Job Opportunity for Program Manager, AP-SALT Project at Leadership for Equity in Vijaywada

About Leadership For Equity (LFE)

Leadership For Skilled Education Foundation (branded as Leadership For Equity, LFE), is a non-profit (NGO) based out of Pune, Maharashtra. 

We envision Public Education Systems That Refuse To Let Children Down

APPROACH: In our two-fold approach to change, we build the capacity of government system leaders and we influence system processes. In partnership with the local and state education bodies, we co-create programs that shift teaching-learning practices and improve student learning and well-being. This work coupled with our research and advisory support to influence policies, we hope to create an effective government education system.

Over the last 5 years, LFE has built the capacity of 2100+ system leaders, and 40,200+ teachers to impact 8 million students across Maharashtra. Additionally, LFE has recently expanded its operations and started working in another 3 states of India including Haryana, Tripura & Andhra Pradesh. In Maharashtra, LFE works with 5 districts (Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Satara & Akola), 3 municipal bodies (Pune MC, Pimpri Chinchwad MC & Nagpur MC) & 5 state level education bodies (School Education Dept, SCERT, Samagra Shiksha, Tribal Development Dept, & TRTI). In Andhra Pradesh, LFE works closely with the Samagra Shiksha Office, SCERT & The World Bank on a multi-year strategic project to improve the quality of learning across 26 districts of the State. And lastly in Haryana & Tripura, LFE works with SCERTs of both states in setting up targeted program management units (PMUs) to strengthen delivery of large-scale academic programs. 

BELIEF: We believe Public Education Systems are the gatekeepers of social EQUITY, especially when India’s 120 million poorest-of-the-poor children continue to go to government-run schools. A multi-layered, complex, and systemic problem of educational inequity, will require a solution rooted in the SYSTEMS CHANGE approach. We believe that a COLLECTIVE effort by forging partnerships with governments, like-minded philanthropists, corporates, donors, nonprofits and grassroot organisations will help bring scalable and sustainable social change.

About Mantra4Change 

Founded in the year 2013, Mantra4Change is a Bangalore based non-profit that works in the field of school improvement and education leadership development. Mantra4Change currently works in the field of education system strengthening by driving capacity building initiatives for education leaders such as school head teachers and other system actors, by creating tools for observation and monitoring, by reimagining systems & processes such as enrollment drive and parent-teacher meeting, by enabling partnerships and by promoting spaces for appreciation.

Mantra4Change currently is working with the states of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh on various aspects of systemic transformation. We believe in the idea of co-creation and co-planning and hence while the underlying approach remains the same, programs are developed keeping contextual realities and needs in mind.

About Andhra Pradesh Government Project

LFE & Mantra4Change are coming together to support the Andhra Pradesh Government, which has been on an ambitious plan to revamp the government school system into a high performing schools system for serving children from underserved communities. Supporting Andhra’s Learning Transformation (SALT) project is a multi-organisational project focused on improving the quality of teaching and learning in classrooms. The project aims to enhance human capital and achieve sustained reduction in learning poverty across all districts of the state. 

The SALT operation will support the GoAP in three key results areas:

(i) Strengthened Foundational Learning;

(ii) Improved Quality of Student-Teacher Interactions and;

(iii) Strengthened Institutional Capacity for Service Delivery

The project will be implemented in close collaboration with the Department of School Education (DoSE), GoAP and state-level administrative units including the SCERT, SIEMAT and the local network of DIETs. The focus will be to achieve the outcomes with an inherent focus on strengthening the people and processes within the public education system.

The scope of work for the entire project will be as follows:

• Strengthen the technical and operational capacity of school complex leaders to provide evidence- and needs-based training to teachers, utilizing teacher training facilities as sites for on-site support.
• Build the capacity at SCERT and DIETs to improve planning, implementation, and monitoring of the reform by introducing a teacher needs assessment system to formally encourage professional learning and growth.
• Strengthen the technical and operational capacity of SCERT and DIETs to provide evidence- and needs-based support to teachers through developing training courses for teachers on the state Learning Management System (LMS)
• Strengthen the technical and operational capacity of SCERT and DIETs through the development of online learning materials for teachers and students on the state Learning Management System (LMS)
• Coordinate with various stakeholders to ensure timeline development of the technology tools as noted above including the TEACH tool

The duration of the project will be 60 months from 2021 to 2026. 

Job description and responsibilities

The Project Manager will work with the leadership team at LFE to ensure project goals are achieved. Additionally, the Project Manager will collaborate with members across teams as and when required as well as be an integral part of the organizational leadership and drive learning across teams.

Project Design and Operations (40%)

• Work on the overall vision, strategy, and implementation plan for AP SALT project in conjunction with the Leadership Team at LFE
• Work with government stakeholders to co-design interventions that align with government
  needs as well as LFE’s organizational priorities
• As part of the extended LFE team, work with state government as necessary to design national and state-level government initiatives based on government directives
• Design and implement long term and monthly plans to implement priorities defined by
  functional verticals in alignment with the project ToC
• Lead operations for the AP SALT project, ensuring monthly, quarterly and yearly goals are on track
• Create mechanisms, tools etc. to track and evaluate progress towards goals

Team Management (20%)

• Manage a team of 5-7 project associates/senior associates, focusing on their deliverables, professional support and development
• Create and lead structures to sustain a culture of collaboration, belief in public systems and
  strong accountability and delivery
• Build and implement the reporting structures that aligns with LFEs management style to ensure accountability for self and team

Stakeholder Management (20%)

• Work with a hierarchy of stakeholders from the District CEO, the District Education Officer as well as the DIET leadership and SCERT leadership to build long-lasting relationships that aid project operations and expansion plans
• Promote collaboration amongst non-profits and CSR organizations in Andhra Pradesh to achieve the larger goal of providing better learning in schools
• Conduct regular update meetings with stakeholders and provide progress towards goals of the AP SALT Project in a consumable format to all stakeholders
• Maintain funder relations to ensure timely accountability and reporting of funds, resources, project progress, etc

Monitoring & Evaluation (20%)

• Design and circulate tools to measure the effectiveness of ongoing projects
• Analyze the data to provide ongoing insights to internal and external teams
• Compile project impact reports from impact data

Requirement: Education & Experience

• Bachelors in any field. Masters in Education / Development degree is preferred.
• 5-7 Years of experience executing projects (at least 2 years of which should include directly working with government stakeholders)
• Experience working in Andhra Pradesh would be preferable
• Prior experience in managing small teams would be highly preferred
• Interest or prior experience in Capacity building of teachers can be an added advantage
• Experience in policy implementation would be an added advantage

Knowledge, Skills & Capabilities

• Excellent written and oral communication skills – and functional knowledge (oral and written) of Telugu would be highly preferred
• Experience in project design and M&E (basic)
• Belief in the potential of the public sector and that government systems can and will change towards overcoming systemic inequities and ensuring improved outcomes for all citizens
• A basic understanding of social equity, development discourse and education policy in India
• Being able to take initiative and work in an autonomous, semi-structured environment
• Adaptability to changing responsibilities and resourcefulness to respond to them
• High openness to learning
• Ability to build and sustain relationships with multiple stakeholders & partners across public and private spaces
• Strong ability to create outstanding presentations, work with Microsoft Excel, Google Suite, and varied data sets
• Patience and resilience to stick it out in the face of setbacks and uncertainties

Location and Compensation

Location: Vijayawada. Will involve travel to districts across Andhra Pradesh (need based)

Compensation: Expected to be around INR 7.5 to 9 LPA  based on experience.