School Performance Manager, GEOP

The context: 

Across the developing world, more children than ever are in school – but they are not learning. A recent study estimated that less than 1% of school children in Sub-Saharan Africa attend a school where the teaching meets basic standards of quality. At Rising Academies, we’re changing that, and we want your help. Our mission is to create the best schools and the most powerful teaching and learning tools for the people that need it most. We’re one of the fastest-growing quality-focused education companies in Africa, and a Certified B Corp®. 

About us:

We own and operate our own great value private schools, partner with governments to improve the quality of public school systems, and use our content and technology to help other education providers. Founded in Sierra Leone in 2014, we provided emergency education to children kept out of school by the Ebola Epidemic before opening our first school in April 2015. Today, we serve more than 250,000 students across more than 900 schools in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana and now Rwanda.

Through great curriculum, intensive teacher coaching and actionable data, we help teachers and school leaders bring quality to every classroom. And we get results: show Rising students make more than twice the progress of their peers in comparable schools.

About role:

We are seeking highly professional, motivated and organized education leaders for our School Performance Manager (SPM) role in Ghana. The SPM will oversee a cluster of schools to achieve outstanding academic and school improvement outcomes in the Ghana Education Outcomes Project (GEOP). GEOP is a 4-year programme which aims to improve literacy and numeracy learning outcomes for students in selected basic schools across the country. Rising is one of the selected providers for this important work.

Rising's partnership schools are located in the Northern Region, specifically within the Nanton, Savelugu, Kumbungu and Tolon districts.

Important: Although we will try to allocate successful candidates to the district of their choice, this is not guaranteed. Successful candidates must be willing to work in the district allocated to them.

The School Performance Manager will:

• Build strong relationships with Headteachers through regular school visits.
• Set high standards and effectively support schools to achieve them.
• Build strong relationships with stakeholders, generate support and buy-in, and liaise with them as necessary on relevant matters as they arise.
• Ensure that schools are safe learning environments and diligently follow Rising Academies’ Child Protection Policy.
• Deliver trainings for school leaders and teachers, and then ensure the trainings translate into improvements in the classroom.
• Ensure the effective implementation of Rising’s academic model to a high standard.
• Keep the Regional Performance Manager appraised of progress and challenges within each school, and report any issues as soon as they arise.
• Support Headteachers to build and maintain positive relationships with parents, the surrounding community and other key stakeholders.
• Learn from the successes and challenges of each school, proactively share lessons learned, and use these to improve the quality of other schools.

Location and reporting:

This will be a 3-year fixed-term, full-time post based in the Tamale region, from 2024 until 2026 with the possibility for an extension. School Performance Managers will report to the programme’s Regional Performance Managers.

Application deadline:

Applications will be on a rolling basis until all open positions are filled. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted due to the volume of applications expected.

Qualifications and Experience:

• University degree (preferred)
• Minimum 4 years of professional experience in the education sector
• Strong track record of professionalism and trustworthiness
• Effective communication, relationship building and teamwork skills
• Sets high standards and can support others to achieve them
• Ability to take the initiative and problem-solve when challenges arise
• Willingness to learn, give and receive feedback, and try new approaches
• Passionate about improving the quality of education
• Strong organizational and record keeping skills

We will consider all applicants that meet the skills and education requirements, and train the successful candidates as required.

About You:

• You are a strong communicator, able to motivate, challenge and support others.
• You set high standards for yourself and others, and go the extra mile to get things done.
• You have the highest levels of integrity and trustworthiness.
• You understand the contexts in which we operate and the educational and operational challenges they pose.
• You are passionate about improving the quality of education.
• You are very well organized and have great record keeping skills.
• You have strong relationship building and interpersonal skills.
• You have the ability to learn quickly, are happy to give and receive feedback, and are interested in trying new approaches.
• You make decisions in a logical way and on the basis of good evidence/reasoning.
• You are comfortable working with basic technology.

Compensation and Benefits:
We offer a competitive salary and benefits package. We regularly benchmark our compensation against comparable businesses, social ventures and non-profits.

Rising’s goal is to be transparent about salaries at all levels of the organisation and have a standard, global pay scale for all positions that is non-negotiable.

The benefits we offer are built to have a strong added value on our staff’s well-being and we are excited to discuss this further with you in the process.

Rising is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to providing a work environment that is inclusive and free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions are based on individual qualifications without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, national origin, family or parental status, veteran or disability status.

Rising is committed to creating a culture within the organisation, and its schools, that recognises the importance of safeguarding children and prioritising their rights and needs. We strive to uphold international safeguarding standards, and keep the safety and well-being of our students at the heart of what we do. All Rising employees are expected to abide by the Child Protection Policy, and to have the same level of commitment to protect children from harm. Safeguarding questions are part of every interview process and all Rising employees undergo reference checks before joining the organisation.