Freedom House promotes the spread of freedom and democracy around the world through research, advocacy, and programs that support frontline activists. We are a leader in identifying threats to freedom through our highly regarded analytic reports, including Freedom in the World, Freedom of the Press, Freedom on the Net, and Nations in Transit. With 13 field offices and two U.S. offices, we support the right of every individual to be free.
Position Summary
The Senior Program Officer will assist in designing and managing all program aspects for the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) regional portfolio to include strategic program design, oversight of program activities, fundraising, backstopping field offices, staff supervision, financial management, monitoring and evaluation, advocacy, project development, training and outreach. The position is based in Washington, DC and reports to the Director for Latin America and Caribbean Programs.
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in political science, international relations, human rights, international development, or related field; Master’s degree preferred
- Minimum 6-8 years of directly related experience, with 2 or more years in a supervisory or management role preferred
- Strong track record and demonstrated past experience in writing winning proposals, fundraising, and donor cultivation
- Extensive experience managing and implementing grants from public and private sources
- Strong ability to communicate effectively in English, both verbally and in writing
- Fluency in oral and written Spanish is required
- Demonstrated experience managing USG funding
- Proven knowledge of USG funding regulations and compliance requirements, and familiarity with US Congressional processes
- Proven ability to write effective donor reports and proposals
- Demonstrated ability to successfully recruit, develop, supervise, and motivate staff, as well as provide effective leadership
- Experience living and working in Latin America strongly preferred
- Strong knowledge of human rights principles and mechanisms, and understanding of democracy promotion, with a focus on LAC
- Excellent research, analytical, writing, and organizational skills
- Proven program management skills from design through implementation, evaluation, and closeout
- Extensive knowledge and working experience with the non for profit sector, CSOs and Human Rights organizations
- Mastery of MS Office Suite, with experience managing and tracking budgets
- Ability to maintain the highest degree of confidentiality regarding all aspects of work at all times
- Strong ability to prioritize work and multi task to meet tight deadlines in a fast paced environment
- Flexible and adaptable with a good sense of humor and positive attitude
- Ability to travel to event sites and field offices up to 20% of the time
Primary Duties and Responsibilities
- Assist the Regional Director in developing the LAC program strategy and managing program portfolio
- Design, manage, and supervise all programmatic aspects of multiple grants including work plan development, identifying consultants and sub-grantees, organizing trainings and other activities, conducting monitoring and evaluation, reporting, and backstopping field offices
- Collaborate with country representative (where applicable) and manage all activities to ensure that programmatic objectives are met and programs are in compliance with both Freedom House and funder requirements
- Monitor key developments in the LAC region including elections, status of relevant legislation, human rights abuses, and positive or negative trends related to human rights, and be able to report and present findings to policymakers and other high-level audiences
- Manage program finances including conducting budget monitoring and analysis, developing projections, and overseeing implementation to ensure financial compliance
- Negotiate, write, and revise contracts, MOUs, letters of agreement, and other contractual documents for partners and vendors and oversee implementation to ensure that objectives and terms of agreements are met
- Manage proposal submission process and ensure complete, accurate, and timely proposal submission
- Contribute to and participate in negotiations with bilateral and multilateral government agencies, donors, or relevant audiences as authorized
- Develop effective professional relationships with partners organizations and assist them with increasing their capacity to implement programs and meet programmatic objectives
- Develop and maintain relationships with the donor and diplomatic community, congressional staff, partners and grantees, policy community, and other NGOs and think tanks
- Assist with developing and implementing advocacy strategies for the region, including organizing events and meetings and communicating with external contacts as requested
- Coordinate effectively with HROs, civil society organizations and other groups or defenders in the LAC region
- Other related duties as assigned
Work Environment and Physical Demands:
Essential functions are typically performed in an office setting with a low level of noise. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Disclaimer: This job description is only a summary of the typical functions of the job. It is not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities, tasks and duties. The responsibilities, tasks, and duties of the jobholder may differ from those outlined in the job description and that other duties, as assigned, may be part of the job. Freedom House may add, change, or remove essential and other duties at any time.
We offer great benefits including:
- Generously subsidized dental insurance
- Generously subsidized vision insurance
- Generously subsidized health insurance with three options (HMO, POS, PPO)
- 100% employer paid life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment
- 100% employer paid short-term disability and long-term disability insurance
- Supplemental/voluntary life insurance for employee, spouse, and child(ren)
- 403(b) Retirement Plan with generous matching funds with 2 year 100% vesting schedule
- Flexible Spending Accounts for medical and dependent care reimbursable expenses
- Transportation pre-tax payroll deduction for metro, and garage parking in DC
- Generous paid vacation leave, sick leave, personal leave, and holidays
- Tuition Reimbursement for graduate studies
- And much more…
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