Senior Project Officer

Workplace Circumstances

• Environment: Office
• Languages: English, Khmer
• Location: Kampong Cham Province

Position Summary

The salary scale for these full-time positions will range from 3,000,000Riel to 3,600,000Riel based on previous background.

The positions will work in the Happy Cambodian Children Project-HCC, which has annual funding of about $1.5 million each year with an open-ended time frame of 10 to 20 years. HCC is implemented by KAPE, which is a well-established local NGO specializing in educational development with a portfolio of 20 ongoing projects across Cambodia and an annual funding portfolio of about $5 million. KAPE has been chosen as the partner agency of the Kinchan Foundation, which funds HCC. HCC uses an integrated project design to support 84 state primary schools and is implemented in close cooperation with District and Provincial Offices of Education in 8 target provinces. This project is currently in its 8th year of operation and is embarking on a rapid expansion of project sites.

General Description

The Senior Project Officer is based in the KAPE Central Office and focuses primarily on operational issues relating to school management (e.g., school planning, grant management, School Management Committee operations, school management and leadership), school access, and school community relations. This position focuses exclusively on target schools within all target Provinces. Additionally, the Senior Project Officer is directly responsible for overseeing the management of the community preschool in Hanchey Commune, Kampong Cham Province.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Capacity Building & Staff Mentorship: Provide systematic capacity building and mentorship to Area Coordinators and Project Officers on organizing school access, strengthening school management, and executing parent engagement activities. Build the capacity of junior project staff as operational needs arise.
• Technical Support & Community Outreach: Deliver technical guidance on school access, school management frameworks, and community outreach during the planning and implementation phases of project interventions outlined in the workplan.
• School Committee Empowerment: Provide relevant training, tools, and operational support to School Support Committees to ensure they function effectively and sustainably.
• Grant & Resource Management: Collaborate closely with other Project Officers to manage school grants systematically, ensuring all disbursed funds directly contribute to enhancing educational quality across the schools.
• Preschool Operational Oversight: Oversee the direct management of the Community Preschool in Hanchey Commune (Kampong Cham) the only preschool under KAPE’s direct supervision. This includes teacher training, the organization of student snack/lunch programs, community mobilization, and material supply chain management.
• Data Management & Technical Reporting: Collect, manage, and verify school data across provinces. Provide regular performance data, progress updates, and structured field reports to supervisors for quarterly, semester, and annual technical reporting.
• Work Planning & Compliance: Formulate and submit a written schedule of planned field activities each month to the Project Manager to ensure systematic implementation. Promptly report any field irregularities, challenges, or anomalies to supervisors alongside potential solutions.
• Inter-Provincial & Stakeholder Coordination: Coordinate closely with Area Coordinators in other provinces regarding support from commune councils, particularly concerning the deployment and support of School Caretakers across all project schools.
• Monitoring & Evaluation: Assist the KAPE M&E Section in the field administration of baseline, midline, and endline testing for EGRA/EGMA, or other relevant educational tests and surveys.

Languages

• Khmer - Fluent
• English - Fluent

Qualifications

• Master's Degree in education, or a related field.

Work History

• Progressive experience in project implementation within the education sector, preferably within an NGO environment for 3 to 5 years

General & Technical Skills

• Proven experience in staff mentoring, school governance, or community mobilization.
• Strong technical understanding of Child-Friendly School (CFS) frameworks, school grants, and primary/pre-primary education linkages.
• Demonstrated capacity to build positive relationships with local government counterparts, commune councils, and school committees.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel), data management tools, and digital reporting assets.
• Professional written and verbal communication skills in Khmer; English language proficiency is a strong advantage.

Soft Skills

• Ability to travel independently to target rural schools within all target Provinces.