Human Resources Employment Opportunities

General Summary: 

 The Research and Knowledge Translation (KT) Associate II will collaborate with an established team of Principal Investigators, researchers and policy staff implementing multiple national projects focusing on the employment of people with disabilities who are involved in public employment services. The incumbent will ensure that an understanding of the lived experience of gaining, retaining, and advancing in employment by people with disabilities is a central part of the research and knowledge translation activities. Expected tasks include participating in qualitative and/or quantitative research protocols, such as interviewing and analyzing data, designing processes and products to assist practitioners to modify practices based upon lived experience narratives, and to create a dynamic portfolio of products with and for people with disabilities who may pursue employment services. Occasional nation-wide travel may be required.

Examples of Duties: 

Research Activities:  

• Conduct qualitative and/or quantitative research in partnership with PIs and Senior Research Associates to collect lived experiences of persons with disabilities, their family members, and others.
• Maintain human subjects certification (CITI) and follow ethical principles in conducting interviews, focus groups, and observations.
• Create welcoming and comfortable spaces for people with disabilities to participate in research and KT activities.
• Promote equity and justice in all activities to ensure lived experience narratives and products represent the full diversity of people with disabilities.
• Conduct outreach activities and develop a network of relationships in the disability and research communities.
• Design qualitative and/or quantitative research protocols in consultation with the PI, including refining research questions and developing interview guides.
• Incorporate a participatory action research approach into protocol design that engages all relevant stakeholders in the design, implementation and interpretation of findings.
• Maintain and develop advanced skills in interviewing people with disabilities, providing accommodations, and collecting narratives from persons with a wide variety of communication skills, abilities, and preferences.
• Conduct qualitative and/or quantitative analysis that is methodologically rigorous, of high quality, replicable, and follows ethical standards.
• Maintain and grow skills in advanced qualitative and/or quantitative methodologies with a particular emphasis on equity, justice, and participatory action.
• Create external products that creatively reach populations of people with disabilities and their communities.
• Develop written products for multiple constituencies, including juried journal manuscripts, research reports, brief products and consumer-oriented manuals.
• Stay abreast of the field of public employment supports for persons with disabilities a special attention to populations that have been marginalized, underserved, or unserved.
• Support the PI to partner with funding agencies, including state vocational rehabilitation agencies awarded subcontracts, to ensure high quality, timely, accurate, and objective reporting of research results.  

• Assure research projects meet state and federal reporting requirements as well as contractual commitments.
• Perform other research duties as assigned.

Knowledge Translation Activities:

• Work as a team with the Knowledge Translation Manger and Knowledge Translation Director to partner with internal and external teams to implement KT plans.
• Manage and organize the KT plans that highlight lived experience of people with disabilities.
• Create a portfolio of lived experience products that advanced knowledge about how people with disabilities experience public employment services.
• Draft external marketing materials such as e-news content development, flyers, and various outreach products.
• Streamline communication mechanisms and tools internally between project staff and externally with project partners.
• Coordinate opportunities for engagement with project stakeholders including communities of practice, affinity groups, steering committee/ advisory council meetings, roundtables, etc.
• Assist with development and editing of written products for multiple constituencies, including juried journal manuscripts, research reports, brief products, special reports, summary reports for funding agencies, monographs, public policy papers and analysis of barriers to implementation of practices in the state and local service delivery systems, curriculum, and web-based materials such as toolkits, webinars, and infographics.
• Work with the Marketing and Communications Team to expand use of e-news and social media as a venue for dissemination of products, to manage assigned project websites, and to develop branding for publications, tool kits, and other products on assigned projects.
• Maximize website engagement and readership of project products by adhering to best practices in dissemination and monitoring and analyzing web analytics to gauge content performance.
• Provide other knowledge translation duties as assigned.

Qualifications: 

Master’s Degree in a social sciences or related field or bachelor’s degree and equivalent experience in research or knowledge translation involving people with disabilities. PhD or EdD preferred in social sciences or related field.  Three to five years of experience of disability and employment systems, providing community-based services and support to individuals with disabilities and/or conducting social science research is required.  Experience in quantitative and/or qualitative research including demonstrated experience with software for statistical analysis (e.g. SPSS) and/or qualitative analysis (e.g. Atlas) is required. 

• Demonstrated strong writing ability and familiarity with writing styles common for people with disabilities, the public, academic, practitioner, and policy makers as target audiences.
• Demonstrated proficiency with office applications, including word processing, presentation graphics, spreadsheets, and database management.
• Ability to work independently and supervise the work of others.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing and provide empathy in difficult interpersonal situations.
• Ability to negotiate project tasks and participate with collaborators from outside the institution such as advocacy organizations, family organizations, community agencies, state agency personnel or collaborating researchers.
• Ability to work on several projects simultaneously and manage time and priorities.
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to collect information from diverse sources, apply professional principles in performing various analyses, and summarize the information and data in order to solve problems. 
• Ability to communicate in languages other than English, including ASL, is an asset.
• Highly empathetic and ability to effectively and ethically interact with people who may have had significant trauma histories, concerns about public services, and fears about participating in research and knowledge translation activities. 

Application Instructions: 

Please apply online with your resume, cover letter and list of three professional references.

Review of candidates will begin following the application closing date. 

Only Internal candidates in the Professional Staff Bargaining Unit will be considered during the first 10 business days of the posting.  All other candidates will be considered after that period. 

Salary Ranges for the appropriate Pay Grade can be found at the following link: 

Grade: 32           

Salary Ranges

This is an exempt union position. This is a grant funded position with a current end date of Aug 31, 2024, subject to renewal contingent on funding and university needs.

All official salary offers must be approved by Human Resources.

UMass Boston is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, we will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations for the hiring process. If reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact the ADA/504 Coordinator Andrea Haas  or 617-287-5148.