YOUTH WELLBEING SPECIALIST

Location: West Bank/ East Jerusalem

Position Status: Full-time, Regular Employment

Salary Level: 5A

Duration: One year with the possibility of extension

Department: Positive Youth Engagement (PYE)

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have a long-term impact.

The Program

Positive Youth Engagement (PYE) is a seven-year multi-sectoral Youth Activity designed to address the core issues of Palestinian youth development. The PYE activity will reach vulnerable and marginalized youth aged 10-24 at risk of social marginalization in deprived areas and private universities where they live by improving education, health, employment, community involvement (reintegration), and other needs as identified through drivers' assessments. The activity’s goal is to transform vulnerable youth into productive, contributing citizens who are connected to their communities by increasing opportunities for Palestinian youth to realize their potential and to effectively contribute to social and economic development. The following are the main themes of the PYE:

• Core programming that supports, protects, prepares, and engages youth in safe spaces found within a strong network of more than 80 CBOs throughout the West Bank.
• Tailored packages of activities, resources, and referrals that will set youth on individually selected pathways building on the core curriculum to increase opportunities for youth to effectively contribute to social and economic development.
• Opportunities for sustained community engagement and leadership through youth-led pathways and councils, community and social media campaigns, and mentorship of subsequent cohorts as part of sustainable community youth networks.
• Improve opportunities for learning and individual empowerment for youth in grades 7-12 through the network of safe spaces.
• Expand safe spaces through 11 local university career centers to reach youth ages 19-24 and offer the PYE core interventions including the Profound Stress and Attunement (PSA) approach and healthy well-being for youth, parents, and adult caretakers; learning activities (including the Passport To Success (PTS) and I: SERVE), youth pathways; and youth-led small-scale initiatives in addition to technology and innovation-driven learning programs with a focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics), green solutions, and entrepreneurship.

The Position

The Youth Wellbeing Specialist will support the development and implementation of psychosocial support and healthy well-being interventions for youth and their parents/caretakers under the PYE program. The Youth Wellbeing Specialist will work under the supervision of the Youth Wellbeing Manager and will work closely with the Senior Technical Expert (STE), Technical Advisors on Non-formal Education and Career Centers Development in Private Universities, Youth Pathways Manager, Learning Senior Manager, Youth Safe Spaces Capacity Strengthening Specialist, and the MEL team. The Youth Wellbeing Specialist will engage with existing partners in communities and safe spaces (primary, secondary) across 60 geographic locations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The Youth Wellbeing Specialist will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Support the Youth Wellbeing Manager's design of the learning curricula on youth psychosocial, emotional health, and well-being in line with the overall learning objectives of the PYE and Mercy Corps-related materials.
• Contribute to the design and implementation of capacity-building plans for partner organizations and community-based organizations (CBOs) hosting the safe spaces in key technical approaches related to advancing youth psychosocial support, emotional health, and well-being in line with the mandate of the program.
• Engage with the PYE network of partners and safe spaces on the design of the referral system for youth to related local and national entities for further support to achieve positive agency and healthy well-being.
• Participate in related Training of Trainers (ToT) programs and accordingly provide training, mentoring, and coaching to the PYE pool of trainers and youth mentors within the PYE network of partner organizations and safe spaces.
• Support the mainstreaming of psychosocial support and healthy well-being interventions across the program components including the Learning, Youth Pathways, and Nonformal Education, engaging with the pathways team for referrals of youth to join the thematic pathways, non-formal education activities, and learning acceleration programs particularly youth grades 7-12 to bridge particular learning gaps.
• Develop related technical reports (e.g. weekly, quarterly, annual) in English.

