The Schools' Observatory Project Manager (Maternity Cover)

The Schools' Observatory (TSO) project is looking for an enthusiastic, driven leader to join the team as Project Manager in a full-time maternity cover role. The position will include monitoring the project’s progress against the current strategy, available here: https://www.schoolsobservatory.org/strategy. Good communication skills will be essential for liaising with the team, users, stakeholders, and the wider department.

TSO is a major educational website, established by Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) to provide UK and Irish schools with access to professional robotic telescopes. It enables school students and educators around the world to take real observations across a network of 26 robotic telescopes. The project aims to inspire more young people to pursue STEM careers through the wonders of space and to support educators in delivering science education in the classroom. TSO provides real data, free, user-friendly software, educator CPD resources, and interactive activities for its approximately 27,000 registered users and millions of other interested parties who visit the website every month. It provides one of the university's largest online platforms, highlighting its commitment to public engagement, outreach, and cutting-edge research.

You will take on management of the project, including oversight of budgets; ensuring progress towards completion of the current 5-year strategy; line-managing the small team of staff engaged on the project; maintaining communication with stakeholders; and marketing the project to new audiences to expand the registered userbase. The position will also require oversight of website resources and information, representation of the project internally and externally, and, where appropriate, development of materials. Duties may also include organisation and participation in departmental outreach and public engagement activities, and liaising with local schools.

You will have a keen interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education initiatives and have experience managing both staff and projects.

High computer literacy is imperative, with a competency for all MS Office packages and website text editors a minimum requirement. Ideally, you will have a working knowledge of web development tools. Communication skills will be important not only for day-to-day work within the team but also for efficient interaction with stakeholders, including funding bodies and senior University management, as well as teachers and students using the website.

There will be a requirement to travel within the UK and possibly internationally to represent the project and, more widely, the Astrophysics Research Institute and LJMU.

You will need to display a commitment to promoting equality and diversity, which both The Schools' Observatory and the Astrophysics Research Institute are passionate about, having received the Institute of Physics Juno Practitioner and Athena SWAN Bronze award. We encourage applications from all people, especially those underrepresented in management and astrophysics.

Informal enquiries may be made to Professor Andy Newsam, TSO Director, at a.newsam@ljmu.ac.uk

We anticipate carrying out interviews for the post on the 16th or 18th December.

Please note all of our vacancies will be closed to applications at midnight on the advertised closing date, unless otherwise stated.

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