Sr. 2D Animator, Khan Kids (12-month contract, $60/hour, 40 hours/week)

ABOUT KHAN ACADEMY

Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the mission to deliver a free world-class education to anyone anywhere. Our proven learning platform offers free high-quality supplemental learning content and practice that cover Pre-K - 12th grade and early college core academic subjects focusing on math and science. We have over 181 million registered learners globally and are committed to improving learning outcomes for students worldwide focusing on learners in historically under-resourced communities.

OUR COMMUNITY

Our students teachers and parents come from all walks of life and so do team includes people from academia traditional/non-traditional education big tech companies and tiny startups. We hire great people from diverse backgrounds and experiences because it makes our company value diversity equity inclusion and belonging as necessary to achieve our mission and impact the communities we know that transforming education starts in-house with learning about ourselves and our colleagues. We strive to be world-class in investing in our people and commit to developing you as a professional.

ABOUT KHAN ACADEMY KIDS

Khan Academy Kids is a free and fun learning program for children ages two to eight. Kodi Bear and a cast of animated characters lead children on a personalized education journey filled with fun standards-aligned activities in early literacy math executive functioning and social emotional skills. Built by a small but mighty team Khan Academy Kids is used by millions of children in homes and classrooms around the world.

THE ROLE

The Khan Academy Kids team is seeking a Senior 2D Animator with strong animation skills and a deep understanding of how to engage young children through motion character performance and playful design. In this role youll bring charming characters interactive interfaces and joyful learning moments to life using the latest animation tools pipelines and technologies. This is a contract role of 40 hours/week for 12 months at $60/hr depending on experience. Depending on business need there is potential for this role to convert to a full-time position down the line.

Responsibilities:

• Bring to life charming characters dynamic interface components and captivating visual elements using Rive software. Experience with Rive is not required but adaptability to learn new tools is essential.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with 2D artists product managers engineers and other animators to deliver playful engaging animations.
• Drive creative brainstorming and narrative strategies that connect meaningfully with young learners.
• Harmonize animations with audio elements including music sound effects and narration.
• Maintain consistency with the Khan Academy Kids visual style and brand guidelines.
• Review work of others on the team and provide thoughtful feedback.

WHAT YOU BRING

• 5 years of experience in 2D animation for mobile apps games or media.
• Familiarity in developing animations for early childhood audiences (ages 2-8)
• Proficiency in modern animation tools. Experience in Rive or state machines is preferred.
• Ability to balance creative vision with technical and production constraints in a collaborative fast-paced environment.
• Comfort working with engineers to ensure animations are efficiently integrated into interactive products.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills for technical and non-technical collaborators.
• Passion for early childhood education and childrens media and an attentiveness to what kids and families find fun and efficacious.
• Motivated by the Khan Academy mission to provide a free world-class education for anyone anywhere.

NOTE: Submitting a portfolio or demo reel with your application is . Please be sure to include passwords if applicable. Were looking for a portfolio/demo reel that highlights your animation work including character UI and interactive animations.

MORE ABOUT US

• Sals TED talk from 2011
• Sals TED talk from 2015
• Sals TED talk from 2023
• Our team: COMPANY VALUES

  Live & breathe learners

  We deeply understand and empathize with our users. We leverage user insights research and experience to build content products services and experiences that our users trust and love. Our success is defined by the success of our learners and educators.

  Take a stand

  As a company we have conviction in our aspirational point of view of how education will evolve. The work we do is in service to moving towards that point of view. However we also listen learn and flex in the face of new data and commit to evolving this point of view as the industry and our users evolve.

  Embrace diverse perspectives

  We are a diverse community. We seek out and embrace a diversity of voices perspectives and life experiences leading to stronger more inclusive teams and better outcomes. As individuals we are committed to bringing up tough topics and leaning into different points of view with curiosity. We actively listen learn and collaborate to gain a shared understanding. When a decision is made we commit to moving forward as a united team.

  Work responsibly and sustainably

  We understand that achieving our audacious mission is a marathon so we set realistic timelines and we focus on delivery that also links to the bigger picture. As a non-profit we are supported by the generosity of donors as well as strategic partners and understand our responsibility to our finite resources. We spend every dollar as though it were our own. We are responsible for the impact we have on the world and to each other. We ensure our team and company stay healthy and financially sustainable.

  Bring out the joy

  We are committed to making learning a joyful process. This informs what we build for our users and the culture we co-create with our teammates partners and donors.

  Cultivate learning mindset

  We believe in the power of growth for learners and for ourselves. We constantly learn and teach to improve our offerings ourselves and our organization. We learn from our mistakes and arent afraid to fail. We dont let past failures or successes stop us from taking future bold action and achieving our goals.

  Deliver wow

  We insist on high standards and deliver delightful effective end-to-end experiences that our users can rely on. We choose to focus on fewer things each of which aligns to our ambitious vision so we can deliver high-quality experiences that accelerate positive measurable learning with our strategic partners.

  We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race color ancestry religion sex gender gender identity or expression national origin sexual orientation age citizenship marital status disability or Veteran status. We value diversity equity and inclusion and we encourage candidates from historically underrepresented groups to apply.
  
  As part of this commitment Khan Academy will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations for the hiring process. If reasonable accommodation is needed please contact