Terms of Reference for the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) Officer Role

Programme:Adolescent Resilience and EmpowermentProgramme -AREP
Reports to: Head of Youth Programmes
Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda
Contract: Full-time

1. About the JM Education and Research Centre -JMERC

JMERC is a non-profit organisation established in 2020 to support communities in the Busoga Region,Uganda to advance resilience and social-emotional learning (SEL) for children and adolescents, particularly in underserved and polycrisis-affected areas. We focus on ensuring that learning environments,whether in schools or communities,support not just academic outcomes, but also wellbeing, adaptability and life skills.

Our work brings together implementation, research, and systems support. We design and deliver programmes that advance child and adolescent development.We believe that no individual, entity or organisation can independently address the needs of and challenges facing children and adolescents. For this reason, we closely collaborate with and support teachers and school leaders, parents and caregivers, community and systems actors to develop tools and resources to support children and adolescents learn, achieve and thrive. A strong part of our approach is grounding programmes in local context and ownership,while using data and evidence to adapt and strengthen delivery continuously.

Our work is anchored in four core values:

Hope: Inspiring optimism and certainty for a brighter future among vulnerable children, youth, and women.

Collaboration: Partnering with communities and stakeholders to build adaptive learning ecosystems.

Dependability: Delivering on our commitments with reliability and dedication.

Audacity: Embracing courage, passion, and vision to transform the present and shape the future.

Our core programmes:

Adolescent Resilience and Empowerment Programme (AREP): Enhancing adolescent girls’ resilience, wellbeing, agency, and informed SRHR decision-making through social-emotional learning, gender-transformative environments, and socio-economic empowerment.AREP currently operates two initiatives, namely Resilient and Empowered Adolescent Girls through Social and Emotional Learning (REASEL) that focuses on adolescent girls aged 15-19 years and Resilience and Social and Emotional Learning (RSEL) to Address Mental Health Challenges and Improve SRHR Decision-Making Among Young Adolescents (aged 10-14 years) in Uganda.

Foundational and Inclusive Learning Programme (FILP): Strengthening literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional learning among children through play-based, inclusive, and gender-transformative approaches.

2. Overall Purpose of the Position

The MHPSS Officer will provide technical expertise and day-to-day implementation support on adolescent mental health, psychosocial support, wellbeing and referral pathways within the AREP programme.

The officer will work closely with the programme teams, researchers, schools, teachers, health providers, government stakeholders and community actors to support the safe and effective delivery of SEL and mental health activities and ensure that adolescents requiring additional support are appropriately identified and referred.

The position will also contribute to documentation, learning, evidence generation and dissemination of lessons emerging from the programme.

3. Key Responsibilities

A. Technical leadership on mental health and psychosocial support

• Provide technical guidance on the integration of mental health, psychosocial support, resilience and wellbeing within programme implementation.
• Support the programme team to apply appropriate adolescent mental health and MHPSS approaches in school settings.
• Review and provide technical input into research tools, training materials, session plans and other programme resources from an MHPSS perspective.
• Ensure that programme approaches are age-appropriate, culturally responsive, gender-sensitive and adolescent-centred.
• Support the programme to maintain appropriate boundaries between school-based psychosocial support and specialised mental health care.

B. School and teacher support

• Support orientation and capacity building of teachers, school staff and relevant programme personnel on adolescent mental health, psychosocial wellbeing and SEL.
• Strengthen teachers’ understanding of recognising signs of distress and responding appropriately within their roles.
• Support the development and use of appropriate mechanisms for identifying learners who may require additional support.
• Work with schools to strengthen safe and functional referral and support pathways.
• Provide technical guidance on teacher wellbeing where this is relevant to effective implementation of the 3 JMERC programmes.

