About Global TIES for Children

At New York University's Global TIES for Children we design, evaluate and advise on programs and policies to improve the lives of children and youth in the most vulnerable regions across the globe. Led by University Professors Larry Aber and Hiro Yoshikawa, we work with some of the world's leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and with governments in low-income (LI) and crisis-affected (CA) countries on developing and evaluating innovative approaches to promoting the health, education, and social development of children and their communities. Together with our key strategic partner organizations, our work leverages cutting-edge scientific methods and interdisciplinary collaboration to:    

• Generate actionable evidence to promote child and youth development by conducting and evaluating powerful strategies to transform relevant "social settings" (i.e., classrooms, schools, families, communities, etc.) that are key drivers of children's learning and well-being;
• Communicate actionable evidence by engaging diverse stakeholders across sectors and regions and disseminating a rigorous evidence base to inform program and policy decisions for children and youth in LI and CA countries; and  
• Build human, administrative, and institutional capacity for a robust global science and practice through the provision of professional development and training activities.

About Sesame Seeds

The Syrian refugee crisis is the defining humanitarian issue of our time, with millions displaced due to conflict and war across the Middle East and the world. In addition, we know from decades of research that all children need nurturing care, a comforting routine, and opportunities to learn through play in the critical first years of life. Yet only about 2 percent of humanitarian assistance goes to education, and only a tiny sliver of that 2 percent to early childhood development services.

Sesame Seeds: Restoring Hope and Opportunity to a Generation of Syrian Refugees is a partnership between Sesame Workshop, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), and NYU Global TIES for Children to develop, provide and evaluate high-quality early childhood development services and mass media for young children in Syrian refugee families. The project focuses on four countries in the Middle East -- the epicenter of the crisis -- specifically, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Syria. This unique partnership was awarded a USD $100 million grant from the MacArthur Foundation, the first to be given under the 100&Change initiative. NYU Global TIES for Children will be leading the external evaluation of this project, including formative and implementation research as well as impact evaluations.

We will partner with both the IRC and Sesame Workshop to bring the most rigorous qualitative and quantitative evidence to bear on how to best serve families and children in these communities. We will pay special attention to issues of stress and adversity; issues of gender and disability; as well as the diversity of cultures in the Syrian refugee as well as host communities.

The project team includes Hirokazu Yoshikawa (Principal Investigator), Alice J. Wuermli (Co-Investigator and Project Director) and J. Lawrence Aber (Co-Investigator), and research partners at the IRC and Sesame Workshop.

Position Summary

We are seeking a full-time Project Assistant to support NYU Global TIES for Children's varied research activities. The position will primarily be responsible for operational, logistical, and administrative activities related to the Sesame Seeds project. The Project Assistant will also support other relevant projects in a similar capacity as needed.

Position Responsibilities

The Project Assistant will report directly to the Project Director of Sesame Seeds. The incumbent will also coordinate/support all Sesame Seeds staff in New York and Abu Dhabi on a daily basis. S/he will receive guidance from the Center's Associate Director, Research Administration as needed.

The specific position responsibilities for this role are as follows:

• Research Operations/Administration
  • Coordinate logistics for domestic and international events, including identifying venues, arranging catering, and preparing materials
  • Coordinate travel and book accommodations for project staff, consultants, and guests
  • Support full-cycle recruitment of project staff and process new/renewal appointments
  • Support grants administration activities (i.e., contract negotiations, subaward processing, etc.)
  • Coordinate the submission of Institutional Review Board (IRB) initial submissions, amendments and renewals.
  • Schedule meetings (in-person/virtual) and calls; take detailed meeting minutes and coordinate post-meeting distribution of action items
  • Update and maintain internal TIES / Sesame calendars and project management system (e.g., Asana, Instagannt)
  • Develop and maintain an effective filing and documentation system
  • Other administrative duties as needed

• Finance & Procurement
  • Set up systems to efficiently process payments to external consultants/vendors and internal reimbursements/advances
  • Track project expenses and support the preparation of budget reports
  • Liaise with grants management personnel in NYUAD and NYUNY to support pre- and post-award activities and reporting
  • Purchase and manage inventory of research technology/supplies
  • Liaise with relevant NYU grants management departments to ensure all purchasing and shipping complies with applicable regulations
  • Coordinate research supply shipments as needed
     
• Communication & Outreach
  • Support internal and external coordination and communications between NYUNY- and NYUAD-based staff, and project partners (IRC and Sesame Workshop )
  • Update and maintain TIES' contacts and networks using client relationship management (CRM) applications (e.g., Prosperworks)
  • Create, maintain, and update systems and databases to keep track of partners and collaborators
  • Update/maintain website and other social media and create new content (posts, infographics, visuals) that encourages audience interaction
  • Ensure that all outgoing communications adhere to the guidelines relevant to each project and also to NYU Steinhardt and NYUAD guidelines