Company Description

EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT CENTER (EDC)

Education Development Center (EDC) is a global nonprofit that advances lasting solutions to improve education, promote health, and expand economic opportunity. Since 1958, we have been a leader in designing, implementing, and evaluating powerful and innovative programs in more than 80 countries around the world. EDC promotes equity and access to high quality education and health services and products that contribute to thriving communities where people from diverse backgrounds learn, live, and work together. We support an inclusive workplace culture that embraces many perspectives and broadens our understanding of the communities we serve, enhancing and enriching our work.

EDC is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Project Description

The overall goal of the upcoming USAID Jamaica Youth Empower Activity is to increase the civic participation of youth in volatile, high-risk communities and improve their skills to access livelihood opportunities and contribute to the development of their communities. The Activity will address the risk and resilience factors that influence Jamaican youth participation in violence, by bolstering their civic awareness and community belonging and engagement. The Activity also serves to strengthen the supporting environment and networks for youth at risk for becoming a perpetrator or victim of, or witness to crime and violence; and increase their soft skills, agency, and access to livelihood opportunities. Youth will be exposed to opportunities for entrepreneurship, as well as on-the-job training, so that they are equipped with the necessary tools and support to secure gainful employment.

Job Description

The Youth Development Officer (YDO) will provide technical leadership in the development, implementation, and integration of best practice activities that increase equitable access and inclusion of underserved youth in learning and civic engagement opportunities specifically. S/he will play a key role in the development of training and capacity strengthening of Activity partners and youth-led and youth-serving organizations.

Essential functions include, but are not limited to the above as well as:

Strategy and Planning

• Supporting the delivery of timely and relevant analytical, technical, research, programmatic and program advice on youth development issues including on gender equality, youth development, livelihood opportunities and their active participation in community and national governance structures.
• Working closely with the partners and EDC program staff in support of a coordinated and effective integrated programming approach to addressing the social dimensions of youth development initiatives.
• Supporting the work of the partners towards ensuring the needs and contributions of adolescent boys and young men (ABYM) and of adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) of all diversities, respects and promotes human rights and cultural heritage and contributes to the achievement of gender equality and social inclusion across all sectors.
• Lead and support the development of youth engagement strategies, with gender, identity livelihood considerations.
• Facilitate youth dialogue sessions with partners, youth,
• Participate in country teams and provide substantial inputs around social and youth development issues for country partnership strategy, work planning and reporting.
• Assist with the development and analysis of community entry and youth assessments and other program tools
• Coordinate with EDC staff, partners, youth and stakeholders for consistency of approach, exchange of experiences, and continuous improvement of practices and integration of youth development to the management of projects.
• Coordination with MEL for the mobilization of youth as part of all monitoring, evaluation and learning.
• Work with partners and stakeholders to develop and implement youth development initiatives, competitions, innovations and exchanges
• Aid with the development and implementation of the Youth Ambassador Network
• Facilitate the mobilization, screening and coaching a network of Youth Ambassadors to represent all communities and support programming.

Project Implementation

• Identify opportunities for youth and community projects aimed at operationalizing youth contributions to the sustainable development efforts, particularly in the orange, blue and green economies
• Liaise with and coordinate with partners the development of materials, services and products related to intermediate results
• Provide operational support in incorporating key youth development concerns into programming
• Ensure key technical, economic, financial and crosscutting considerations are incorporated in specific geographical areas/target communities that youth development is being facilitated
• Provide direct technical training support to ensure that partners and youth-led and youth-serving organizations develop equitable and inclusive organizational culture and approaches to training, mentoring, coaching and accompaniment of a diverse range of underserved youth and increase civic education and engagement interventions.
• Be integrally involved in the development of instructor and participant training materials and assessment/feedback tools.
• Facilitate the review and sign off all training materials and work with Activity partners to ensure that intervention designs are gender and conflict sensitive, and the principles of do no harm are practiced as part of youth mobilization and retention, and community and stakeholder engagement.
• Support the identification of champions and influencers from the orange economy, and working with the EDC’s and partner communications focal point to strengthen youth agency, leadership, and greater participation in communities.
• Screen, support and work with youth to enable participation in volunteering and active citizenship activities that increase their skills, knowledge and confidence
• Support the coordination of field trips, youth career activties, mentorship sessions, and other productive activities.
• Ensure partner compliance of practices, protocols and policies for the monitoring of youth in residential and non-residential components of the program, to safeguard wellbeing

Knowledge Sharing

• Contribute to programme strategies, work planning and implementation sessions with EDC team, partners and stakeholder groupings
• Support the develop and maintenance of suitable youth networks at community and national/alliance levels
• Contribute substantially to activities for advocacy, dissemination and knowledge building on Youth developmentt.

In addition, to meet the requirements of the Activity’s alignment with USAID’s New Partnerships Initiative (NPI), the goal of which is to equip and empower new and underutilized development partners such as youth-led and youth-serving organizations in Jamaica, the Specialist must

• Assist with the provision of mentorship and support to partners and relevant youth-led and youth-serving organizations in strengthening organizational capacity around equitable and inclusive civic education and engagement, as well as their technical approach to do no harm within communities.

Qualifications

The candidate for the position of Youth Development shall have at a minimum the following qualifications:

Education:

Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, humanities and education, or a related field; and project management training or experience.

Skills and Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible and directly relevant experience in similar positions;
• Experience designing, managing, and implementing activities to promote youth engagement, gender equality and/or social and disability inclusion;
• Proven experience coordinating, managing and/or collaborating with a range of individuals in diverse contexts, including working with community leaders, community associations, youth organizations, and monitoring and evaluation teams;
• Strong interpersonal skills and excellent oral and written communication skills in English required;
• Strong problem-solving and creative skills, a plus;
• Strong proficiency in the use of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint tools a plus;
• Experience in developing and facilitating training content;
• Excellent social skills at all levels, cultural sensitivity, ability to work under pressure and with a team, negotiate diplomatically, and the ability to work in a multicultural and multidisciplinary work environment, including experience working with underserved populations;
• Ability to prepare and conduct presentations;
• Ability to manage trainings and coach others to strengthen capacity;
• Demonstrated understanding of USAID’s gender and social inclusion policies and strategies;
• Experience working in Jamaica.

Language:

Fluency in English is required. Proficiency in Jamaican Creole strongly preferred.

Additional Information

EDC is committed to enhancing the diversity of its workforce and ensuring an equitable and highly inclusive work environment. EDC is a smoke-free workplace, and offers a supportive work environment, competitive salary, and excellent benefits. Women, minorities, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.