Education Outreach Coordinator – The U.S. Mission in Accra, Ghana
Job Description
Duties
The Education Outreach Coordinator works under the direct supervision of the Public Diplomacy Officer PDO (CAO) or PAO designee and supervises one (1) Education Outreach/English language coordinator and provides work guidance to two independent Education USA consultants. Oversees and coordinates Public Diplomacy (PD) Section education engagement with Emerging Voices (EV) audiences, including in the diaspora, reaching youth, minorities and those who influence them through targeted Mission outreach to secondary, tertiary, and vocational schools, promotion of American Studies content and curricula in institutions of higher learning, and promotion of academic study in the United States through EducationUSA advising programs. Coordinates Public Affairs education engagement with the Ghanaian government and U.S. and Ghanaian higher education institutions (HEI). Serves as PD coordinator for diaspora engagement.
I. Project Development and Implementation (45% of time): Advances U.S. foreign policy objectives through engagement with EV audiences and U.S. and Ghanaian educational institutions in the virtual, physical, and communication spaces. Plans and implements projects to build education capacity in Ghana, promote Ghana-U.S. academic mobility and inform Ghanaian stakeholders on U.S. education best practices such as accreditation, workforce readiness, et al. Engages high school and university students, teachers, and professors to expand Mission access to EV communities. Draws on the full range of programs funded by the Department of State PD bureaus; develops Mission-designed education activities, projects and initiatives; recommends opportunities for grants and public/private partnership agreements to expand the impact of U.S. Government (USG) investment. Recruits credible Ghanaian voices and institutions to support Mission education outreach. Collaborates with the Strategic Content Coordination team to produce and disseminate multi-media content to market and promote awareness of EducationUSA outreach. Maintains contact with program alumni and alumni of U.S. colleges and universities and collaborates on plans to sustain their interest in the United States. Provides accurate and comprehensive information and advice to students, parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and local and government officials. Facilitates student recruitment by U.S. institutions and advises on development of partnerships among Ghanaian educational institutions and students. Organizes and/or supports education fairs, seminars, workshops and press to expand Ghanaian awareness of U.S. education opportunities.
II. Strategic Planning, Analysis, Evaluation (25%): Serves as strategist and advisor for Mission education policy. Advises PD leadership on Ghanaian education legislation and trends, including the influence of other global players. Interprets Ghanaian political, economic, and social contexts in the educational realm and identifies programs to support policy goals. Analyzes demographic, communication and influence patterns, and the impact of these sectors on Ghanaian educational perspectives. Recommends innovative approaches for building educational capacity, academic mobility, and workforce alignment in Ghana. Plans to engage priority EV communities and advances U.S. policy interests by working with Ghanaian education policy decision-makers, secondary and tertiary education students, teachers and professors. Plans projects to correspond to annual admissions cycles of schools and universities.
III. Intra- and Interagency Coordination (15%): Develop working relations across the Mission to coordinate activities, programs, and shared priorities. Promotes awareness among Mission officers of Study in the U.S. priorities, its economic benefits, and links to Mission goals. Develops opportunities for Mission officers and community to participate in school outreach initiatives. Coordinates with the Regional Education Advising Coordinator and the American Spaces Program Specialist to align approaches among EducationUSA advising centers, and with the Strategic Content Coordination team to develop multi-media initiatives in support of education outreach and assessment. Serve as PD coordinator for diaspora engagement.
IV. Resource Management and Administrative Functions (15%): Prepares, manages, and tracks the EducationUSA annual and individual project budgets for education policy and outreach programs, and contributes to the overall PD resource and planning tools, in consultation with the Resource Coordination unit. Serves as Grants Officer Representative (GOR) for education grants and cooperative agreements with responsibilities as indicated in Delegation of Authority letter. For DOS-initiated grants, acts as liaison between Department-based GOR and local implementing institution(s) as required. Maintains office records and ensures that education policy and outreach activities and initiatives are recorded in PDTools.
Qualifications and Evaluations
Requirements:
All selected candidates must be able to obtain and hold a:
- Public Trust security clearance.
All selected candidates will be subject to a background investigation and may be subject to a pre-employment medical exam.
Selected candidate must be able to begin working within a reasonable period of time 30 days upon receipt of agency authorization and/or clearances/certifications or their candidacy may end.Education Requirements:
University degree in education, American Studies, international relations, communications, or marketing is required.
Please address this factor in your ERA application under Education.Evaluations:
You will be evaluated against the qualifications and requirements in this vacancy announcement.
You may be asked to complete a pre-employment language or skills test.
You must complete the application form and provide the required documents. Your application must address all the position qualifications and requirements including education, experience, language, and any knowledge/skills/abilities listed. If you fail to submit a complete application, then your application may be disqualified for this position.Qualifications:
Experience:
A minimum of four years of progressively responsible experience in a multinational educational or cultural work environment is required, with education, communication, marketing, and public outreach duties as significant parts of the job.
Please address this factor in your ERA application under Major Duties and Responsibilities.
Language:
Fluent: Speaking/Reading/Writing English is required
Please address this language requirement in your ERA application.
Job Knowledge:
Detailed knowledge of the U.S. higher education system, the college application process, standardized entrance exams and financial aid is required, as is knowledge of the U.S. political system, American history, literature, culture and geography. General knowledge of the latest trends within the academic field of American Studies is required. Familiarity with virtual applications and technologies, including Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and digital tools used by students, teachers, and professors, is required. Must have general knowledge of project management, including defining project objectives, outcomes, and assessment methods.