C. Referral, safeguarding and protection

• Map and maintain an up-to-date directory of relevant mental health, psychosocial, child protection and health referral services in programme implementation areas.
• Support the establishment and strengthening of referral pathways between schools, families, community structures and health/social services.
• Ensure that programme implementation follows appropriate safeguarding, confidentiality, consent/assent and ethical principles when working with adolescents.
• Support the programme team to appropriately manage disclosures relating to mental health concerns, violence, abuse, self-harm, sexual and reproductive health and other protection concerns, within established protocols.
• Escalate serious safeguarding or mental health concerns through the appropriate programme and professional channels.

D. Programme implementation

• Participate in planning, coordination and implementation of project activities in participating schools and communities.
• Conduct or support school visits, stakeholder engagements, training, mentorship and programme monitoring.
• Work closely with programme and research teams to ensure that implementation is consistent with approved programme protocols.
• Identify implementation challenges related to adolescent wellbeing and recommend practical solutions.
• Support adaptation of implementation approaches based on emerging evidence while maintaining programme fidelity.

E. Research, learning and evidence generation

Given that JMERC programming has implementation studies, the MHPSS Officer will also:

• Contribute to the collection, interpretation and documentation of implementation learning related to mental health, psychosocial support and adolescent wellbeing.
• Work with the research team to identify emerging themes, challenges and lessons from programme implementation.
• Support documentation of reach, acceptability, adoption, fidelity and sustainability from an MHPSS perspective.
• Contribute to programme reports, learning briefs, case studies, technical papers and presentations.
• Support the translation of research findings into practical recommendations for schools, government, health systems and other stakeholders.

F. Stakeholder engagement and partnerships

• Liaise,as relevant, with the Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Ministry of Local Government, district authorities and health facilities as appropriate to support children’s and adolescents’ education, health, wellbeing and protection.
• Support engagement with technical partners and specialists in adolescent mental health, MHPSS, child protection and SRHR.
• Contribute to technical working groups, consultations, learning events and policy dialogues.
• Support JMERC’s efforts to strengthen linkages between evidence, policy and practice in adolescent mental health and wellbeing.

G. Documentation and communications

• Document implementation experiences, success stories, challenges and lessons learned.
• Contribute technical content to programme communication materials while protecting adolescent confidentiality and dignity.
• Support the communications team to translate technical MHPSS evidence into accessible content for different audiences.
• Participate in dissemination events, conferences, webinars and stakeholder engagements as required.

4. Key Deliverables

The officer would be expected to contribute to:

• An integrated adolescent programme MHPSS implementation plan.
• Mapping and strengthening of adolescent mental health and psychosocial referral pathways.
• MHPSS inputs into RSEL and REASEL training and implementation materials.
• Teacher/school capacity-building activities.
• Regular school monitoring and technical support visits.
• Documentation of implementation learning and emerging MHPSS issues.
• Programme reports and learning products.
• Technical inputs into research outputs and dissemination.
• Contributions to policy and stakeholder engagement around adolescent mental health and school-based MHPSS.

5. Qualifications and Experience

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Counselling Psychology, Mental Health, Psychiatric Nursing, Public Health, or a related field.
• Professional training/qualification relevant to mental health, counselling, psychosocial support or adolescent wellbeing.
• At least 2-3years’ relevant experience in mental health, psychosocial support, adolescent programming, school-based interventions or related work.
• Experience working with children and adolescents, preferably within education or community settings.
• Understanding of safeguarding, child protection, confidentiality and ethical engagement with minors.
• Experience working with government, schools, health providers or community structures.
• Strong facilitation, communication, documentation and interpersonal skills.

Desirable

• Master’s Degree in a relevant field
• Experience with adolescent SRHR and mental health programming.
• Experience working within research or implementation studies.
• Knowledge of Uganda’s education and health systems.
• Experience with monitoring, evaluation, research or evidence generation.
• Experience working with multidisciplinary teams.

To Apply

All interested and qualified candidates should send their CVs and cover letters (as one attachment) to info@jmerc.org with the subject title —Application for MHPSS Officer— by 3rd November, 2026.

Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply.