Sports Recruitment International

About Special Olympics

Dignity, acceptance, and a chance to reach one’s potential – these are human rights worth promoting for everyone. For more than four decades, Special Olympics has been bringing one message to the world: people with intellectual disabilities can and will succeed if given the opportunity.

Special Olympics is where athletes with intellectual disabilities celebrate and are celebrated for their accomplishments. It's often the first time that our athletes have truly taken center stage and been recognized as individuals. And the focus is not limited to sports. In diverse areas like healthcare, leadership training, legislative self advocacy and employment, Special Olympics takes a leadership role.

Position Summary

The Vice President, Global Youth Activation and Education Policy will lead the global expansion and implementation of youth activation in each of seven Special Olympics regions around the world, as a core component of the community building pillar of the Movement’s strategic plan.  S/he will create an integrated overarching global blueprint for youth activation and school and education policy building off of the data, research and evaluation findings, key characteristics and principles that ensure Project UNIFY remains a successful U.S. youth activation program. 

This person will be an integral part of a team that plans, prioritizes, and organizes a diversified workload and manages available resources to facilitate interaction with all constituents involved with Project UNIFY.  The Vice President will represent the organization at global youth, and education forums and conferences, presenting on the value proposition of inclusive youth sports and youth leadership as a critical force in education and community reform around the globe. 

Responsibilities

• Lead research, fact-finding and resource development to support and inform the creation of education and youth initiatives promoting school and community acceptance and inclusion in each region.
• Develop unique and region-specific strategy and policy briefs for regional youth activation approaches in each of the seven regions, including identification of focus country pilot programs that will serve as models for different education and cultural structures supporting/promoting inclusive youth development.
• Identify and assist in securing government and private sector funding in each of the regions specific to youth activation, inclusive education and inclusive youth sports and physical fitness.
• Author and co-author articles for diverse constituents in professional journals and publications providing evidence and stories of the scope and impact of Special Olympics in inclusive youth and sports and education activities.
• Coordinate efforts by several SOI departments and the Regional Offices in support of the Youth Activation efforts.
• Oversee an ongoing evaluation and research agenda that positions Special Olympics as the leading global entity in promoting inclusive youth sports, inclusive youth leadership, and inclusive youth advocacy opportunities.
• Establish and oversee an Advisory Committee for Youth Activation activities, including the Global Youth Advisory Committee; develop sub-committee structure, guidelines and operating principles.
• Drive the content development and design of Global Youth Activation Summits and support in conjunction with all Special Olympics World Games.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in education or education related field with a minimum of 8 years international agency or business experience and 5 years in education policy, organizational and leadership development are required (3 years government or foundation experience a plus).  
• Experience developing and managing educational, school and community partnerships is essential.
• Demonstrated success designing and implementing educational resources for a wide age spectrum of youth; and implementing projects in education fields, working in conjunction with school leaders, administrators and teachers.
• Project management experience for a large scale, global, multi-year project with budget, and evaluation responsibilities is required.  
• A minimum of 4 years of supervisory/people management experience (field management or cross cultural group preferred) is also required.
• Proven business acumen, e.g., demonstrated understanding of return on investment & the ability to make decisions using this information. 
• Knowledge of Special Olympics and Special Olympics field experience preferred.
• Travel required, typically 30-40% of time.

 

Skills Required

• Competencies critical to success include: innovation, collaboration, entrepreneurship, problem solving, teamwork, and vision.
• Sound planning, organization, supervisory and project management skills.
• Diplomacy skills and familiarity with a variety of cultures and echelons.
• Excellent communications skills, both verbal, written and consensus development.
• The ability to evaluate technical information and communicate to various audiences.
• Excellent ability with new cyber communications tools.
   

For more information on the Special Olympics, please visit: www.specialolympics.org.

A full position description can be downloaded by clicking on 'Download position description' below.

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