A thorough understanding of the attitudes and preferences of the EV audience sector in Ghana, including the regional, ethnic, social, cultural, educational, linguistic and other factors and institutions that shape those attitudes, is required. Detailed knowledge of Ghanaian secondary and tertiary academic institutions, standards of instruction and curriculum relating to the U.S. and general standards and practice for education systems and NGOs is required. Knowledge of organizations involved in U.S.-Ghana diaspora relations.
Knowledge of typical customer service standards and marketing tools designed to engage specific audience segments, particularly the EV sector, in Ghana is required. Knowledge of latest trends in audience engagement related public service institutions such as think tanks, museums, academic institutions, professional training institutes, as relevant for the education sector, is required. Must have an understanding of communication trends in the region and internationally as it affects the Ghanaian information landscape and must be familiar with digital practices and procedures used by or influential with Ghana’s education and broader EV sector.
Please address this factor in your ERA application under Major Duties and Responsibilities.
Skills And Abilities:
Analytic skills: Must have strong analytic skills and the ability to conceptualize how best to use the PD tools to move Ghanaian attitudes in positive ways. Must be able to advise senior leaders of opportunities to promote Mission education outreach objectives; identify, analyze, predict, and assess EV audience attitudes; evaluate the
impact of activities and projects and modify approaches for best outcomes. Must be able to perceive the emergence of new influencers and adjust operations and programs accordingly.
Communication/Interpersonal skills: Must have excellent customer relations, interpersonal cross-cultural communication skills, and be able to identify and engage key figures critical to shaping local educational priorities and practices. Must have excellent written and oral communication skills, including public speaking, interviewing for evaluation purposes, writing reports, and contributing materials for publication in English. Must be able to tailor communications to fit formal and informal situations and different ethnic, religious, and linguistic cultures. Must be able to brief U.S. officers and visitors on a variety of issues and interpret informally between English for
public programs.
Management skills: Strong management skills are required, including the ability to develop and oversee project budgets and to organize, run, and present projects such as workshops, seminars, digital and in-person conferences, panel discussions, lectures, and camps. Must be able to negotiate agreements with partner
institutions and manage their fulfillment.
Technical skills: Good keyboarding and data entry skills, and excellent familiarity with electronic discovery tools, in particular the Internet, and standard information retrieval practices and procedures are required. Thorough, detailed knowledge of various computer software programs, specifically Microsoft Word, Excel, and PD-specific software, databases, and reporting tools is required. Must be able to use social media and mobile platforms, Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs), podcast creation, and basic photo and video tools. Must have good numerical skills to be able to develop and manage project and grant budgets; must be able to develop descriptive
statistical analysis of target audience segments and impact of education activities and initiatives.
Please address this factor in your ERA application under Major Duties and Responsibilities.
Benefits and Other Info
Benefits:Agency Benefits:
The U.S. Mission offers a competitive compensation and benefits package for local employees.
For Eligible Family Member (EFM) applicants, benefits should be discussed with the HR Office. The pay plan is assigned by the HR Office and confirmed by Washington, D.C.Other Information:
HIRING PREFERENCE SELECTION PROCESS:
A hiring preference is extended to eligible and qualified applicants in the order listed below. It is essential you accurately describe your status in your application, failure to do so may result in a determination that you are not eligible for a hiring preference.
HIRING PREFERENCE ORDER
- Appointment Eligible Family Member (AEFM) / U.S. citizen Eligible Family Member (USEFM) who is a preference-eligible U.S. Veteran*
- AEFM / USEFM
- Foreign Service (FS) on Leave without Pay (LWOP) and Civil Service (CS) with reemployment rights **
* IMPORTANT: US citizen Eligible Family Member (USEFM) applicants who claim status as a preference-eligible U.S. Veteran must submit a copy of their most recent DD-214 (“Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty”) preferably Member Copy 4, Letter from Veterans’ Affairs which indicates the present existence of a service-connected disability, equivalent documentation, or certification. A “certification” is any written document from the armed forces that certifies the service member is expected to be discharged or released from active duty service in the armed forces under honorable conditions within 120 days after the certification is submitted by the applicant. The certification letter should be on letterhead of the appropriate military branch of the service and contain (1) the military service dates including the expected discharge or release date; and (2) the character of service. Acceptable documentation must be submitted in order for the preference to be given.
** This level of preference applies to all FS employees on LWOP and CS with re-employment rights back to their agency or bureau.
For complete definitions of AEFM, USEFM, EFM, Member of Household, etc., please visit the 3 FAM 7210 Definitions.
ADDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT CONSIDERATIONS
The following apply to EFMs, USEFMs, and AEFMs only:
- Current employees who used a hiring preference to gain employment who are within their first 90 calendar days of employment are not eligible. This does not apply when the hiring mechanism is TEMP or the work schedule is intermittent or irregular.
- Candidates with a hiring preference who have already accepted a conditional offer of employment may NOT be extended a second conditional offer of employment unless and until they withdraw their candidacy for the first position in writing.
The following apply to Locally Employed (LE) staff only:
- Current employees serving a probationary period are not eligible.
- Current employees with an Overall Summary Rating of Needs Improvement, Unsatisfactory, or an MBC score of less than 100 points on their most recent Employee Performance Report are not eligible.
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