Senior Advisor - Research

Memphis Shelby County Schools•Memphis, TN

About The Position

The Senior Advisor – Research works under the general supervision of the Research Manager to provide a high-level standard of competency in research, analysis, and program evaluation for the Department of Research and Performance Management. Evaluates programs and policies, assesses and performs analyses on data, and reports on such analyses to support the research, planning, and improvement functions of the District.

Requirements

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor’s degree related to research and analysis plus experience in a research lab or research department; where education and experience totaling a minimum of nine (9) years.
PROOF OF EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND/OR EXPERIENCE IS REQUIRED

Nice To Haves

A degree in social or behavioral sciences, psychology, education, public health or policy is preferred.
In addition, a related master’s degree or Ph.D. degree is highly preferred.

Responsibilities

Consult with district leadership, departments, program managers, and Board of Education leaders to provide pertinent and timely information concerning budget decisions, program decisions, and requested information to the Board.
Manages database extractions, programming, file and variable manipulation, and data security to ensure district teams have complete, accurate data in key domains for analysis.
Leads support staff in collaboration on and completion of research projects.
Evaluates district programs for effectiveness and analyzes data on focused topics of interest with the potential to improve student outcomes.
Composes narrative reports concerning evaluation findings or project work.
Supports other departments and external partners by fulfilling routine and ad hoc data and analysis requests to support data-driven decision-making; develops, refine, or consults on proposals for major district grants.
Serves as mentor to Research Analysts and Research Advisors by using subject matter, research design, and statistical modeling expertise to provide guidance and assistance on various projects.
Provides training to the Research and Performance Management department based on expertise in specific subject matter, research design, and statistical modeling.
Presents and summarizes data outcomes for a variety of audiences including program leads and senior District leaders in a transparent, accessible manner.
Conducts periodic training/coaching with other department leads about the basics of data collection design (especially surveys) and simple forms of data analysis to build their capacity and understanding of research and evaluation.
Advises department and project leads about appropriate measures and plans for evaluation for new or ongoing projects.
Stays informed of new and best practices within research and data analysis to provide the best ways to produce and report various information.
Performs other related duties as assigned or directed.