Director of AI for Education & Workforce Transformation

IREX; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 150,000 - 181,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) plan

Paid time off

Job summary

IREX is seeking a Director, AI for Education and Workforce to lead AI-in-education strategy for the ASAS program in Jordan and advance IREX’s broader AI portfolio. This strategy and program leadership role emphasizes policy, governance, and stakeholder engagement over software development, with potential base in Amman, UAE, or Washington, DC.

The role requires senior leadership, building partnerships with donors and governments, and shaping scalable AI education offerings while aligning with

Qualifications

• Advanced degree or equivalent experience in education, workforce development, public policy, technology, organizational transformation, or a related field.
• At least 10 years of progressively responsible experience, including leadership in education, workforce, digital transformation, AI adoption, or a related area.
• Ability to translate AI concepts into practical strategies, programs, and institutional solutions for nontechnical stakeholders.
• Experience developing business and partnerships with donors, governments, foundations, companies, universities, or technology organizations.
• Strong knowledge of responsible AI and its implications for workforce transitions, institutional capacity, and learning.
• Demonstrated cross-functional leadership and excellent written, oral, facilitation, and public-representation skills across diverse contexts.

Responsibilities

• Serve as ASAS’s senior technical authority on AI in education, advising program leadership and partners on policy, governance, and responsible adoption pathways.
• Set the strategic vision for AI within ASAS and position the program as Jordan’s flagship reference point for responsible AI in early-grade education, aligned with U.S. Department of State priorities and IREX’s global AI agenda.
• Serve as principal advisor on AI policy, sequencing, and investment choices, ensuring that decisions reflect program objectives, institutional readiness, available evidence, and long-term sustainability.
• Define the evidence and learning strategy for AI—what ASAS must demonstrate, to whom, and by when—so that AI activities generate credible, policy-relevant findings rather than isolated pilots.
• Steer the program’s higher education AI-readiness work with Jordanian universities toward a systems-level agenda for teacher preparation and faculty capability, linked to IREX’s broader AI in education work.
• Anticipate and manage strategic risks, including regulatory shifts, vendor lock-in, gaps between donor expectations and implementation realities, and reputational exposure from premature or poorly governed AI deployment.
• Measure the impact of ASAS’s AI work and translate results into use cases and case studies for external communications, marketing, business development, and learning.
• Represent ASAS and IREX at national, regional, and global AI-in-education forums, contributing to policy dialogue and thought leadership across the Middle East and North Africa.
• Lead the design, delivery, and evaluation of responsible AI-enabled education and workforce programs.
• Design and develop AI solutions that make IREX distinct in the marketplace.
• Advise teams on tools, implementation models, vendors, risk controls, and measures of success.
• Ensure solutions reflect user needs, local systems, labor-market demand, institutional realities, and IREX quality standards.
• Shape scalable offerings such as AI readiness assessments, institutional transformation support, training, responsible AI learning products, and advisory services.
• Monitor technology, policy, funding, and labor-market trends and translate them into recommendations for leadership and program teams.

Skills

Cross-functional leadership

Strategic vision

Public speaking

Stakeholder engagement

Policy advisory

Education

Advanced degree or equivalent experience in education, workforce development, public policy, technology, organizational transformation, or a related field

Job description

IREX is seeking a Director, AI for Education and Workforce to lead AI-in-education strategy for the ASAS program in Jordan and advance IREX’s broader AI portfolio. This strategy and program leadership role emphasizes policy, governance, and stakeholder engagement over software development, with potential base in Amman, UAE, or Washington, DC.

The role requires senior leadership, building partnerships with donors and governments, and shaping scalable AI education offerings while aligning with