Director of Data and Evaluation

Position Summary:
The University of Maryland School of Social Work is currently seeking a Director of Data and Evaluation to be housed in the Social Work Community Outreach Service (SWCOS). SWCOS develops and implements community-based family strengthening services that support vulnerable families in achieving safety and well-being. This full-time, 12-month, open rank, research faculty position is responsible for leading the data and evaluation team in collecting, analyzing, and using data to inform the development, implementation and/or continuous improvement of cradle-to-career pathways and targeting interventions and solutions effectively. Programs to be evaluated include early childhood, K-12, college and career, community school, and clinical social work interventions.

An initial focus of the Director of Data and Evaluation will be Promise Heights, a U.S. Department of Education Promise Neighborhood grant funded initiative, focused on breaking the cycle of inter-generational poverty by significantly improving the educational and developmental outcomes and overall life prospects of children and youth in our most distressed communities. The core idea behind the initiative is that providing both effective schools and strong systems of support to children, youth and their families in poverty and thus meeting their health, social services, and educational needs will offer them the best hope for a better life. The University of Maryland School of Social Work is the lead agency for this Promise Neighborhood grant and is charged with working with community-based organizations, schools, faith-based institutions, and others to build a pipeline of wraparound services for youth and their families. All work is conducted with a sharp focus on anti-racism/anti-oppression, supporting the development of equitable solutions, and power-building for those most impacted by poverty and oppression.

The School of Social Work is deeply committed to a community of excellence, equity, and diversity and welcomes applications from women, underrepresented minorities, persons with disabilities, members of sexual minority groups, and other candidates who will contribute to the diversification and enrichment of ideas and perspectives.

Essential Functions:

• Strategically plan and communicate to align the mission, vision, service delivery and evaluation planning and execution across the organization.
• Collaborate with program staff to ensure each segment of the cradle-to-career pipeline intervention has a robust and effective evaluation plan.
• Lead staff and partners in collecting and analyzing data, and measuring against stated goals/outcomes, and revise evaluation plans as needed consistent with the Results-Based Accountability framework.
• Responsible for providing subject matter expertise and direction in research designs, analysis, and management of quantitative and qualitative data.
• Lead data and evaluation team to support and enhance the shared longitudinal case management data system (ProMIS) for individual children and adults participating in programming and oversee the training of system users. Consult on improvements and management of ProMIS as needed.
• Lead program staff in creating data-sharing agreements with all partner organizations.
• Collaborate with program leadership to ensure programs are being implemented with fidelity and that services are organized around student- and family-level data and outcomes.
• Monitor outcomes and services to ensure successful reporting on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis.
• Collaborate with senior leadership and department heads to create a system by which to share back data, outcomes, and goal progress with neighborhood residents, partners, staff, and funders.
• Strategically communicate research and evaluation findings to a variety of stakeholders including community members, funders, and academia. Develop multiple methods of outcome dissemination, including infographics and written reports.
• Facilitate data collection and evaluation in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Education’s Promise Neighborhood Evaluation Team. This includes working with the Urban Institute on the Government Performance and Results Act’s (GPRA) data analysis and annual neighborhood survey.
• Supervise Data Analyst, graduate assistants, and interns, as connected to data and/or evaluation work.

Qualifications :

Minimum Qualifications:

• Doctorate in education, data analytics, public health, social work, social science, or related field.
• Five years’ relevant work experience, including two years of supervisory experience.
• Demonstrated proficiency with results-based accountability.
• Demonstrated skills in using data in an applied setting to measure results and guide program implementation. Experience with performance management and reporting in a public sector and/or grant compliance setting preferred.
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams with diverse backgrounds and perspectives to develop innovative strategies and solutions.
• Comfortable in startup atmosphere where change and ambiguity are the norm.
• Experience with Institutional and Research Review Board protocols.
• Strong demonstrated commitment to anti-oppression practices.

Required Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Ability to manage large number of projects with various components and stakeholders in effective and time-constrained contexts. Required to assess, formulate, and evaluate the impact of recommended or implemented policies from a strategic and/or operational perspective
• Demonstrate attention to detail while prioritizing in a multi-task, high-paced environment
• Ability to interpret and explain data in succinct ways to a variety of stakeholders. Work is reviewed against overall goals with full accountability for results.
• Experience with management information systems and data analysis software; commitment and experience of working to reform systems and coordinate data resources and information in pursuit of common goals.
• Ability to use data to inform successful grant development and publications.
• Ability to cultivate and develop inclusive and equitable working relationships with students, faculty, staff, and community members.
• Ability to effectively present ideas and concepts in written or presentation format and use facilitation skills to build consensus.
• An understanding of the concepts of institutional and structural racism and their impact on underserved and underrepresented communities.
• Ability to manage relationships with a variety of stakeholders including community partners, residents, elected officials so that data is integrated into the culture of the initiative.
• Passionate about working in an organization that values and promotes diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism.

Position will remain open until filled. For best consideration, please submit applications before December 1st, 2021, using the following link: https://umb.taleo.net/careersection/jobdetail.ftl?job=210001H1&lang=en.

The University of Maryland is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law or policy. If you need a reasonable accommodation for a disability, for any part of the recruitment process, please contact us at HRJobs@umaryland.edu and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. Please note that only inquiries concerning a request for reasonable accommodation will be responded to from this email address