Research Program Specialist - School of Social Work

Research Program Specialist - School of Social Work

University of Illionis at Urbana-Champaign

Located in Urbana, IL

Job Summary

For the Violence Prevention Research Lab within the University of Illinois' School of Social Work, works on a team that conducts evaluations of projects targeting community and school-based violence prevention programs and provides technical assistance and training to violence prevention providers throughout the state. Develops and implements an evaluation plan; manages data collection; has ongoing contact with violence prevention providers to provide assistance and support;

provides technical assistance and training to contractors and funders; and prepares reports to funding agencies. Activities include conducting annual reviews of violence prevention evidence-based programs, providing technical assistance and training to providers, developing manuals, and collaborating on enhancements to data collection systems.

• Develops materials for evaluating violence prevention programs.
• Conducts annual reviews of evidence-based violence prevention programs.
• Collaborates with team members to develop dissemination reports or presentations of annual reviews of evidence-based violence prevention plans.
• Develops and monitors project timelines for meeting deliverables.

• Uses REDCap or a similar data collection management system to manage and track data collection among violence prevention program providers.
• Facilitate data collection efforts (e.g., focus groups, interviews) with violence prevention program providers.
• Reviews and interprets data analysis results and communicates data findings to a variety of target audiences.
• Forms mutually beneficial partnerships with funders and state-level administrators around issues related to data collection, interpretation, and utilization of findings.
• Manages Institutional Review Board (IRB) protocols for research projects related to violence prevention evaluation or prevention planning efforts.

• Forms mutually beneficial partnerships with violence prevention providers around the issues related to evaluation design, data collection, and interpretation and utilization of evaluation findings.
• Develops documentation and manuals for using REDCap or other data collection management systems.
• Ongoing contact with violence prevention providers to provide technical assistance on data collection and evaluation activities.
• Develops and delivers adult professional development activities to promote practical collection and use of data collection and evaluation materials using adult education and theories underlying instructional design.

• Collaborates with team members to meet research goals, including supervising research assistants and interns.
• Works collaboratively with other team members.
• Partners with team members to achieve project goals and objectives.
• Other duties and responsibilities as appropriate.

Master’s degree in social work, community psychology, sociology, human development, health services research, epidemiology, education, public health or related field. Two (2) or more years of experience working in the violence prevention field.

Experience with data collection and analysis as well as experience in applied research, program evaluation, training, consultation and technical assistance.

Basic knowledge of violence prevention programs. Excellent communication skills. Ability to work in a team environment. Knowledgeable about working with a variety of populations and cultures (e.g., race/ethnicity, class, gender). Good judgment (e.g., working within contracted role, responding appropriately to requests, verifying information) when representing VPRL externally via trainings, presentations, and site visits. Knowledgeable about working in an applied research setting.

Excellent interpersonal, time management, organizational and solution focused skills. Advanced writing skills for proofing and editing documents.…