MEAL Specialist: Data-Driven Program Improvement, Travel

Islamic Development & Empowerm; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

IDEA (Islamic Development & Empowerment in America) in Alexandria, VA seeks a Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist to strengthen MEAL across US Programs. You will support project design, data analysis, and learning activities, conduct field monitoring, and help implement program improvements, with travel within the U.S.

A Bachelor’s degree (Master’s preferred) in a relevant field plus 3+ years of M&E experience in the U.S. context, and strong writing skills are required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences, Information Systems, Economics, Statistics, or related field. Master’s degree preferred.
• 3+ years of M&E experience in the U.S. context, including designing and executing M&E plans.
• 2+ years of experience in the non profit sector preferably focused on food security, public health or community development in the U.S.
• Ability to travel within the US (up to 30%).
• Working knowledge of monitoring, evaluation and learning methodologies.
• Ability to collect reliable qualitative and quantitative data using appropriate data collection methods and tools.
• Ability to thrive in an agile, evolving environment, adapting to changing priorities and adjusting approaches as organizational needs develop.
• Strong writing skills with a track record of producing high-quality M&E reports, summaries, and proposals.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment with strong attention to detail.
• Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills across diverse teams.
• Fluency in English required; proficiency in additional languages spoken by the communities served by US Programs preferred.
• Must be eligible to work in the United States

Responsibilities

• Drive improvement of MEAL processes, tools, and templates across US Programs.
• Support project development, including proposal writing, logical frameworks, and MEAL plan establishment with key indicators.
• Conduct field monitoring visits and targeted assessments to examine project performance, investigate emerging issues, and inform program improvement.
• Conduct timely trend analysis of monitoring data to support project reporting and decision making.
• Assist in collecting, analyzing and sharing feedback from beneficiaries and project stakeholders and facilitate its use
• Support periodic assessments in coordination with the program teams and share findings, lessons learned and recommendations, and follow-ups on recommendations
• Support development and conduct of training workshops and webinars on program design, measurement, and evaluation for staff and partners.
• Participate in project review meetings to validate data, provide feedback, and support continuous learning.
• Produce knowledge products and lead sharing events to disseminate learning internally and externally.
• Promote adoption of digital tools and quality control measures to safeguard data integrity.
• Support the design, maintenance, and reporting setup of IDEA’s Grants Management System (GMS) and Program Database.
• Perform other duties as assigned

Skills

M&E experience

English fluency

Data collection

Education

Bachelor’s degree in a related field

Master’s degree preferred

Tools

GMS

Program Database

Job description

IDEA (Islamic Development & Empowerment in America) in Alexandria, VA seeks a Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist to strengthen MEAL across US Programs. You will support project design, data analysis, and learning activities, conduct field monitoring, and help implement program improvements, with travel within the U.S.

A Bachelor’s degree (Master’s preferred) in a relevant field plus 3+ years of M&E experience in the U.S. context, and strong writing skills are required.