Vacancy Announcement:

International Rescue Committee and University of Nairobi
Partnership for Education in Emergencies
Call for Interest and Draft Terms of Reference: Visiting Professor

Around 40 million children currently out of school worldwide live in countries affected by conflict and instability. To ensure such children do not continue to miss out on vital schooling, there is an urgent and growing demand for high quality education responses in emergencies and a pool of professionals to spearhead these efforts.

To respond to this need, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the University of Nairobi (UoN) have joined forces to launch a new regional initiative to create a hub of expertise for Education in Emergencies (EiE) in East Africa. The unique three‐year partnership will offer a range of specialized courses at the UoN’s School of Education – including a Master of Education degree, a Certificate/Diploma Program and shorter study courses in Education in Emergencies. Courses combining coursework, fieldwork and research will help students and existing practitioners to develop the essential skills and competencies to deliver quality education in complex emergencies and post‐crisis settings.

As the UoN’s School of Education prepares to offer this new academic area of study for the 2010‐2011 academic year, the IRC and UoN would like to count on the assistance of a Visiting Professor who will work directly to support the capacity building needs of the professors. While the IRC and the UoN work to mobilize funds for this position, this Call for Interest is being circulated in order to expedite the recruitment process.

The Visiting Scholar will work in a full‐time capacity to support the following activities:
- Observing existing classes offered within the School of Education in order to develop an understanding of pedagogical and methodological techniques currently employed at the UoN as well as opportunities for introducing new teaching practices
- Facilitating capacity building workshops developed in collaboration with IRC and UoN staff, gathering and analyzing input to suggest new workshop topics, designing models for short‐term and long‐term activities
- Co‐facilitating ongoing curriculum development activities for EiE program, which currently consists of one core (to be taught in February 2011) and five elective courses (to be taught in October 2012)
- Facilitating peer support meetings among UoN School of Education faculty responsible for EiE program
- Serving as a mentor and resource person as professors prepare and carry out teaching responsibilities for EiE program
- Co‐teaching, in collaboration with the School of Education faculty, the core course to be offered during the second semester (February 2011) to at least 25 graduate students
- Assisting in development of a marketing strategy in order to attract prospective students to both courses
- Providing guidance on faculty members’ individual and collaborative research interests and 2 projects
- Overseeing monitoring and evaluation plan for faculty development program

Qualifications:
- Qualified candidates will possess a Ph.D. or Ed.D. in education or related field, preferably with a focus on education in emergencies, refugees, humanitarian aid, etc.
- Experience teaching at the University level, and in using team teaching techniques (preferred)
- Ability to teach general theoretical and skills‐oriented courses
- Established research and scholarship record
- Field experience working with education in emergencies (preferred)

Additional Details:
Ideally, the Visiting Professor would be expected to be in residence in Nairobi, Kenya from August 2010 – July 2011.

Compensation:
IRC will provide compensation for this consultancy commensurate with experience and will support basic travel and living accommodations.

Submission of Materials:

Please submit the following electronically to marymendenhall@theirc.org:
- A letter of application inclusive of teaching philosophy
- Curriculum vitae
- A brief statement of research interests

Please be prepared to provide the following if selected for the interview process:
- Graduate‐level transcripts
- Names and contact information for three professional references

Review of completed applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled (pending funding).

Contact Details:
Mary Mendenhall, Ed.D.
International Rescue Committee
Academic Consultant for IRC‐UoN Partnership for Education in Emergencies
Email: mary.mendenhall@theirc.org


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