Uganda: Program Director, Northern Uganda Literacy Program

Senior Management Job Opportunity

Mango Tree operates a multi-million dollar early primary education program in northern Uganda. Preliminary results from the impact evaluation suggest extremely large effects of the program, with an increase in learning equaled by only a few of the most-effective programs that have ever been conducted and studied in the developing world. The Program Director position will provide you with a unique opportunity to manage this initiative through an exciting period of change and evolution as we undertake a large scale up of the program and continue evaluating its effectiveness. Within this role, you will actively participate in the strategic growth of this nationally and internationally recognized education program. We are seeking a dynamic leader who is passionate about education and is committed to positive social change. The ideal candidate thrives in a rural, upcountry setting in a developing African country and has a successful track record in education and development.

About Mango Tree

Mango Tree’s mission is twofold: to empower African educators with the best tools and methods, and to serve as a socially responsible business model for Uganda. Mango Tree was created in 2000, the brainchild of an American Peace Corps Volunteer who served as a trainer for primary school teachers in eastern Uganda. During his time upcountry, he experienced firsthand the need for quality educational materials – created using local artists and locally available materials – that fit within the national education curriculum. He decided to address this need by creating a business, rather than an NGO. In his own words: “There are many NGOs in Uganda that do a lot of good work. What I believe Uganda desperately needs, however, are socially responsible companies that can serve as role models for other businesses.”

15 years later, Mango Tree is well known among international NGOs for making high quality, impact-oriented educational and communication tools. With its first mission in mind, the company has helped many organizations transform information that is only accessible to those at an academic level into a range of educational materials that are understandable for audiences of varying literacy levels. Every day, Mango Tree supports thousands of professionals to educate millions of the most vulnerable members of emerging economies in Africa on life changing topics such as health, HIV/AIDS, nutrition, safe water, sanitation, hygiene, agriculture, life skills, economic empowerment and good governance. Mango Tree does this by executing tool development projects for over 100 clients every year.

For more information about Mango Tree please visit our website at www.mangotreeuganda.org

About the Northern Uganda Literacy Program (NULP)

Mango Tree's Northern Uganda Literacy Program is working in the Lango language community, based in Lira. Our goal is to improve literacy performance among pupils in early primary classrooms (P1-P3) and strengthen the literacy infrastructure in northern Uganda so that reading and writing, especially in the local language, become a meaningful part of daily life.

The Literacy Laboratory Project (LLP) within NULP focuses on improving pupils' performance in reading and writing in their local language and English in the first three years of primary school. Mango Tree has developed a literacy instructional model, methodology and teaching and learning materials for early primary classrooms in both the mother tongue and English. Following a successful pilot impact evaluation in 2013, Mango Tree is now implementing the project in a larger number of schools and districts in the Lango Sub-region. The Mango Tree literacy model has a number of key innovations that make it significantly different from, and more successful than, other large-scale literacy projects currently underway in Uganda and East Africa. For more information about NULP please visit our website at www.mangotreeuganda.org/nulp/home

For more information about the program, please visit the following YouTube link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJp1vG2Tk80

About the Program Director (PD) Position

Job Overview

The PD will oversee Mango Tree’s Northern Uganda Literacy Program (NULP) in the Lango Sub-region. The PD will be directly responsible for the planning, organization and execution of all program activities. The PD will ensure that the program is administered properly and that the activities, budget and schedule of the program are followed and that results are attained in line with the program’s theory of change and results frameworks.

The PD must have strong technical knowledge of and passion for improving education, ideally in an African or Ugandan context, as well a proven track record of program management in the developing world, particularly the African context. The PD must have a background that allows them to thrive in an up country environment in East Africa. The PD must be able to make tough decisions – but is a team leader first and foremost. The PD must have a strong commitment to empowering junior staff and working collaboratively with employees at every level within the organization and project partners and stakeholders in government and civil society, both nationally and internationally.

The PD will be a pro-active member of the Mango Tree management team and directly oversee all consultants working for NULP. He/she will also actively participate in the strategic planning, advocacy and results-sharing and onwards growth of this highly successful literacy program.

The PD will also play an active role in communicating with donors. The PD will be responsible for all donor reporting and will participate in strategic meetings with funders/donors and represent NULP locally, nationally and internationally.

