Vacancy: Position for a librarian at ROOM TO READ

JOB DESCRIPTION

POSITION: READING ROOM PROGRAM ASSOCIATE

Organization Profile

Room to Read's mission is to provide the most previously disadvantaged children with an opportunity to gain the lifelong gift of education. The organization was founded on the belief that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty and taking control of one's own life. We currently work in Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate all of their children equally. In 2006, we began our expansion into Africa,
establishing projects in South Africa and in 2007 began to establish ourselves in Zambia.

Room to Read (RtR) is a results-driven organization that seeks to intervene early in a child's life to provide ongoing educational opportunities in their communities. We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based
organizations to implement our programs. We have developed a successful approach to building educational infrastructure and opportunities which consists of:
Partnering with communities to build schools through challenge grants
Establishing bi-lingual libraries
Publishing local language children's books
Establishing computer and language labs
Providing long-term scholarships to girls

Since our inception, Room to Read's worldwide team has celebrated the opening of our 3800th library, the donation of our two millionth book, and our fourth consecutive year winning the Fast Company Monitor Group Social Capitalist award. To date, we have impacted the lives of over 1.3 million children. Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$12 million, and our global staff will number over 175 by the end of
2007. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have program offices in Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Phnom Penh, Tshwane (formerly known as Pretoria), and Vientiane.
Our long-term goal is to help 10 million children to gain the lifelong gift of education.

Room to Read South Africa started its operations in October 2006. We are currently working with 65 primary and secondary schools in the Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga where we are establishing Reading Rooms (libraries). With the goal of increasing children’s access to book, we have also published 3 books in local languages through our Local Language Publishing Program. We plan to release two new titles in the
beginning of 2008.

Position Overview

The Reading Room Program Associate (RRPA) will assist and report directly to the Reading Room Program Officer (RRPO). S/he will provide assistance to the RRPO in implementing the Reading Room programme.
Primary responsibilities will include procuring, organizing and preparing books for distribution to Room to Read (RtR) Reading Rooms.
Additional duties towards fulfilling objectives of the programme will be determined as needed.

Position: based in Mpumalanga with occasional travelling to other provinces

General Duties and Responsibilities
Assist in surveying and selecting schools that are in need and meet the RtR selection criteria for Reading Rooms.
Assist in analyzing and assessing applications and/or proposals from schools and make recommendations for programmatic implementation.
Make regular visits to project sites to supervise, monitor and support the local partners and educators.
Assist in gathering information for reports on the status and progress of our Reading Room programs.
Assist in hosting donor site visits as needed and document anecdotes that evolve through field work.
Make recommendations on improving the Reading Room program’s impact and ustainability in schools and communities, with particular focus on maximizing quality and the community’s challenge grant contribution.
Support local and outside volunteers/mobilisers in order to ensure support for the programme.
Participate in any other activities which may be required to be undertaken to fulfill the objectives of RtR South Africa.

Specific Duties and Responsibilities
Assist in coordinating and facilitating training workshops for Reading Room librarians or teachers.
Identify, categorize and enter suitable books and materials into a database for Reading Rooms supported by RtR South Africa.
Assist in procurement of books, furniture, library stationery and other supplies from different sources and develop a package of materials for the Reading Rooms.
Assist in receiving, sorting and storing donated English-language books.
Maintain an inventory of books and track distribution to schools and partners.
Work with appropriate staff to organize the packaging of books and supplies and their distribution to beneficiary schools and partners.
Represent RtR in different forums and advocate the importance of reading and the need for Reading Rooms for children.

Qualifications Required
Bachelor's degree/diploma from an accredited university program in South Africa preferably in Library and Information Science or equivalent.
Demonstrated computer literacy.
Ability to travel frequently within and to provinces throughout South Africa.
Strong verbal and written communication skills in English and 2 or more local languages.
Valid Code B driver’s licence.
Preferred Prior experience living and/or working in rural areas.
Prior experience working with schools, teachers, administrators and government officials.
To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also need to:
Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact an
up-and-coming non-profit organization.
Be an innovative and creative thinker - you are not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so.
Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness.
Have strong work ethics, take initiative, and require minimal direction.
Work well independently as well as part of a team.
Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment.

Compensation
Salary will be based upon the final candidate’s experience. Benefits including a company sponsored health care plan and an optional retirement programme. Additional benefits include professional development opportunities and the unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, and rapidly growing organization that is
changing the world through the lifelong gift of education.

Application Procedure
Please send your cover letter and resume by email, with "RRPA, South Africa" in the subject line, to info@roomtoread.org.za.
Due to a large volume of CVs submitted to Room to Read, we regret that we cannot reply personally to each candidate. We will contact with those candidates whom we wish to interview via phone or in person.
Room to Read South Africa is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.

Closing date for applications
All applications should reach us on or before 30 November 2007.