Program Specialist II, Office of Democracy Human Rights and Labor

Job Title: Program Specialist II, Office of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor

Location: U.S. Department of State Offices at 2201 C St NW, Washington DC (Harry S. Truman Building), or 2401 E Street NW, Washington DC (State Department Annex 1).

Clearance:  Must be able to obtain/hold a Secret security clearance (U.S. Citizenship required).

Contracting Resources Group, Inc. (CRG) is a mid-sized woman-owned business supporting federal mission priorities through program execution, performance measurement, strategic communications, acquisition support, and digital transformation.  Since 2002, CRG has provided high-quality solutions with a focus on reliability, agility, and operational excellence. We offer a collaborative work environment, competitive compensation, and have been recognized for our strong workplace culture through awards such as “Best Places to Work” and the Department of Labor’s HireVets Platinum Medallion.

Description: CRG is seeking a full-time Program Specialist to provide support to the Office of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the U.S. Department of State. The Program specialist shall be responsible for assisting the Program Analysts and the Grants Officers in ensuring effective execution of program requirements: establishing systematic methods of program execution, evaluation, and/or advocacy; assessing activities to determine funding requirements and to determine whether funding is warranted and available; analyzing program and budget proposals and assisting in presenting them to the State Department panels; preparing justification or recommendation memoranda for review and approval by appropriate officials; and providing follow-up problem-solving assistance, guideline interpretations, and technical consultations as required to applicants. They may assist with Departmental briefings to congressional staffers on these programs.

The Program Specialist shall assist and communicates DRL’s program objectives and policies to other State Department and U.S. Government offices involved in programming Democracy Fund and Human Rights and Democracy Funds (HRDF) and other transfer funding to include but not limited to the Office of U.S. Foreign Assistance, regional bureaus, office of Global Acquisition, office of the legal advisor, congressional liaison office, office of management and budget, DOL/ILAB, and regional and thematic offices. The Contractor shall liaise and assist with program administration, financial planning and acquisition of programming funds. The Contractor shall assist with Congressional requests for information regarding programs and DRL program objectives and provide information to the NGO community and other implementing organizations regarding the USG and DRL grants processes.

The Program Specialist maintains, updates, and develops as necessary systems for the efficient and accessible retrieval of documents regarding the allocation, notification, transfer and implementation of HRDF, transfer funding, and special Congressionally mandated funds. The Contractor shall track the award of grants, maintain lists of current grants and GORs, and collect and records narrative and financial reports. They will be responsible for maintaining the DRL program and organizational files.

The Program Specialist applies internal control measures to protect organizational integrity and prevent unauthorized use or misappropriation of sensitive and classified material; reports instances of security violations/problems to the appropriate supervisory/management official; assumes full responsibility for safeguarding all classified and sensitive (but unclassified) material and equipment in assignment areas.

Job Duties:

Coordinate and assist the Program Analysts in the administration and coordination of international human rights and democracy foreign assistance programs.

Assist in the coordination of foreign assistance funding throughout the federal assistance life cycle that include pre-award, award and post-award phases in grants and cooperative agreements.

Assist the grants officer representative staff and grants officers to monitor grant budget execution to ensure program objectives are met.

Collect grant documentation for review by the Grants Officer, the Front Office and decision-making committees who will select grant recipients within available funding levels.

Liaise with offices involved in administration, financial planning and acquisition of program funding.

Skillfully communicate verbally and in writing to provide briefings, status reviews, and recommendations upon request to the other DRL program staff and bureau personnel on grant management issues.

Maintain and update federal assistance award information in DRL data bases.

Track the foreign assistance lifecycle progress throughout the fiscal year.

Liaise with grantees on administrative issues as directed by the Program Analyst.

Maintain team calendar and ensure that team meeting occur with supervisors.

Coordinate with the Program Analyst to ensure grant program reviews and program narratives are up to date in the DRL/PAT. Organize and maintain federal assistance award files in corresponding team shared drive.

Additional responsibilities may include:

Assist the GOR on an award to ensure the organization is compliant with federal regulations. Provide quarterly updates, coordinate and conduct check- in meetings with grantee and draft project updates for the GOR to review.

Liaise with implementer to coordinate stakeholder workshops and prepare documents for event as needed.

Attend stakeholder workshops and conferences on topics related to their duties and responsibilities, provide program monitoring and technical assistance to grantees, while supporting the FTE.

Coordinate with the program team to create and track a yearly portfolio spend plan, as needed.

Organize and participate in meetings, trainings, and/or conference events.

Undertake additional training to ensure they obtain relevant skills needed to advance U.S. policy and programming priorities and meet requirements of this SOW. Attend trainings or conferences to further knowledge in relations to duties and responsibilities listed above and/or hone expertise in regional or thematic areas including but not limited to: Democracy, Human Rights, Labor, Labor, Internet Freedom, International Religious Freedom, and Monitoring and Evaluations.

As needed and as resources permit, the individual may be asked to directly support the travel of senior DRL, Regional Bureaus and Offices under the purview of the newly established F Bureau and U.S. Department of State officials and/or at the direction of and in coordination with the Grants Officer Representative and/or Grants Officer, conduct program monitoring visits at the project implementation site to monitor grantee activities.

Report on program activities monitored and analyze to support both the Grants Officer Representative and/or the Grants Officer in their evaluation of programs.

Requirements:

The candidate must have experience with foreign assistance and international programming.

Must be able to travel globally to highly sensitive areas as needed.

Must be able to obtain security clearance.

Education:

Bachelors’ degree preferred with 2-4 years of experience or a master’s degree with 1-2 years will be reviewed for position.

Salary Range $75,000-$85,000

Benefits
Full-time employees are eligible for 401(k) and Roth retirement plans, Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance (for employees and families), Supplemental Insurance, 11 Federal Holidays, and at least three weeks of Paid Time Off (PTO), including sick and personal leave.

CRG is an equal opportunity employer. We make employment decisions based on merit, qualifications, and business need. All qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other state or federally protected category.