Senior Education Coordinator – Mercy Corps Northwest

This position will be based in Portland, Or. The annualized salary range for this hourly position is $46,000-49,000.

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 long-term impact.

About Our Team

As the U.S. field office of Mercy Corps, Mercy Corps Northwest (MCNW) works to build more just, productive and resilient communities in the Pacific NW. Our programs support up to 2,100 individuals each year; reduce prison re-entry rates for participants by 50%; improve services at more than 30 local nonprofits; and support under-resourced communities with disaster preparedness knowledge.

At MCNW, we believe that everyone should have the opportunity to improve their life regardless of their background. By investing in those without ready access to resources, existing economic disparities will become more equitable, and motivated, hard-working individuals and families will have opportunities to break intergenerational cycles of poverty for good. For more information about Mercy Corps Northwest, visit www.mercycorpsnw.org

About Your Role

The Education Coordinator loves crafting experiences for people and as such, is a key member of the small business education team, contributing to the development, management, and administration of all programs within the MCNW Education Team and The Oregon Women’s Business Center (WBC). They are highly collaborative and a great listener, seen as a trusted and strategic partner. Key focus areas include the development/management of business education programming, events management, and facilitating the student enrollment process. The Education Coordinator, responsible for donor and community relationships, budget management, class and client logistics, data management, and strategic vision for growth. This role is a primary liaison to the community, representing MCNW and the WBC in person and online. They will act as the point person for a variety of events, utilizing communication and organizational skills to coordinate training.

Your Key Responsibilities

COORDINATION

Oversee the MCNW scheduling for curriculum development, onboard independent contractors/consultants for embedded videos for new curriculum. Manage staff, volunteers, and contracted instructors and pro bono consultants to provide classroom or online training sessions, and one on one consulting sessions.
With the support of the WBC Manager, develop and maintain an Instructor Guide for best practices for students and instructors; ensure instructors understand MCNW DEI initiatives. Ensure these documents are kept current each year.
Meet with the WBC manager and budget manager as needed to update and discuss program financial needs.
With the support of the WBC manager, have the ability to manage programs as a business, identify budget short falls. Must have the ability to structure programming to be revenue positive and address and mitigate program losses.
In collaboration with the MEL Manager and Database Officer, create a data management strategy for the new on demand training role out.
Oversee MCNW small business seminars – at least 30 business seminars annually. Develop speaker topics that align with the needs of MCNW clients and small business owners through direct client feedback. Tasks include volunteer speaker recruitment, seminar implementation, and post-event evaluation.
Coordinate all webinars and one-on-one consultations, working closely with MCNW staff, consultants, and logistic considerations.
Manage the production of at least 25 multi-session small business classes annually. Duties include: preparation of class materials, instructor support, class set up and post-class evaluation, and student data management.
Facilitate various subcommittees of the Women’s Business Center advisory board as needed.
Support and represent MCNW in its efforts to integrate equity and inclusion policy and practice into its organizational culture and education activities.
Work with the Community Navigators to conduct outreach and attend outreach team meetings.

ADMINISTRATION

Use VistaShare and any new platforms as they are onboarded into MCNW. Duties include data entry, data cleaning, obtaining report-specific data needs, and tracking event, client, volunteer information.
Work with the Communications and Marketing manager to develop and post compelling event descriptions and schedule events on the MCNW website.
Respond to training client inquiries and provide customer service to training clients by phone and email.
Process client financial information in application for scholarships and other activities.
Manage class, seminar and counseling registrations, payment processing, and event promotion on website.
Collaborate with the education team and MEL colleagues on the design, monitoring and evaluation of education programs, online initiatives, and volunteer activity to ensure continuous improvement.
Support MCNW WBC manager by cross-training on key administrative processes (i.e. data reporting) to ensure effective program implementation.
Attend IBRN monthly meetings
Work with the Community Liaison by keeping them updated on new events and classes.
Create operational mechanisms to address cross-functional programming needs when needed.

EVENT MANAGEMENT

Support and assist in the development and management of public-facing and online events, including small business vendor markets.
Recruit and manage event volunteers.
Lead logistics and other planning details with MCNW team for three major events annually (i.e. holiday Market, Speed mentoring, Pitch Competition), including recruiting and assisting small business clients/participants, procuring food and beverage, managing event budgets, and marketing events to the public.
Support online platforms, learning management platform, innovation of online and recruiting contractors for online support as needed.

MARKETING

Work closely with MCNW Marketing & Communications Manager to promote enrollment in all small business education classes and special events.
Help Marketing & Communications Manager develop and update printed collateral for marketing of training programs.
Assist Marketing & Communications Manager in maintaining social media presence of MCNW, training & education programs and the WBC.
Coordinate and assist organizational events, tabling other events and contribute as a spokesperson when needed.

Supervisory Responsibility: None

Accountability

Reports Directly to: Women’s Business Center Manager

Works Directly With: All MCNW team members, HQ representatives, clients, and community partners; works very closely with Marketing & Communications Manager, and Database Officer.

Minimum Qualification / Transferable Skills*

We will consider any combination of relevant work experience, volunteering, education, and transferable skills as qualifying unless an item or section is labeled required. Please be clear and specific about how your background is relevant.

BA/S or equivalent in business, finance, banking, community development, economics and/or other relevant field or entrepreneurial experience. (Professional work at or near the level of this position can substitute year for year for the educational requirement)
2 years event management experience (including experience in both in-person and online events)
1 year program coordination experience
Proficient in Microsoft 365 is a plus

*Transferable skills: Any skills you have gained through education, volunteer or work or life experience (including the military) that are relevant for this position will be considered. Be sure to describe any transferable skills and how they apply to this position in your cover letter.

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

Self-starter, innovative, and forward-thinking with the ability to work both independently and in collaboration with a team.
Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to negotiate and build collaborative agreements with diverse groups of people, including clients, volunteers, governmental agencies, stakeholders, educators.
Willingness to work with partner organizations and to develop and strengthen collaborative relationships to enhance our programming and referrals links.
Superior written skills
Ability to coordinate multiple projects simultaneously, and manage a variety of details on our program management system, Wrike.
Ability to work collaboratively with low-income and multicultural populations on issues relating to community development and education.
Knowledge and experience in working with or operating small businesses will be a critical advantage. May be an entrepreneur with a business that does not compete with Mercy Corps business education offerings or full-time employment.
Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines, work independently and cooperatively with team members.
Ability to understand and interpret financial statements, including balance sheets, profit and loss statements, financial forecasts and budgets.
Knowledge and experience with data collection and interpretation for successful program development.
Language skills in Spanish, Russian or other common immigrant languages are a plus.

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 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 prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. 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 in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to 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.