Job Description:

Description

About WestEd

WestEd - a nonpartisan, nonprofit research, development, and service agency - works with education and other communities throughout the United States and abroad to promote excellence, achieve equity, and improve learning for children, youth, and adults. We have more than a dozen offices nationwide, from Massachusetts, Vermont, and Georgia, to Illinois, Arizona, and California, with headquarters in San Francisco.

Throughout WestEd's over 50 year history we have maintained a strong commitment to staff diversity. Individuals of different ethnicities, races, abilities, gender identities, and sexual orientations, as well as from different cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic backgrounds, work at all levels of the organization. We value the range of perspectives provided by this diverse workforce and the ways in which those perspectives enrich and inform our agency and the work we do. Read more aboutWestEd's Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

Program Overview

As a community of over 800 researchers, practitioners, consultants, and administrative professionals from all backgrounds and life experiences, we are committed to making a qualitative difference in the lives of youth, children, and adults. We conduct and apply research, develop evidence-based solutions, and provide consulting services across the country in both rural and urban communities to improve equitable outcomes for individuals from infancy through adulthood. Serving as trusted partners in the areas of education, health, and justice, our teams enhance capacity within communities and school districts to prioritize impact - asking the right questions, customizing methodologies, developing relevant tools, and implementing best practices specific to a diverse range of stakeholder needs.

Furthering diversity, equity, and inclusion is core to who we are and how we work. We are committed to working with our clients to illuminate and address disparities, value and elevate diverse voices, and ensure equitable access to our resources and services. Come and join us!

The Opportunity

As Research Coordinator, you will plan and facilitate project work to ensure that research teams produce timely, high-quality results to help improve outcomes for underserved students and all students, more broadly. As part of your role you will also conduct research tasks, including training participants, drafting research instruments, collecting and analyzing data, and writing up research findings. Digital educational products and early mathematics interventions will be the focus of most of your projects. You will help provide ed tech companies, federal agencies, districts, teachers, and other researchers with valuable information about whether digital programs and early mathematics interventions are usable and meet their expected outcomes.

Serving as the project manager on teams, you will lead the creation of timelines and milestones, facilitate meetings, oversee task completion, and motivate your colleagues. You will support project directors in decision making and manage relationships with clients, vendors, and study participants. You will utilize your logistical skills, attention to detail, ability to build trust and strong working relationships, and ability to identify and resolve roadblocks to help teams produce excellent research that will improve learning experiences for students.

As operations coordinator, you will also serve as the representative of division operations to one or more division Content Areas.

Core Focus Areas

Team Management and Project Management (40%)

• Coordinate research project work, including timelines, schedules, and task assignments, to ensure project teams meet deliverables on time and on budget


• Oversee colleagues' tasks, providing training and feedback, to ensure tasks are completed to a high standard


• Create processes that enable colleagues to effectively and efficiently complete their work


• Facilitate communication with WestEd infrastructure groups (e.g., Contracts, Accounting), clients, vendors, and district leaders, working to resolve conflicts when necessary

Research Implementation (30%)

• Draft research instruments such as surveys, observation protocols, and interview protocols


• Support research participants by providing trainings, instructions for study activities, and responsive communication


• Conduct interviews and observations, administer surveys, and proctor assessment sessions


• Draft and revise Institutional Research Board (IRB) applications to obtain human subjects approval for research projects from WestEd's IRB


• Coordinate data collection in the field, including conducting child assessments


• Scoring child assessments and data entry

Proposal Production (15%)

• Coordinate proposal teams' work, including identifying and assigning tasks, troubleshooting issues, and liaising with external partners


• Liaise with WestEd infrastructure groups such as Finance, Institutional Development, Contracts, the Office of Research Integrity, and the Data Protection Office to facilitate compliance reviews


• Produce proposal pieces, such as letters of commitment templates and human subjects narratives, as needed


• Format all pieces and submit them via online grants systems

Division Operations Coordination (10%)

• Assist in rollout of division wide-initiatives to the Content Areas.


• Serve as point of contact in the division for division procedural questions.


• Ensure all institutional development pursuits are tracked in PAC.


• Advocate for ensuring quality assurance processes are implemented for deliverables in Content Area(s); escalate to Operations as needed.


• Ensure agency processes are followed, such as timely submission of timesheets, purchase/travel requests, and other business documentation.


• Provide status updates from Content Area(s) regarding project health and performance.


• Assist Content Area Director with annual business development activities.


• Assist with deploying resources across Content Area(s).


• Provide input and make contributions to improving operational efficiency and

Data Analysis and Dissemination (5%)

• Structure client reports and oversee the data analysis and report writing under the leadership of the project director


• Analyze qualitative data (interviews, open ended survey responses) using established coding procedures


• Perform basic descriptive analyses of quantitative data


• Work with colleagues to write up the findings of research studies for client reports, funder reports, academic journals, district leaders, and participants

SPECIAL NOTICE REGARDING THE WORK LOCATION OF THIS POSITION - Currently, all staff at WestEd are working from home until further notice. Once we return to offices, this position will be based in one of WestEd's offices. Candidates can submit a request to work from home.

What We're Looking For

To help us conduct high-quality research studies that provide insight on educational interventions for curriculum developers, companies that create educational apps, district leaders, teachers, and parents, we'll need someone who has:

• 2-4 years of experience managing projects or programs


• Experience managing others' work


• Bachelor's or Master's degree in psychology, education, cognitive science, or any field that provides experience to perform the responsibilities outlined above


• Experience working on research studies, such as drafting instruments and collecting data


• Experience working with teachers, students, and/or parents

Other degrees, skills, abilities, and experiences of interest

• Experience producing federal, state, or private foundation grant proposals


• Ability to manage ambiguity and quickly changing contexts


• Experience writing for a variety of audiences, including clients, teachers, parents, and academic journals


• Ability to build positive working relationships with various stakeholders, including clients, teachers, district leaders, and vendors

Salary

Salary for this role is competitive and at WestEd grade Level E. WestEd offers a very generous benefits package including medical, dental, and vision coverage, as well as Life, AD&D and Disability insurance. We also offer various retirement plan options and Flexible Spending Accounts for medical, childcare, and commuter expenses. WestEd offers generous paid holidays and paid time off (PTO), among other benefits.

Perks

In addition to WestEd's comprehensive benefits, our team values flexibility and offers flexible work hours. WestEd aims to provide you with a safe and comfortable work environment and offers ergonomic evaluations to make your work environment the best for you! Committed to the diversity of race, ethnicities, perspectives, and opportunities, WestEd offers a variety of ways to build community, including Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), affinity groups (e.g., WestEd Parents), and professional learning communities (PLCs) for Data Intelligence, Insights, Innovation, and Women in Tech, just to name a few. We hope you'll consider joining us to build better schools, communities, learning pathways, and more!