsible for the successful overall implementation of the Girls’ Education program strategy in Tanzania. This includes implementation of program activities on time within budget, and assuming personal responsibility for direct program implementation if necessary.
• Provides excellent leadership of the Girls’ Education program team and supports staff as a mentor and participatory leader. Effectively delegates responsibility and holds team members accountable. Encourages collaboration, innovation, excellence, and professional growth.
• Takes a leadership role in advocacy in line with the global and country Girls’ Education program strategy. Builds coalitions of partners to support advocacy agenda.
• Ensures that innovations, best practices and lessons learned are documented and shared between regions and with other Room to Read country programs.
• Collaborates with Research, Monitoring and Evaluation team members to conceptualize, plan, and carry out research and evaluation of the program.
• Leads the identification and implementation of strategic partnerships for the Girls’ Education program and Room to Read in general.
• Manages the participatory development of a Girls’ Education team professional development plan. This includes design and facilitation of capacity building trainings for Girls’ Education program staff and others as needed.
• Participates in any other activities which may be required to be undertaken to fulfill the objectives of the organization.

Qualifications:

Required:

•  
• Bachelor’s degree in Social Science; Education and/or other related discipline 
• A minimum of ten years of professional experience in development or an academic organization
• Experience in planning and implementation of education programs on a large scale
• Experience in direct program implementation at field level
• Excellent leader with experience building and managing strong teams including leading and managing teams
• Ability and desire to travel within the country frequently (about 30-50% of the time)
• Proven track record of achieving results independently and as part of a team
• Experience in managing budgets, projects and people
• Strong collaborative nature with excellent interpersonal and relationship building skills
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
• Proficiency in using Microsoft Office Suite 
• Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously
• Legally eligible to work in Tanzania; no sponsorship provided

Preferred:

• Master’s degree in Social Science; Education and/or other related discipline 
• Prior experience of working in an international setting or an international NGO
• Experience of working in the area of girls’ education
• Experience of developing and/or implementing life skills and gender-based programs

To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:

• Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact an up-and-coming non-profit organization
• Be an innovative and creative thinker; you’re not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so
• Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
• Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction
• Work well independently as well as part of a team
• Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

Compensation:

The salary range for this position will be determined based upon the experience of the candidate hired. Health and retirement benefits are also provided. Additional benefits involve a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the world through the lifelong gift of education.

Application Procedure:

Please send a cover letter and resume by email, with “GEP Advisor, TZ” in the subject line, (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org.  Due to high applicant volume, we regret that we are not able to send personalized responses to all applicants.  Applications are accepted until the position is filled.

Room to Read is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing
the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.