Research FELLOW; Hybrid

The Department of Education in the College of Arts, Sciences and Education is seeking a Research Fellow who will support key aspects of a mixed-methods policy evaluation.

The Research Fellow will support a multi-year evaluation of Michigan's Partnership Model of school and district turnaround. The project examines how the Partnership Model is implemented across districts and schools, how well it aligns with local needs, and whether it supports improvements in student-, educator-, and system-level outcomes. The evaluation uses an integrated mixed-methods design that includes analysis of statewide administrative data, annual surveys of educators, interviews with district and state education leaders, document analysis, and developmental evaluation activities designed to support continuous improvement within the Michigan Department of Education's Office of Partnership Districts.

(Prior research on the Partnership Model can be found here .)

The Researcher Fellow will work under the supervision of Dr. Jeremy Singer, the Principal Investigator (PI), and work closely with the Co-PI, Graduate Research Assistants, and state and district partners.

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible appointment for one year (12 months), with the possibility of renewal based on performance and funding availability.

• Coordinat e and conduct semi-structured interviews with district leaders, school leaders, state education agency personnel, and other key stakeholders
• Conduct qualitative data analysis, including interview coding, document review, and synthesis of findings across data sources
• Collect, organize , and code Partnership Agreements, improvement plans, benchmark review materials, meeting notes, and other implementation documents
• Support the development, administration, and analysis of annual surveys of teachers, principals, and district leaders
• Contribut e to the preparation, analysis, and interpretation of survey data
• Serve as a project manager for the evaluation, including c oordinating project timelines, deliverables, team meetings, partner communication, and activities across multiple evaluation work streams
• Help guide and mentor graduate and undergraduate research assistants, including assigning tasks, reviewing work products, and supporting training
• Maintain project documentation and ensure that research activities comply with approved human-subjects, confidentiality, and data-security procedures
• Draft research memos, technical reports, policy briefs, presentations, manuscripts, and other dissemination products
• Contribut e to research proposals and other efforts to secure external funding, if applicable

• Ensure that all research is conducted in an ethical manner and in compliance with safety standards and data protection regulations. This includes managing sensitive data correctly.

Ph.D. in education, public policy, sociology, political science, economics, psychology, or another relevant social science field

Training or professional experience in education policy, program evaluation, school improvement, K-12 education systems, or a related area

Experience with qualitative or mixed-methods research

Experience conducting or supporting interviews, surveys, document analysis, administrative data analysis, or other applied research activities

Strong project-management and organizational skills, including the ability to coordinate timelines, track deliverables, and manage multiple work streams

Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to contribute to reports, memos, presentations, manuscripts, and other dissemination products

Ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a multi-institutional research team

Ability to communicate…