Southern Africa Literacy Specialist

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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, 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 4 million children by constructing more than 1,100 schools, establishing over 9,200 libraries, publishing 433 new children's book titles in 11 local languages, and putting over 8,900 girls onto long-term, holistic scholarships.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$30 million and our global staff numbers over 380. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have smaller fundraising offices in New York, Hong Kong, London, Tokyo and Delhi. We have an Asia Regional Office located in New Delhi, a Southern Africa Regional Office in Pretoria, and program offices in Colombo, Dhaka, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. Our long-term goal is to help 10 million children to gain the lifelong gift of education.

Room to Read’s Literacy Strategy
Literacy is part of the right to a basic education and is crucial for economic, social and political participation and development. In order for children to acquire literacy skills to become lifelong readers and learners, one crucial input is regular access to books and other reading materials, which are scarce in many of the communities where Room to Read operates. Room to Read establishes libraries and publishes local language books to fill this gap. Since our inception, we have witnessed that children often do not have the grade-appropriate literacy skills needed to take full advantage of the Reading Room and Local Language Publishing resources. To achieve the long term goal of making all children independent readers at the primary level, Room to Read has initiated pilot programs for reading instruction and reading skills enrichment in primary schools. The pilots focus on providing supplemental teaching materials/aids and teacher professional development to support existing literacy instruction in the schools where we work. Our learning from the pilots will help us develop a strategy that both capitalizes on our organizational strengths built over the last decade and defines a clear and carefully constructed path to the goal of increased literacy and a habit of reading in the children with whom we work.

We are rolling out a Grade 1 program in Zambia in January 2011 and we are in the research and development stage in South Africa. The strategies will continue to evolve over the next couple of years.

POSITION OVERVIEW
The Southern Africa Literacy Specialist is responsible for working with Room to Read staff, as well as local and external consultants, on all aspects of designing, developing and implementing literacy programs that are in line with Room to Read’s new strategic plan focusing on literacy. In collaboration with the Global Literacy Team, Global and Regional Programs Team, and Country Teams, the Literacy Specialist is responsible for providing countries with technical assistance and support on all aspects of their literacy programming. This position will be based in Southern Africa (preferably Pretoria or Lusaka) and will report directly to the Global Director of Literacy in the Global Literacy Team. This is a one-year, fixed-term position with the option for renewal.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Program (technical) Support
• Act as a program support and technical assistance to countries for new literacy pilots and ongoing literacy program. Such duties will include supporting country teams with the following:
1. All aspects of design and launch of literacy pilots and ongoing implementation of new literacy programs
2. High quality, effective and efficient management of the program and successful achievement of annual goals
3. Design, implementation and refinement of monitoring systems and evaluation systems and procedures used to track progress and achievements against planned program outcomes

• Travel regularly throughout the year to Zambia and South Africa to review and monitor implementation of projects and train in-country staff and provide hands on support for capacity building as required. Travel to other Room to Read countries may be required either for sharing across countries and/or for meetings with the Global Literacy Team.

Knowledge Resource
• Research and recommend improvements to Room to Read program(s) to more efficiently and effectively manage the program(s) in each country.

Capacity Building
• Support Room to Read teams in each country to continue developing their skills in understanding literacy instruction from both a theoretical and practical perspective
• Support and mentor Program Officers, ensuring that program activities are carried out in a timely manner and with attention to quality
• Plan and coordinate internal conferences and meetings for staff

Operations
• Support the operations of the literacy pilots, as needed and as determined with the Global Director of Literacy. Support may include the following:
o Collaborate with the Program Operations Team on oversight of Room to Read’s operations including annual planning, quarterly reporting, and overall tracking of program implementation and spending
o Provide technical assistance to the teams and build capacity for developing manuals, modules and documenting best practices in their programs
o Creation, implementation and analysis of annual program goals and budgets to ensure alignment with organizational strategies and priorities

Communication
• Review program reports and respond as necessary
• Collaborate with the Development Team to write program-specific portions of funding proposals
• Liaise with other Regional Office and Global Office teams to coordinate workflows and share program information

Other
• Participate in any other activities, which may be required to be undertaken to fulfill the objectives of the pilots and ongoing program

DELIVERABLES
• Literacy strategy for South Africa including instructional design framework, training programs for teachers, and materials. This will be developed in close collaboration between the specialist and the country team.
• Revised literacy strategy for Zambia including instructional design framework, training programs for teachers, and materials. This will be developed in close collaboration between the specialist and the country team.
• Monthly reports for Zambia and South Africa (separate reports) documenting successes, challenges, priorities and support requests for the following month.
• 2012 Literacy Pilot Design Plans reflective of lessons learned through implementation to date, R&D work, and input from the Global Literacy Team. These documents will be developed in close collaboration between the specialist and the country team.
• Documentation of research-based recommendations to improve the program design.
• Writing and documentation as required by the Development Team for fund-raising and reporting.
• Documentation of training and capacity building resources for CO staff (namely Literacy Facilitators, Literacy Managers, and Program Directors).

JOB REQUIREMENTS

Qualifications

Required
• A master’s degree in a related field of study
• Prior experience living and/or working in Southern Africa
• A minimum of eight years of professional experience
• Experience with reading/literacy or learning improvement programs and excellent knowledge and understanding of teaching methodologies, curriculum and teachers training at primary stage and Bantu languages
• Experience developing educational learning materials and for students or teachers
• Experience developing and conducting training programs for teachers
• Experience in successful implementation of a wide range of tasks
• Experience in developing and implementing programmatic improvements
• Strong planning, supervising, and program development skills
• Understanding of monitoring, evaluation, and process documentation
• Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people and organizations
• Ability and desire to travel internationally frequently
• Effectiveness in working or volunteering in a non-profit organization that is focused on maintaining high quality work and low overhead
• Prior track record of achieving results in a fast-paced, growth-oriented global or regional organization
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
• Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously

Desired
• Experience in language education at the primary stage
• Experience teaching at the primary stage

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 a dynamic non-profit organization
• Be an innovative and creative thinker - you are 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:

Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. The non-monetary compensation includes 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 “SA Literacy Specialist - DNJ” in the subject line, (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org. Due to high applicant volume we regret that we cannot 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.

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