Area Studies Course Coordinators

LEVEL: Senior - Subject Matter Expert
LOCATION:  Arlington, VA

​DEADLINE for Submissions is Monday, 5 August 2019 at 5pm EST

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DESCRIPTION
McColm & Company seeks expressions of interest from qualified expert instructors to join our Policy & Diplomacy Practice for an anticipated project with the U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service Institute. 
 
The Area Studies Division is organized into the following seven programmatic areas: Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and Pacific, South and Central Asia, Near East/North Africa, Europe, Western Hemisphere, and Global Issues.  Area Studies courses highlight key thematic, historical, political, economic, and socio-cultural themes for the region, sub-region or country, American interests and policy issues and how the U.S. and USG policy are perceived.  McCO is seeking expressions of interest from qualified expert instructors to join our Policy & Diplomacy Practice to deliver professional teaching services to design and conduct thematic, regional, sub-regional and/or country-specific courses and parts of courses for our client. 

Interested candidates should select from the following list of regions/countries for which they are applying as expert instructors and note their preference in the web form:

East Africa and the Horn
Central Africa and Great Lakes
Southern Africa and Indian Ocean
West Africa
Austrailia, New Zealand, and Pacific Island Nations
China, Mongolia, and Taiwan
Japan and Korea
Mainland Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia
Caucasus
Central Europe
Eastern Europe
Nordics and Baltics
Russia
South Central Europe
Southern Europe
Western Europe
The Arabian Peninsula
The Fertile Crescent
North Africa
Iraq Familiarization
Countries of South Asia
Central Asia
Pakistan Familiarization
Andean Republics
Brazil and Southern Cone
Caribbean
Central America
​Mexico
 
DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITES

ADULT LEARNING APPROACH 
Area Studies courses prepare foreign affairs professionals to work effectively in the countries and cultures to which they are assigned.  Designed for experienced, adult learners, courses therefore require instructional formats involving active participation of the students facilitated by the person coordinating the course.  Instructional formats do not preclude some or all of the following types of activities: presentations, discussions, field trips, participatory activities by class members, readings, audio-visual materials, homework, papers, tests, quizzes and independent study, in order to accomplish course learning objectives.
 
COURSE COORDINATION 
Course coordinators will:

• Organize and conduct an Area Studies Course or part of a course based on knowledge of the area or theme;
• Provide course design support;
• Create materials and presentations required for courses;
• Submit a course schedule and syllabus for each course or part of a course;
• Provide material for the students to read and view before the course starts, with the pre-reading/viewing material serving as the basis for class discussion;
• Facilitate seminar sessions;
• Introduce guest subject matter experts, lead class discussions, present study materials, and evaluate student participation;
• Make presentations as part of the course;
• Meet with Area Studies Chairs on a regular basis, with regard to the course planning or problem areas;
• Provide updated and timely reading lists that include audio-visual and web-based materials as well as bibliographies that will allow foreign affairs professionals to remain up to date in the study of the theme, region, sub-region, or country on which the course is taught.
• Attend all in-class activities. In the rare event that a contractor course coordinator cannot be present, he or she must provide the COR a minimum of three weeks in advance, with a written request for permission to be absent.  This request must include the reason for the absence, and if the absence is approved, the name of the person to whom the contractor has subcontracted the session.  The contractor must cover this absence by subcontracting to a qualified substitute course coordinator to fulfill all terms of this contract during the absence.  Substitutions for the instructor must receive prior approval by the Area Studies Chair or Division Deputy Director or Director and all substitutions must have equivalent verifiable experience.
• Counsel students on information sources and other matters related to their thematic or geographic interest;
• Prepare evaluations of students according to current FSI policy; and
• Review the design of the course and recommend improvements based in part on student evaluations.

 
COURSE ADMINISTRATION 
Course coordinators will provide the following administrative services:

• Identify presenters in the course, guest subject matter experts who are recognized authorities from government, academic, diplomatic and business fields;
• Coordinate presentations by guest lecturers, ensuring they are informed as to the necessary scope and objectives for their presentations to fulfill the requirements of the course design;
• Process any required honoraria and/or fees for presenters, speakers, and guest lecturers;
• Advise the support staff of the Area Studies Division immediately when there is a change of guest subject matter experts;
• Ensure that the classroom has adequate resource materials such as maps, videos, and readings;
• When course and audio-visual materials are taken to a classroom, ensure that they are returned to their stored area;
• Maintain a regular record of student attendance on a roster provided by the Area Studies Division.  The roster will be returned to the Area Studies Division after each class session and remain there for confirming student attendance;
• Administer in class evaluations in accordance with FSI requirements;
• Produce an evaluation of each student in accordance with FSI requirements;
• Ensure that course evaluations are turned in by each participant prior to the course conclusion;
• Review with the Area Studies Chair and/or Area Studies budget staff the course financial plan spreadsheet and operate the course within budget projections. Discuss in advance with the Area Studies Chair any situation / request that does not conform to the course financial plan and obtain advance approval for any such requests;
• Submit identification information and a request for guest speaker access to the FSI campus to the support staff for processing one week in advance of the event; and
• Meet with the Area Studies Director or Deputy Director at least once a month to undertake an after action review of the most recent courses and discuss course planning and revisions.

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

• PhD preferred, Master's degree required
• Evidence of substantive expertise and recognition as an expert on the country or region elected in the application, as evidenced by published works, media appearances, past teaching experience or similar.
• Demonstrated evidence of dynamic and interactive instruction approaches and capabilities.
• At least three years of experience working professionally in circumstances which required a comprehensive use of cross-cultural skills and behaviors.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
Interested candidates should submit a details CV via this webform. Applications will be reviewed and candidates selected for interviews will be contacted on a rolling basis. We are unfortunately not able to answer questions over the phone. DEADLINE for Submissions is Monday, 5 August 2019 at 5pm EST

APPLY NOW

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
McColm & Company is an equal opportunity employer offering employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, citizenship, physical or mental handicap. We value diversity.

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