Essential Responsibilities

• Organize qualitative focus groups with the partnering organizations, and target youth ages (10-24) to understand youth priorities to achieve psychosocial support, emotional health, and well-being as well as opportunities that would respond to emerging youth needs and priorities.
• Engage with the Youth Wellbeing Manager to design the learning materials for the youth's psychosocial and well-being in line with PYE learning curricula “New Me” and “My Teens” and provide training accordingly to target mentors and youth groups. Similar tasks will be implemented by utilizing other tools of Mercy Corps on related topics, mainly Cognitive Art Therapy, and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings.
• After receiving Training of Trainers (ToT) on the sports-driven wellbeing program entitled “Sports for Change: 123 Entilek”, identify youth coaches/facilitators aged (16-24) to receive the training and qualify them to organize related activities targeting younger youth aged (10-15).
• Support the design and implementation of related capacity-building programs for PYE psychosocial support and healthy well-being mentors, creating a community of practice, where the mentors engage in continuous learning circles to gain advanced skills and share lessons learned, observations, and best practices.
• Support the process of knowledge transfer and mentoring of the PYE network of partners and safe spaces regarding the youth psychosocial and well-being pathways approach and tools.
• Engage with the pathways team for referrals of youth to join the thematic pathways, non-formal education activities, and learning acceleration programs particularly youth grades 7-12 to bridge the learning gap because of interrupted learning due to current escalations.
• Ensure integration of gender and priorities of youth who live with disabilities in the overall approach of the youth psychosocial and wellbeing pathways.
• Provide support in managing local consultants and specialized service providers.
• Employ creativity to adapt to learning and challenges throughout implementation.
• Ensure activities support sustainable approaches to improve the capacity of partner organizations to drive stable, long-term improvements and institutionalization.
• Develop related technical reports (e.g. weekly, quarterly, and annual) in English.
• Other tasks as assigned by the Youth Wellbeing Manager.

Accountability to Program Participants

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging program participant communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of our field projects.

Supervisory Responsibilities

The Youth Wellbeing Specialist will report to the Youth Wellbeing Manager. Further, coordinate related data, insights, and technical knowledge with the technical team.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: PYE Youth Wellbeing Manager

Works Directly With: PYE MEL Team, Technical Advisors on Non-Formal Education and Career Centers Development in Private Universities, Pathways Manager, Youth Safe Spaces Capacity Strengthening Specialist, Learning Senior Manager, Finance and Compliance Department, Operations Department, Procurement Department, and partner organizations.

جميع الحقوق محفوظة لموقع جوبس.

Knowledge and Experience

• BA degree in social sciences, psychosocial support, and youth wellbeing, or related areas. A master’s degree is preferred.
• At least 5 years of relevant working experience in the development sector in the Palestinian context with a focus on psychosocial support and wellbeing of youth.
• Experience in designing learning curricula and tools for youth with a deep understanding of gender, the needs of youth who live with disabilities, psychosocial support, emotional health, and youth wellbeing.
• Experience in providing training, mentoring, and coaching to professionals from local partners and community-based organizations.
• Experience in technical reporting in English and Arabic, in addition to the development of case studies and success stories to illustrate changes induced by the program.
• Knowledge of referral mechanisms and case management.
• Demonstrated understanding of the mental and behavioral health issues among Palestinian youth.
• Ability to work with partners and civil society organizations including community-based organizations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
• Fluent verbal and written communication skills in Arabic and English.

Success Factors

A successful candidate will have a demonstrated ability to lead and communicate effectively with team members and other stakeholders of varied work styles and cultures, follow procedures, and meet deadlines with flexibility and creativity in planning and problem-solving. This position requires an ability to think creatively about changing norms that lead to greater opportunities for economic growth at household, community, and institutional levels. S/he will have a proven ability to learn quickly, multi-task, prioritize, take initiative, be accountable for results, understand the larger picture while remaining focused on the details, problem-solving, work within a complex and sensitive setting and follow laws and security protocols. The most successful Mercy Corps team members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments, and make effective written and verbal communication a priority in all situations.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

This position is based in Ramallah, Palestine, and requires constant movement between West Bank cities. Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs, and Mercy Corps’ policies, procedures, and values always and in all in-country venues.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable, and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have a sustained global impact. We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants, or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves professionally, respect local laws and customs, and adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct eLearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

Interested candidates are encouraged to apply online HERE no later than 13:00 on Monday 08 April 2024.  Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.