Job Title: Part-Time Research Associate
PVN ID: CU-2110-004297
Category: Research
Location: CUNY SYSTEM-WIDE ACCOUNTS

Job Description

General Description

The City University of New York (CUNY) Foster Care Initiative (FCI) aims to increase post-secondary enrollment and graduation rates for youth between the ages of 17-25 who are currently or formerly in care at CUNY. Offering the comprehensive academic and personal support services of CUNY through the Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP), FCI minimizes barriers of academic under-preparation through college navigation and mental health supports, individualized academic advisement, and community building opportunities through dedicated ASAP academic advisors and FCI engagement specialists. FCI continues to expand cross-system collaborations with strategic partners, strengthening on-going data management and deepening the evaluation agenda to implement systemic changes at CUNY to serve students more effectively. The Fostering College Success Initiative (FCSI) is a college residential support program for youth in care through a partnership between CUNY and the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS). FCSI students may reside in one of two CUNY residence halls (Queens College and Hunter College) and may attend any CUNY college. Students receive year-round (12 months) room and board, financial support and wrap-around services including tutoring, mentoring, and counseling within the dormitory setting. In addition, FCSI students are matched with CUNY academic success/opportunity programs such as ASAP, SEEK, CD that provide a range of financial, academic, and personal supports to ensure that students are fully supported in their degree pursuits. The overarching goal of the initiative is to increase post-secondary enrollment and graduation rates for youth in foster care attending CUNY colleges.

Position Overview:

The CUNY Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) is seeking an individual with quantitative research experience and technical skills to serve as a part-time Research Associate focusing on foster youth students at CUNY. The Research Associate will lead the development of an interactive Tableau data repository with various dashboards and visuals to summarize student data. Additionally, the research associate will be responsible for ongoing data collection, data management, and quantitative analyses to better understand the pathways and outcomes of currently approximately 800 former and current foster youth at CUNY, ultimately culminating in the creation of a research brief(s) summarizing the findings and potential recommendations for program and policy changes. The Research Associate reports to the ASAP Associate Director for Research and Evaluation and works closely with ASAP and Fostering Youth Initiatives staff members and other research offices within OAA. The goal of this work is to build and advance knowledge to expand the understanding of educational experiences of youth in foster care at CUNY. 

 

This position is grant-funded until August 30th, 2022, with the possibility of renewal depending on funding.

 

Other Duties

Duties:

  • Uses Tableau to create dashboards and visualizations to summarize a vast array of student data, such as, but not limited to, program data, administrative student data, NYC Department of Education, National  Student Clearinghouse and NYS Department of Labor data;

 

  • Develops research questions and designs analyses to answer them using available data sources;

 

  • Writes SQL queries to extract and/or manipulate data;

 

  • Cleans and organizes student data;

 

  • Works and collaborates closely with other CUNY research staff to identify and obtain relevant and necessary student data to load into Tableau;

 

  • Uses student data organized in Tableau to write a brief(s) describing post-secondary trends and patterns of youth in foster care at CUNY;

 

  • Ensures timely completion of project deliverables/deadlines;

 

  • Assists as needed with development of data sharing agreement(s) between CUNY, ACS, and the NYCDOE;

  • Contributes to funder reports and presents work to program leadership, administrators, and other stakeholders;

 

  • Conducts literature reviews that synthesize the state of research and interventions in relevant project areas;

 

  • Presents findings and recommendations in briefs, reports, and presentations for multiple audiences;

 

  • Respond to ad hoc requests in a timely and accurate manner;

 

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree required with related experience; Master’s degree preferred;
  • Training in social science research methods and/or a strong understanding of basic statistical concepts and quantitative research methods;
  • Clear understanding of data structures and relational databases/data tables;
  • Demonstrated proficiency in the use of statistical software (Stata, R and/or SPSS) to analyze and manipulate large data sets with complex structures;
  • Demonstrated proficiency with data visualization tools, such as Tableau;
  • Experience querying data from a relational database, such as SQL;
  • Familiarity with merging data sets and manipulating large amounts of data from multiple sources;
  • Detail-oriented, with an ability to keep accurate, well-organized records;
  • Ability to work carefully and quickly to meet the demands of a busy program with responsibility to multiple stakeholders;
  • Experience translating research findings into deliverables for diverse types of audiences;
  • Ability to prioritize tasks and manage time effectively;
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills;
  • Ability to work independently;
  • Strong organizational skills and interpersonal skills;
  • Demonstrated interest in issues of access to and success in postsecondary education.

RFCUNY Benefits

RFCUNY Employee Benefits and Accruals

About the Research Foundation

The Research Foundation of The City University of New York (RFCUNY) is a nonprofit educational corporation founded in 1963 to provide post-award fiscal and administrative support for CUNY’s research and sponsored programs. RFCUNY’s services allow CUNY researchers, faculty, and staff to focus on their intellectual curiosity and scientific discoveries, on projects and programs that serve our local and global communities, proposing concrete solutions to society’s most pressing challenges.

RFCUNY serves as a fiscal agent and works closely with all the CUNY campus Grants Offices to perform the core functions of post-award financial management for CUNY research projects and sponsored programs. These functions include legal assessment and signing of agreements where RFCUNY is named as a fiscal agent; setting up award accounts; preparing sub-awards and assisting PIs in monitoring the work of the recipients of sub-awards; supporting project directors with hiring and managing research project and sponsored program staff; supporting the purchasing and paying for goods and services with grant and program funds; managing financial aspects of projects including accounts receivable, financial reporting, invoicing, budget monitoring, and cost compliance with uniform guidance; ensuring that sponsor financial requirements are met; monitoring compliance with applicable project and financial management rules and laws; supporting the management of independent and external audits and financial reviews; and providing data, information, management expertise, and other supports to CUNY’s research and sponsored programs.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Research Foundation of the City University of New York is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Americans with Disabilities Act/E-Verify Employer. It is the policy of the Research Foundation of CUNY to provide equal employment opportunities free of discrimination based on race, color, age, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, national origin, disability, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic violence victim status, arrest record, criminal conviction history, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

Key Features

Department
CUNY ASAP
Status
Part Time
Pay Range
$40.00
Hour(s) a week
19.00
Closing Date
Dec 05, 2021 (Or Until Filled)
Bargaining Unit
No

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