Key Responsibilities:

1.Program Management

• Ensure on time and high quality execution of program activities according to proposal, activity matrix and budget as specified in the program documents.
• Facilitate proper planning of the design and production needed from Mango Tree Kampala for project materials, assuring follow up on work needed and milestones to make final deadlines.
• Lead the recruitment of NULP management staff.
• Supervise NULP management staff including supervision of work plans, activities, budgets and expected deliverables.

2.Staff Capacity Building

• Train and coach program staff in an effort to build their capacity and improve the quality of work.

Provide technical input to ensure that Mango Tree’s literacy model is implemented effectively. Provide on the job training to NULP implementation team and participate in teacher engagement and development activities taking place throughout the school year.

3.Financial Administration and Reporting

· Manage the NULP budget according to proposals, timelines and activity matrix as specified in program documents.

· Closely supervise the NULP requisition, transfer and financial reporting process assuring good integration of spending in QuickBooks at Kampala office, including segregation of duties and proper handling in requisition, approval, retrieving and spending of money transferred to the Lira program account.

· Develop the narrative and financial reports necessary for various donors/funders of the program, including government and civil society stakeholders. Develop internal reports for the Mango Tree senior management team and BOD.

4.Communication and Partnership Development

• Advocate for the program through results sharing and national level stakeholder engagement with development partners and ministry officials with the objective of integration of the model into national frameworks.
• Supervise the program’s communication and advocacy plan and be responsible for its execution and reporting.
• Ensure superior internal communication and planning between Kampala and Lira regarding design, production, contract negotiations and reporting, assuring smooth running of program and on time delivery and to further develop synergies between the program and the company.

5.Donor Relations

• Communicate with funders/donors regarding grant applications and other proposals as well as all donor reporting.
• Coordinate with the lead grant writer for Mango Tree as well as other grant writers to ensure that applications are prepared appropriately and on time.
• Submit applications and proposals along with supporting documents and meet all submission requirements and deadlines.
• Manage a donor database to ensure excellent communication with donors that is timely and meets all grant expectations.

Skills, Knowledge and Personal Qualities Required

• 3-5 years experience in a senior management position in the education sector.
• At least a Bachelors Degree or its equivalent from a reputable post-secondary institution is required, ideally in an education-related field such as international education, comparative education, primary, secondary or ESL education.
• Experience in the field of primary, secondary or ESL education in a developing world context, preferably East Africa, with a commitment to, understanding of, and passion for improving the delivery of education services.
• Experience managing a donor funded project in Africa. Experience with major international donors, such as USAID, DFID, World Bank, etc. desirable.
• Experience in M&E, working with researchers on longitudinal studies and/or impact evaluations preferred.
• Experience managing a small, diverse team of 10+ staff members, and excellence in empowering staff and delegating work.
• Proven project management skills and strong financial management skills, preferably for multi-million dollar programs.
• Proven leadership in a multicultural environment with a track record of high-level performance, strategic thinking and creativity.
• Clear and effective written and oral communication in English.
• Excellent computer skills, including Microsoft Office programs and ideally accounting software.
• Self-motivated and able to work with minimal supervision.
• Excellent organizational skills, including reporting and record-keeping.
• Ability to speak publically about the program to a variety of audiences, presenting the program’s image, competencies and objectives in a professional manner.
• Efficient and comfortable with local and national travel.
• Willingness to work outside of regular office hours to meet project objectives and targets.

Reports to

Steering Committee NULP, chaired by Managing Director of Mango Tree

Start Date

September 1^st, 2015

Duration of Contract

1.5 years. At the 3-month mark, a performance evaluation will be completed and if the individual meets their performance targets the contract will continue for another 1 year and 2 months.

The employment contract will begin with a 3-month probation period. During the probation period both parties can terminate the contract with two week’s notice.

Location

Lira, Uganda, but expected to travel in Uganda and other African countries as needed.

Work Schedule

40 hours per week, with flexibility to work over the weekends and holidays when necessary.

Compensation Package

· Competitive salary to commensurate with experience

· AAR health insurance

· Housing in Lira town provided

· Work-related transport to and from Kampala covered

· Reimbursement for work-related expenses (e.g. airtime, Internet)

In a cover letter (no longer than one page)please share with us why you are interested in becoming Mango Tree’s Program Director, NULP and why you think your experience makes you the best candidate. Please also send a copy of your CV and details for three references to jobs@mangotreeuganda.org.

Please include the following in the subject line: Application for the position of Program Director, NULP