Youth Learning Specialist (Volunteer – PromisePlay Educational Game App)

Youth Learning Specialist (Volunteer – PromisePlay Educational Game App)

Organization: Mentor A Promise (MAP)

Division: PromisePlay – MAP Educational Game Initiative

Location: Remote

Type: Volunteer (Unpaid)

About Mentor A Promise

Mentor A Promise (MAP) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting children and youth ages 5–18 experiencing housing instability in New York City. Through mentorship, academic enrichment, social-emotional learning (SEL), literacy development, and creative expression, MAP creates safe, consistent, and empowering spaces where young people can thrive.

PromisePlay, MAP’s educational game initiative, brings together educators, designers, and youth collaborators to create trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and story-driven learning experiences for children navigating unstable housing. The project transforms play into a platform for emotional healing, creativity, and growth — empowering young learners to see themselves as heroes of their own stories.

About the Role

We are seeking a Youth Learning Specialist to ensure that student voices drive the design and development of the PromisePlay educational game app from concept to launch. This role combines youth engagement, educational insight, and participatory design to ensure that the app’s content and gameplay reflect the lived experiences, interests, and developmental needs of the children it serves.

You will work alongside instructional designers, game developers, and content specialists to align gameplay and narrative with authentic, youth-centered learning.

Key Responsibilities

• Collaborate with the design and development team to integrate age-appropriate learning objectives into gameplay, storylines, and interactive challenges.
• Provide insights into youth learning styles, motivation, and cognitive and emotional development.
• Review and refine educational content for accuracy, accessibility, and engagement.
• Help design and conduct playtesting sessions with youth participants; collect, analyze, and report feedback to improve educational outcomes.
• Develop lesson guides, reflection activities, or supplemental materials for educators, parents, or mentors.
• Champion inclusive, culturally responsive, and trauma-informed design principles across all game elements.
• Collaborate with the Instructional Designer and Educational Content Specialist to ensure SEL frameworks are authentically represented.
• Check and respond to emails daily, ensuring all responses are completed within 48 hours.
• Take responsibility for performance improvement by applying feedback from user testing and project evaluations to strengthen learning outcomes.

Qualifications

• Degree in Education, Psychology, Human-Computer Interaction, Youth Development, or related field (or equivalent experience).
• 3+ years of experience conducting youth engagement, participatory design, or user research projects.
• Proven ability to facilitate interactive sessions with young people in educational or community settings.
• Strong research and analytical skills; experience with user testing or mixed-method data collection preferred.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Collaborative, empathetic, and creative approach to cross-functional teamwork.
• Passion for equity, social-emotional learning, and amplifying youth voices in technology and education design.

Commitment

• Volunteer role requiring approximately 5 hours per week.
• Minimum 6-month commitment preferred.
• Fully remote position with weekly virtual team meetings.

What You’ll Gain

• The opportunity to design learning experiences that amplify youth voices and support emotional well-being.
• Hands-on experience in educational technology and participatory learning design within a nonprofit context.
• Collaboration with educators, designers, and creative leaders through MAP’s PromisePlay initiative.
• Professional development, mentorship, and networking opportunities.
• Letters of recommendation and professional references upon successful completion.

Application Process

Please send your resume, LinkedIn profile, and a brief statement of interest to hr@mentorapromise.org with the subject line Youth Learning Specialist (PromisePlay).

You may also apply directly here: https://forms.gle/ptgy2zBZXJB1q7GV8

Listen, learn, and lead — help PromisePlay design an educational world where every child’s story, voice, and imagination shape how we learn and grow.