Senior Program Evaluator (PhD)

Center for Alternative•New York, NY

2h•$115,000•Hybrid

About The Position

CASES is seeking an experienced Senior Program Evaluator to support our Court Services and Pretrial Services departments. Our Pretrial Services work, delivered through the Manhattan Supervised Release Program (MSRP), serves approximately 8,000 individuals annually; primarily Black participants with diverse needs, including youth, people experiencing homelessness, and those with mental health or substance use challenges; all navigating active court cases in the community. This role leads to rigorous, equity-centered research and program evaluation, applying advanced quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches to generate actionable, policy-relevant insights. The evaluator serves as a principal investigator on complex studies, partnering with senior leadership to develop and monitor key performance indicators, design evaluation frameworks, and translate findings into evidence-based strategies that strengthen program effectiveness and advance equitable outcomes. The ideal candidate is a proactive, PhD-level researcher with strong analytic and methodological expertise, exceptional writing and communication skills, and a demonstrated ability to lead complex evaluation projects from design through dissemination in mission-driven environments.

Requirements

Doctoral degree in statistics, sociology, psychology, criminology, applied research methods, or a related discipline, plus at least 2-3 years of full-time, relevant research and program evaluation experience.
Experience in using Stata statistical software to analyze complex, large-scale datasets, including administrative, criminal legal history, and case record data.
Exceptional writing skills, with experience conducting evaluation in a nonprofit setting in partnership with frontline and management staff, as well as with individuals impacted by the criminal legal system.
Demonstrated ability to partner respectfully and effectively with program staff at all levels, approaching evaluation as a service to operations. Brings humility and an engaging orientation—recognizing frontline and management staff as subject-matter experts and the primary customers of the work—by producing timely, responsive, and practical analyses that reflect the realities of the work.
Please submit a resume/CV and a cover letter highlighting your evaluation experience (quantitative and/or qualitative methods), stakeholder collaboration, and approach to equity-centered evaluation. Applicants invited for an interview may be asked to provide a presentation during the interview process.

Responsibilities

Build deep expertise in Court and Pretrial Services and in the internal and externally contracted by NYC research & evaluation portfolio, partnering with program staff to co-design and implement timely, decision-useful evaluation and learning activities.
Apply an anti-racist, equity-centered evaluation lens in practice by embedding equity standards into all research and evaluation activities, partnering with staff and participants to define questions and measures, disaggregating and interpreting data to identify disparities and drivers, using culturally responsive, trauma-informed and participatory methods, and translating findings into concrete reports, presentations, and engagement tools that advance equity.
In partnership with the Managing Director, and in collaboration with Senior Directors, Directors, and Executive leadership, contribute to the development, strategic planning, and implementation of research and evaluation activities that align with priorities and meet program and organization needs.
Serve as the principal evaluator and independently design and lead quantitative and mixed-methods research and evaluation projects in collaboration with diverse stakeholders, selecting appropriate methodologies and engagement strategies to generate actionable findings that strengthen service delivery, organizational learning, and outcomes.
Execute end-to-end evaluation workflows, including extracting, managing, cleaning, merging, and analyzing administrative datasets using statistical software (e.g., Stata), to produce accurate, well-documented analyses that help staff to understand the implementation, service delivery, and outcomes.
Design and lead standalone qualitative research and evaluation (e.g., interviews, focus groups, and open-ended survey work), to generate direct insight into participant and staff experiences, implementation barriers/facilitators, and service quality, producing rigorous qualitative findings that stand on their own and strengthen interpretation of quantitative results.
Partner with program and cross-functional teams (Data & Analytics, Mission Advancement) to ensure data accuracy and translate research and evaluation findings into clear, practical insights, building staff confidence through accessible briefs, presentations, and facilitated discussions that support shared understanding.
Work strategically and collaboratively across CASES and with external experts in pretrial services, bail reform, and the populations CASES serves, to ensure the research and evaluation activities are grounded in the political, social, and community context of the work, as well as informed by the broader NYC, statewide, and national bail landscape.
Proactively identify and advance opportunities for new or expanded research and evaluation projects within Court Services and Pretrial Services, and across other CASES programs serving similar populations — focused on reducing pretrial detention and engaging participants in services that address their needs and vulnerabilities and reduced involvement in the criminal legal system.