Senior Research and Evaluation Specialist

After School Matters is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization that annually offers after-school and summer programs to nearly 19,000 Chicago high school teens to explore and develop their talents while gaining critical skills that will set them up for success in college and beyond.

Thirty years later, now known as After School Matters, our program has engaged more than 350,000 Chicago teens and is the nation’s largest and most successful provider of after-school and summer programs for high school teens. No other organization offers programs to high school students at the scale and quality that we do.

We offer paid apprenticeships led by professionals in the fields of arts, communications and leadership, sports, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). Our nationally respected youth development model has been replicated in cities across the country and earned us the City Livability Award from the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

Programs take place at community locations throughout the city, including three ASM buildings: downtown at Gallery 37 Center for the Arts, the Michael and Karyn Lutz Center in Belmont Cragin, and the Pullman community at Gately Park.

Currently, After School Matters’ annual operating budget is approximately $35M and employs approximately 500 staff across the organization.

For more information, visit

Summary of Position:

The Senior Research & Evaluation Specialist will design and implement various research and evaluation projects to drive the development of practical tools, resources and publications. The Senior Research & Evaluation Specialist will develop and lead both quantitative and qualitative research and evaluation projects, translating findings to facilitate decision-making at all levels of the organization. Reporting to the Manager of Research & Evaluation, the Senior Research & Evaluation Specialist is the primary liaison for technical support to other internal partners.

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

• Lead and support research projects from beginning to end including conceptualization of the research/evaluation questions and methodological approach, collection of data and assessment, planning for and conducting analyses, interpretation of findings and data, translation of research evidence, and dissemination (written and presentations) for both research audiences and other ASM internal and external stakeholder audiences.
• Coordinate and implement tasks for key continuous quality improvement processes and research studies (e.g., YPQA/I, teen surveys and interviews, teen demographic and performance data, and other special population studies), progressing key project components and communicating with team members, internal and external stakeholders in a timely and clear fashion
• Conduct in-depth analyses with quantitative and/or qualitative methods, as appropriate, and synthesize findings, from both original research and secondary sources, including, but not limited to, Cityspan, YPQA/I assessments, survey data, Census Bureau data, and proprietary data from partner organizations
• Lead data management activities (e.g., collect, clean, organize, transform) with a range of data to ensure data integrity and quality
• Lead creation of reports, data visualizations, executive summaries, and other deliverables that interpret and disseminate outcomes and key findings from ongoing evaluation efforts, research studies, and special initiatives
• Promote organizational understanding of dimensions of youth development, engagement, skills building and related topics through development of resources to share with key stakeholders, and communication and technical assistance materials (e.g., guides, webinars, digital assets) to support ease of access and use.
• Provide research and data analysis-related technical assistance to internal and external partners when appropriate, including advising on best practices in developing strong data collection and management structures. Respond to inquiries from funders, leadership, partners, and external agencies in a timely and professional manner
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders in Programs, Program Quality and Compliance, Development, Finance, and the Executive departments to ensure organizational activities are leveraging data and insights
• Support research related grant writing, proposal development, and evaluation planning.
• Serve as a certified external assessor to oversee program evaluation process using the Youth Program Quality Assessment
• Supervise and provide coaching and support to Research and Policy Graduate fellows. When appropriate, oversee and delegate tasks to team members, appropriate personnel, and/or consultants to support key project activities and deliverables
• Represent After School Matters Research & Evaluation in key external partnerships and coalitions. Present at key learning conferences, policy forums and similar events on After School Matters research
• Performs other duties as assigned
  
  

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Graduate Fellows
  
  

Physical Demands:

The physical demands here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Must be able to sit and work at a computer for long periods of time.
  
  

Work Environment:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is not exposed to weather conditions
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
  
  

Qualifications:

• 3+ years experience in an evaluation or analytical role required, with a minimum of one year in an applied research or program setting preferred
• Master’s degree in a related field (e.g., Psychology, Sociology, Public Policy, Public Service/Administration, Education, Social Work) preferred, or Bachelor’s degree and at least 3 years of additional experience required
• Committed to the organizational mission to provide Chicago public high school teens opportunities to explore and develop their talents, while gaining critical skills for work, college and beyond
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – Committed to a workplace that values different backgrounds and life experiences and allows everyone to bring their authentic self to work. Builds equity into structure, systems, and processes for our employees and the teens we serve
• Bilingual (English and Spanish) language skills preferred, but not required
• Occasional evening and weekends availability required
  
  

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Professional experience leading and supporting quantitative and qualitative research projects, including data collection, management, and analysis
• Proficiency in qualitative and mixed methods research design and analysis.
• Proficiency in statistical concepts and analytical software (SPSS, STATA, R, and/or SAS), as well as software for qualitative analysis including NVivo
• Experience implementing data visualization best practices using one or more of the following platforms: Canva, Excel, Tableau, ArcGIS, etc
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications
• Strong storytelling skills, with the ability to quickly identify meaning and connections within large sets of data
• Ability to develop new procedures and to learn and apply new technologies as needed.
• Experience with the development of technical assistance and learning materials for social service organizations
• Strong skills in seeking out research insights and literature on the issues of youth development, youth employment, education, afterschool programs, and systemic barriers faced by youth
• Exceptional attention to detail and analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to write clearly, listen and communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Ability to maintain an independent perspective while collaborating closely with a wide variety of personnel.
• Willingness and ability to undertake complex, ad hoc research requests
• Capacity to work collaboratively and proactively within a team environment, as well as independently
• Experience with Youth Program Quality Intervention a plus
• Understanding of the organic nature of programs and how research methodology can be adapted is a plus
• Experience in using Cityspan database a plus
  
  

How to Apply:

Submit a cover letter and resume at http://afterschoolmatters.applytojob.com/apply

EEO:

After School Matters is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status, military discharge status, age, marital status, parental status, or source of income.

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